SAFF Cup had been missing the audience up till now. But people selling the Indian flag and jersey on the way to the stadium ahead of India’s opening clash against Sri Lanka had to be a good indication. And staying true to the Christmas spirit, fans started occupying the stands an hour before the match started. By the time the teams took to the field, there was considerable noise and continuous blowing of the bugle — a throwback to the infamous Vuvuzelas in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
After 90 minutes were over, India had won 2-0, both goals scored by the Bengaluru FC and Delhi Dynamos striker Robin Singh. Sri Lanka, just like their first game against Nepal, came out with no intention to score a goal. They wanted to defend till their last breath, get a draw and progress to semi-finals. But as we have seen time and again, parking the bus doesn’t always work out.
And while the men in blue can take some positives off the match, head coach Stephen Constantine would be worried about a few things that need to be addressed if India plans to clinch the SAFF Cup.
Catch ’em while their young
Constantine, in an interaction (link to Constantine piece) ahead of the game, had said he wanted to utilise the SAFF Cup as a test-run for youngsters. That the competition was a good opportunity to see what they have got.
The Englishman walked the talk against Sri Lanka and gave his young ones a chance to shine in the match. Six players of age 25 or below were given starts. Only player above the age of 30 was skipper Sunil Chhetri and the average age of the starting even was just a shade above 25.
And it did show a difference. Constantine had complained that the fast-paced ISL calendar had burnt out his players, and caused injuries to his stars. Sandesh Jhingan, Anas Edathodika, Cavin Lobo and Seityasen Singh were all out. All of them had a busy ISL season.
But when Constantine’s twenties’ army took on Sri Lanka, they hardly showed any signs of fatigue. India enjoyed around 78 percent possession throughout the game, pressed continuously and never held back. It was a relentless offense on Sri Lanka’s stronghold, although many times the attacks creativity, but one has to give credit to the work ethic shown by the hosts. Sanju Pradhan must have ran the entire match.
And then 18-year-old Lallianzuala Chhangte became the 502nd player to be handed India cap, when he came on for the injured Robin Singh. And he impressed a lot — the kid instantaneously brought a breath of fresh air to the team, made some excellent runs and even put Chhetri on through to the goal. Zuala, as he is called by his teammates, is a fan of Sunil Chhetri and, as Constantine said in the post-match presser, has an incredible future ahead of him.
The one-dimensional approach
Although India’s relentless string of attacks were commendable, but one was frustrated seeing just how many of them were a cross in the box from the right. India lacked inventiveness going forward and opted for a direct approach — run to the right, put a cross in and hope someone would score, somehow. It was boring and more importantly unsuccessful. A team must explore all its options and exhaust all its resources.
Due to the strategy India adopted, the best player in the team and probably the greatest marksman in the SAFF region, Sunil Chhetri was wasted the entire first half. He was barely involved in the moves.
And when it came to crossing, India were highly inaccurate with the ball barely reaching the first defender at the near post.
The introduction of Rowllin Borges changed things around. “Bringing on Borges made a big difference to us. And there’s the surprise, he’s not playing in the ISL, which is for me unbelievable,” Constantine assessed the 23-year old’s performance.
Borges pushed forward and brought Chhetri in the game. The first goal came from the left itself, with Chhetri cutting in and providing the ball to Robin Singh.
The long-ball strategy might work against Sri Lanka, but tougher opponents lie ahead. And India must have more guns in their arsenal.
Squandered chances
India, frankly, will not get as many chances against Maldives or Afghanistan as they did last night. The hosts must look to be much more clinical in front of the goal. Many easy chances were not pounced upon. Jeje particularly, could’ve at least scored twice on the night and would’ve also thus boosted his confidence going into the tougher matches of the tournament.
Constantine, however, came out in his support. “I have every confidence in him. He’s a good player, great target man and I’m not worried about him not scoring,” he said after the game. It’s good of the coach to back his strikers. And squandered chances can be easily dismissed if you’ve won the game. But if you don’t, they pinch a lot.
However, Constantine did admit he was not satisfied with the scoreline on the night. “We could’ve scored three-four-five. So there’s always room for improvement for myself and the players. We need to get better by each game. These tournaments are not how you start necessarily but how you finish them,” he said after the game.
The defence
India’s defensive third could’ve had a little tea-party of their own and no one would’ve noticed last night. Sri Lanka didn’t want to score. Gurpreet might have had a couple touches of the ball and was visibly bored, seen strolling around the half-way line.
But this won’t be the case against India’s next opponents Nepal. They’ll be quick and sharp. They have lost the first game and will go all out to win against India. The hosts’ defence will be tested. And with Jhighan injured, we don’t yet know how the centre backs Arnab Mondal and Augustine Fernandes will hold up. India’s defence must not get complacent and they need to be prepared for what’s coming.