Chhetri save India the blushes
6 March 2014 5:39 AM IST
Going into the match leading his ‘mentor’ Bhaichung Bhutia by a goal as India’s highest-ever goalscorer in international football (43 goals), Chhetri increased his tally to 44 in the 14th minute itself. Any other player would have been enveloped in the mode, having already scored one. But the greatness of the Chhetri makes him stand tall among all other strikers because of his strike rate.
With his team staring at defeat (1-2) with just a minute to go, Chhetri rose to the occasion again, this time with a well-placed left footer which rejuvenated the crowd again.
Down by a goal at the interval, Mithun Chowdhury and Hemanta Biswas scored one each for the visitors in the second half.
Chhetri’s first goal set the tone for India in the first half. Chhetri and Robin Singh played a neat one-two before the former curled the ball past rival goalkeeper Sahidul Alam to put the home team on top. Five minutes earlier, a diving Sahidul had denied Chhetri who tried to curl it on the right corner after Francis Fernandes found the India skipper in the clear.
The combination of Robin Singh and Chhetri kept the Bangladesh defence guessing all through the match. In the 42nd minute, Robin went past two rival defenders but his well-placed shot was saved brilliantly by Sahidul. The last three minutes of the first half witnessed two raspers form both sides.
First, Clifford Miranda’s boomer just went wide. In the next minute, Sohail Rana’s long-ranger was fisted away by India goalkeeper Subrata Paul. Bangladesh pulled one back in the 52nd minute when Mithun Chowdhury tapped in a Sohel Rana cross from close range. Bangladesh then took the lead in 65th minute when Arnab Mondal, in a desperate attempt to keep away a Hemanta Biswas cross, deflected the ball into his own net.
Not pleased with the result: Koevermans
Coach Wim Koevermans said he was ‘not pleased’ with his team’s performance against Bangladesh in the international friendly which ended in a 2-2 draw. ‘We had a shaky start but picked it up. We should have finished it in the first-half itself. But first, Robin Singh’s placement went straight to the rival goalkepeer and then Clifford Miranda’s powerful shot missed the goal by an inch,’ he said at the post-match press conference. ‘Bangladesh created problems for us in the second-half. But Chhetri’s class was on display and the game ended two-all. We need to work on a few things. I didn’t expect a draw but it happened as we failed to seal it in the first-half,’ he added.
With his team staring at defeat (1-2) with just a minute to go, Chhetri rose to the occasion again, this time with a well-placed left footer which rejuvenated the crowd again.
Down by a goal at the interval, Mithun Chowdhury and Hemanta Biswas scored one each for the visitors in the second half.
Chhetri’s first goal set the tone for India in the first half. Chhetri and Robin Singh played a neat one-two before the former curled the ball past rival goalkeeper Sahidul Alam to put the home team on top. Five minutes earlier, a diving Sahidul had denied Chhetri who tried to curl it on the right corner after Francis Fernandes found the India skipper in the clear.
The combination of Robin Singh and Chhetri kept the Bangladesh defence guessing all through the match. In the 42nd minute, Robin went past two rival defenders but his well-placed shot was saved brilliantly by Sahidul. The last three minutes of the first half witnessed two raspers form both sides.
First, Clifford Miranda’s boomer just went wide. In the next minute, Sohail Rana’s long-ranger was fisted away by India goalkeeper Subrata Paul. Bangladesh pulled one back in the 52nd minute when Mithun Chowdhury tapped in a Sohel Rana cross from close range. Bangladesh then took the lead in 65th minute when Arnab Mondal, in a desperate attempt to keep away a Hemanta Biswas cross, deflected the ball into his own net.
Not pleased with the result: Koevermans
Coach Wim Koevermans said he was ‘not pleased’ with his team’s performance against Bangladesh in the international friendly which ended in a 2-2 draw. ‘We had a shaky start but picked it up. We should have finished it in the first-half itself. But first, Robin Singh’s placement went straight to the rival goalkepeer and then Clifford Miranda’s powerful shot missed the goal by an inch,’ he said at the post-match press conference. ‘Bangladesh created problems for us in the second-half. But Chhetri’s class was on display and the game ended two-all. We need to work on a few things. I didn’t expect a draw but it happened as we failed to seal it in the first-half,’ he added.
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