New Delhi: India successfully retained the SAFF Championships title, coming through 4-0 against ten-man Afghanistan after a feisty final at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Sunday.
The defending champions needed a controversial penalty from Sunil Chhetri to break the deadlock in the second half, which also saw Afghanistan goalkeeper Hameedullah Yousufzari sent off for pushing the referee. Goals from Clifford Miranda, Jeje Lalpekhula and substitute Sushil Kumar Singh then added some gloss to the scoreline, as India used their extra-man advantage to win a record sixth SAFF Cup.
After a goalless opening half in which Afghanistan completely outplayed India, the match was turned on its head in a manic eight minutes when leftback Faisal Safa fouled Jeje inside the box in the 63rd minute. Yousufzari took the decision rather badly, but his aggressive reaction towards Singapore referee Sukhbir Singh hurt his team far more as the 30-year-old custodian was given his marching orders.
A lengthy delay ensued as the Afghanistan players and team officials strongly contested the decision, with Djelaludin Sharityar getting a yellow for his protests, while a furious Yousufzari had to be escorted off the pitch by his teammates. Substitute keeper Bashir Ahmad Darman finally came on in the 68th minute, but Chhetri calmly slotted his spot-kick to Darman's right before running off towards the stands to celebrate.
The drama was not over, however, with the referee calling Chhetri back to re-take the penalty after ruling that Nirmal Chettri had intruded into the box. The 27-year-old though, found the mark again, finally ensuring India took the lead in the 71st minute.
Reduced to ten men, a shell-shocked Afghanistan struggled to pick themselves up, while India went on the attack as they looked to settle the game. The pressure paid off by the 79th minute, when Chhetri found Clifford Miranda in plenty of space on the right and the Dempo star's low shot went in at the far side to double India’s score, even as Safa was off the pitch receiving treatment.
Within a minute, the floodgates opened again and it was 3-0 to the hosts. The sprightly Chhetri provided another assist, this time for his younger strike partner Jeje, who drilled his shot into the right-hand corner past the hapless Darman.
The contest had been killed after the red card, but India added further salt to a hurting Afghanistan's wounds in the five minutes of added time, when Sushil – on for the injured Chhetri – unleashed a fierce shot that found the top corner, much to the delight of the celebrating Indian supporters.
The final score did little justice to Afghanistan's strong first-half display, however, when such a scenario had looked very unlikely. Afghanistan made light of their semi-final exertions – when they had needed extra-time to edge past Nepal – to put India on the backfoot right from kick-off.
Just as in the group game between the two sides – which had ended in a 1-1 draw – it was Afghanistan who created all the early chances, and they could have taken the lead in the very first minute but leading striker Balal Arezo – who finished with six goals – was unable to get a shot away after a timely Gourmangi Singh tackle.
Haroon Fakhruddin, Sanjar Ahmadi and Arezo all had shots on target soon after which did not really trouble India goalkeeper Karanjit Singh, but he had to make an excellent low save at Arezo's feet in the 25th minute to keep the scores level.
Afghanistan continued to dominate as India struggled to get out of their own half, with the midfield failing to impose itself, and many Indian players were guilty of losing possession far too easily in the face of some determined pressure from the visitors.
The dramatic turn of events in the final 20 minutes, however, changed the course of the match as India benefited from a penalty for a second match in a row after the semi-final win over Maldives, and the destination of the trophy was never in doubt after the sending off.
The crucial penalty maintained Chhetri's record of having scored in every game India have played in this tournament, and saw him finish as the leading goalscorer with seven goals in five games. He rounded off the evening with his fifth consecutive Man-of-the-Match award, while also winning the Fair Play award and Most Valuable Player award.
For Afghanistan – playing their first-ever SAFF Cup final – there was only disappointment at the end, though the visitors can be proud of their free-flowing game and the fighting spirit that saw them upset all predictions with a surprise run of success. India coach Savio Medeira, on the other hand, experienced the joy of his first-ever win as the pre-tournament favourites continued their domination of the regional competition with another successful triumph.
Comments
0 comment