Indian football captain and forward Sunil Chettri Indian Football Team announced for World Cup Qualifierswent on to equalize himself with the Argentinian Star player Lionel Messi ahead of his 80th international goal with helped India to blank Nepal in 3-0. With that, the blue tigers went on to lift the 8th SAFF Championship title on Saturday.
India lifted their 8th SAFF Championship cup on Saturday and domain their name in the regional tournament, all thanks to the second half of the match. The 49th-minute goal from Sunil Chettri, the 50th-minute goal from Suresh Singh, and a 90th-minute goal from Sahal Abdul Samad. And the third goal was a miracle. Samad made it 3-0 when he went on to dribble past a few defenders, and he received the ball on the left flank, and soon there was a sound of the final whistle. There was another achievement for the 39-year-old striker Chettri, who went on to equalize along with Lionel Messi. With that, he became the second-highest goal scorer among the international players. Chettri has been the torch barrier of Indian football for the past ten years, and now he has equalized himself with international players like Pele and Messi. Chettri has been awarded the man of the match, top goal scorer, and tournament man. After winning this title, India has further extended its name in terms of regional football. The blue tigers even won the tournament back in 2011 and 2015.
The Dramatic Win:
Indian captain, in the second half, gave India its first goal in the 49th minute after receiving a neatly head delivery from Pritam Kotal on the Right Flank, which left the Nepali goalkeeper in no such situation for the rescuing of his team. And just barely after a minute after Chettri’s goal, Suresh went to strike a goal which left the Nepali team awestruck. And before that, the cinematic 90th minute from Samad was just a miracle for the match to end on a happy note. With the final whistle, the players were seen in an all-joyous moment. India could have taken its head a few minutes before halftime, but the captain did not properly deliver the ball from the right flank, and all the efforts of the caption went wide. But just after the minutes of the first half, everything was different, and the miracle started to happen, till the end 90th minute of the game. Before the last strike of Sahal, there was an opportunity for Manvir Singh during the 52nd minute after he was playing through, but unfortunately, his left foot’s effort got blocked. Following that again in the 79th minute, there was a golden opportunity even for Udanta Singh as he got a clear chance to take a goal, but Rohit Chand came up to block. But never the less the miracle was done by Sahal’s 90th-minute strike, which left the Himalayan country speechless.
On winning the championship, the blue tigers dedicated the title to two of their injured teammates Farukh Choudhury, and Brandon Fernandez, and two of them were not able to travel to the ground.
Even the head coach went on to tweet that,
The boys have done it.” And this is the first time the Indian football team has won a title under his guidance and coaching. The second half of the game was a total moment for every player. The AIFF’S official Twitter handle took the message to congratulate the blue tigers on their win, and with that, it wrote “C.H.A.M.P.I.O.N.S.
On winning the tournament, the players have left for Bengaluru, and they will be seen joining their respective clubs ahead of ISL.
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