New Delhi, Aug 26 (IBNS): Cheered on by a vociferous crowd, India breezed past Maldives 3-0 in their second match of the Nehru Cup on Saturday as Captain Sunil Chhetri and Syed Rahim Nabi netted goals to take the country to 6 points.
The first goal came after Maldives’ defender Mohamed Sifan was found handling a Syed Rahim Nabi centre in the 45th of the Nehru Cup and the referee pointed to the spot.
Sending the Maldives goalkeeper Mohamed Imran the wrong way Chhetri ran to take the spotkick and went on to celebrate the goal with his other teammates.
Chhetri scored another in the second half – off a diving header (70th). Syed Rahim Nabi completed the rout heading in the second goal in the 53rd minute.
Wim Koevermans’s wards displayed some delightful football on the pitch, playing in the new style of theirs with relative ease than their previous outing.
Their passing was clear, crossing much more accurate and after it kicked-off, it was just a matter of time before they would take the lead.
The visitors had a tough time trying to thwart the flankers, especially Nabi, who was darting down the left flank every now and then.
One such run had three defenders trying to stop him. He crossed and before Chhetri could meet his delivery, the ball struck the hand of Mohammed Sifan. The referee pointed towards the dreaded spot.
Chhetri stepped up amidst deafening cheers. The India captain, who scored around the same time in the last match, did not disappoint his adulates.
Change of ends brought more misery for Maldives who came into the match high on confidence after their win against Nepal. Nabi this time got his name in the scoresheet heading home from a Clifford flag kick in the 53rd minute.
India looked more menacing as time wore on. Chhetri’s second goal came in the 70th minute. Francis found his captain unmarked and drilled an inch perfect cross and the Sporting Lisbon striker stooped to glory.
Chhetri also stayed unlucky when he hit the woodwork after getting past the goalkeeper. But it didn’t matter.
Sunil Chhetri was declared Man of the Match.