[ad_1]
Two quick second-half strikes by Marram Mohammed broke Indian hearts as the Blue Tigers went down 0-2 to Saudi Arabia at the Hanglong Sports Centre Stadium in their Round of 16 encounter at the 19th Asian Games.
India’s plan, right from the beginning was to turn the game into a physical, gritty, scrappy battle.
Igor Stimac had stressed on the importance of fighting it out on the pitch and it was no surprise to see the Blue Tigers put bodies behind the ball and rely on the counter to surprise their opponents.
AS IT HAPPENED: India vs Saudi Arabia, Asian Games 2023 Highlights
Saudi Arabia, the current U23 AFC Asian Cup holder, had come out of a group which had IR Iran and Vietnam.
Despite holding possession for most of the first half, it didn’t really have too many clear-cut chances to go ahead, and for the first quarter, was forced to shoot at goal from distance, Chinglensana Singh and Sandesh Jhingan marshalling the defence beautifully to keep them at bay.
India had its first chance of the game in the 14th minute when Sunil Chhetri cut past three Saudi players before a lucky bounce presented him with a chance to shoot at goal from outside the box. However, the ball landed straight into the arms of Ahmed Fahad.
From thereon, Saudi Arabia continued to press higher. Every clearance or loose ball was immediately snatched upon, and the Indian team were forced back into its own half for most of the half.
In the 22nd minute, Saudi came close to opening the scoring, with Haitham Asiri curling a shot from just outside the box onto the crossbar.
From an ensuing melee, the ball dropped to Awad Al Nashri, whose shot from a narrow angle, drifted wide. Deep into the half, Dheeraj Singh made a smart save, dropping low to his right to save from an Asiri freekick, and Jhingan blocked from Zakaria Al Hawsawi in injury time, to ensure India went into the break level.
ALSO READ: Igor Stimac quashes astrologer allegations; will decide on his future in two days
Saudi Arabia came quickly out of the blocks in the second half, and six minutes in, Marran headed in a cross by Abu Al Shamta to give them the lead.
Marran got a second in the 57th minute, calmly collecting Saad Al Nasser’s through ball, cutting past Dheeraj and slotting it into the net. From there, it was all about game management for both sides. Saudi Arabia was keen to not let its level drop, and for the Blue Tigers, it was crucial to not open up at the back in the search for a goal and concede more.
Dheeraj made some brilliant saves — the standout being one where he went diving backwards to save a header from Rayan Hamed — to ensure the deficit wouldn’t increase.
[ad_2]
Source link