India beat Vanuatu 1-0 to book a spot in the final of the Intercontinental Cup at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhuaneswar.
The second round match saw India put on a struggle initially before ensuring a narrow win off Chhetri’s 80th minute effort, which fetched the veteran striker his 86th international goal.
India vs Vanuatu, Intercontinental Cup HIGHLIGHTS
India fielded nine changes compared to the side that beat Mongolia in the opening match, while retaining captain Chhetri and central defender Sandesh Jhingan in the starting eleven. The new selection struggled to find the usual coordination and that resulted in the host’s game plan going haywire. The Indian approach lacked direction and the game lapsed into a sluggish exercise giving Vanuatu enough space to plan its attacks.
The first chance for India came in the 16th minute when Subhasish Bose fed Nandhakumar Sekar with a nice back-centre but the latter remained off target. The sequence of misses continued further as Nandhakumar, Liston Colaco and Chhetri kept missing their chances. India had a great chance in the 35h minute when Naorem Mahesh Singh found Nandhakumar with a precise cross on the Vanuatu goalmouth but the unmarked winger shot wide from close.
Mahesh, who galvanized the left flank with numerous runs upfront, set up Chhetri with a nice cross in the 41st minute but the Indian captain failed to connect his header. Chhetri made another error in the 60th minute to see the scoreline remaining blank.
The Indian performance came alive after the 61st minute when Stimac brought in four changes – Anirudh Thapa, Jeakson Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad and Lallianzuala Changte – from his list of first choices to spruce up the team’s attack. India had a good chance to find the lead in the 77th minute but substitute Anirudh Thapa’s thundering left-footer was cleared by the Vanuatu captain Brian Kaltack.
India continued to press for more and found the winning goal in the 80th minute when the Chhetri regained his magic touch. The Indian captain chested down a Subhasish Bose cross and finished with thundering left-footed half-volley on the top of the Vanuatu net.
Chhetri did an unusual celebration after his goal as he put the ball under his jersey and threw out kisses to his wife, Sonam, who was acknowledging his feat in the stands, to announce his fatherhood. “I wanted to share the happiness and get the compliments and good wishes from everyone in the country,” Chhetri announced after the match.
The results: India 1 (Sunil Chhetri 80’) bt Vanuatu 0.
Comments
SHARE