Sunday, November 10, 2024
News

Tri-Nation International Football Tournament: India win title after 2-0 victory over Kyrgyz Republic

   SocialTwist Tell-a-Friend    Print this Page   COMMENT

Imphal (Manipur) | March 29, 2023 8:34:32 AM IST
The Indian football team won the Tri-Nation International Football Tournament 2023 after a 2-0 victory against the Kyrgyz Republic at the Khuman Lampak Stadium in Imphal, Manipur, on Tuesday.

As the capacity crowd of 30,000 cheered and applauded Sunil Chhetri and his men right from the word go, the Blue Tigers played some inspiring football against the higher-ranked Kyrgyz Republic to snatch a 2-0 victory and bag the Tri-National International Tournament Trophy with an all-win record under their belt and without conceding a goal.

Played during the FIFA window between March 22 and 28, 2023, Croatian coach Igor Stimac and his wards made the best out of it by winning both matches in the competition. They began their campaign with a 1-0 win over Myanmar and a rather emphatic scoreline against the Kyrgyz Republic on Tuesday put them in the enviable position of finishing the tournament with six points from two encounters.

Against the Kyrgyz Republic, the opening goal came from a rather unexpected quarter - centre-back Sandesh Jhingan found the target in the 34th minute. As Brandon Fernandes put the ball in style in front of the rival goalmouth off a free-kick, Jhingan pounced on it like a panther to find the back of the net. If the Kyrgyz Republic goalkeeper Tokotaev Erzhan had an inkling that the tall Indian defender would go for a header, then he was terribly wrong as Jhingan waited for the ball to land and then swung it with a deft touch to give India the lead. It wasn't for nothing that the crowd turned the merriment into a rather wild one that lasted for a few minutes.

Indian coach Igor Stimac, on the eve of the match, spoke about going for all-out attacks despite the fact that a draw would have been enough to keep the trophy home. He certainly kept his word as India launched a series of raids on the opposition goal whenever they had the opportunity. One such attack in the 84th minute saw the Kyrgyz Republic defence crumble under pressure as Naorem Mahesh Singh was brought down inside the penalty box by Davydov Nikolai.

The award of the spot kick certainly came as a matter of double delight for the home fans. It wasn't only the second goal for India, but also the 85th international strike in his career for the Indian captain Sunil Chhetri. As the legend of Indian football stepped up to take the kick and then strike it to the corner of the net, the joy of the spectators knew no bounds. While Chhetri coolly walked back to his position after doing something that he has been doing regularly for the Blue Tigers since 2006, Stimac was spotted having a broad smile on his face and hugging his assistant coach Mahesh Gawli, who once was Chhetri's teammate in the National Team.

Overall, India were the deserving winners, their fifth straight win on home turf. Stimac made six changes from the team that started against Myanmar, but it didn't at all break their rhythm. In fact, India could have won by a bigger margin - the Kyrgyz Republic goal had a few close shaves as a couple of attempts from Chhetri and Chhangte missed the target by a whisker. If preparations for the AFC Asian Cup in January next was the chief purpose of hosting the tournament, then it was definitely a success - the Indians clearly displayed that they were growing in confidence before they take up the all-important continental challenge.

India XI: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (GK), Sandesh Jhingan, Akash Mishra (Mehtab Singh 79') Anwar Ali (Naorem Roshan Singh 79'), Pritam Kotal, Anirudh Thapa (Rohit Kumar 67'), Suresh Singh Wangjam, Jeakson Singh Thounaojam (Sahal Abdul Samad 67'), Brandon Fernandes (Naorem Mahesh Singh 57'), Lallianzuala Chhangte, Sunil Chhetri (C). (ANI)

 
  LATEST COMMENTS (0)
POST YOUR COMMENT
Comments Not Available
 
POST YOUR COMMENT
 
 
TRENDING TOPICS
 
 
CITY NEWS
MORE CITIES
 
 
 
MORE SPORTS NEWS
Top Indian athletes mark their presence ...
Perth ODI: Pakistan win toss; opt to bow...
Nathan McSweeney receives maiden call-up...
'Need to execute planning that we make':...
Bijender Goel, founder of Modern Pythian...
PKL: Mighty Mani and Nitin Kumar lead Be...
More...
 
INDIA WORLD ASIA
PM Modi to hold mega roadshow in Jhrakha...
'Maha-jhoothi alliance creating atmosphe...
22-yr-old shot dead by bike-borne miscre...
WB: One held in Kolkata after police sei...
Two held for snatching, gang dismantled ...
'Government will not tolerate any unrest...
More...    
 
 Top Stories
Human-animal conflict in C'garh: Lo... 
5-day Chilika Shelduck Internationa... 
Punjab: 3 killed in brawl between t... 
'Freedom at Midnight' trailer explo... 
Waqf row: Karnataka govt writes to ... 
Russia's First Deputy PM Denis Mant... 
J-K: Exchange of fire between terro... 
Liam Payne's death ruled out not su...