Maldives have the last laugh
Maldives emerged champions of the SAFF Suzuki Cup after ending seven-time champions India's run with a 2-1 win in the final at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.
It was revenge for Maldives, who had lost to India in shootout at the same ground in the2009 final, and the Islanders became the second team after India to clinch the regional title more than once.
Ibrahim Hussain and Ali Fasir scored one goal each for Maldives before substitute Sumeet Passi pulled one back for India.
The youthful India side took the pressure of playing the final and their performance was a shadow of the ones against Sri Lanka, Maldives and archrivals Pakistan in the group stages and the semifinal.
The men in blue seemed to start the match on the wrong foot even though they were strong down the left flank. They initially launched most of their attacks through left-winger Ashique Kuruniyan, who however struggled to find the target inside the danger zone. And when Kurunniyan and right-winger Nikhil Chandra Shekhar did deliver good crosses, there were no strikers on hand to threaten the Maldives backline.
The Maldivians, meanwhile, looked much better compared to their performances from their group-stage matches, especially in the 2-0 defeat against India in the group stage.
Both teams tried to control the midfield, but play was mostly confined to midfield before Maldives took the lead in the 19th minute. Hassan Naiz released a defence-splitting ball for forward Ibrahim Ibrahim, who cleverly dinked over advancing goalkeeper Vishal Kaith and waited for the ball to roll in to the back of the net to start celebrating.
Having conceded for the first time this tournament, India looked nervous and the Islanders applied pressure and twice came close to doubling the lead but were thwarted.
Maldives, who failed to score a single goal in the group stages before scoring three against Nepal in the semifinal, went into a defensive shell in the face of Indian attacks after the half-hour mark, but striking duo Haji Faruk Kasam and Manvir Singh failed to break the Maldives defence before the break.
After resumption, India came close to levelling the margin but Manvir's header went wide of near post before Maldives made the result safe by doubling the lead in the 66th minute.
Stand-in-captain Hamza Mohamed brilliantly released a defence-splitting through pass from the centre circle and Ali Fasir accelerated to receive the ball outside the box before placing it to the left side of the advancing Vishal Kaith.
India pulled one goal back in stoppage time when substitute Sumeet Passi tapped in a low cross from Nikhil Chandra Shekhar, but it was too late for Stephen Constantine's men to repeat their feat from 2009, when their under-23 side beat the same opposition on this very ground.
Maldives coach Petar Segrt, who was under tremendous pressure from the country's media and also from the federation over his team selection and the way the team performed in the group stages, admitted that the young energetic players of his team made the difference, with a bit of luck from above.
"I've never seen the speed and energy like this before. These boys have sacrificed a lot over the last six weeks, during camp in Qatar and the competition here. This win is a reward for them and for the whole of Maldives," Segrt said.
"I must admit there was some luck. Maybe someone was looking over us from above," said the Croatia-born German, alluding to the fact that his team needed the luck of coin toss to progress through the group stages.
However, he also claimed his experienced coaching staff and analysis of the opposition played a big part in neutralizing India's threat.
"Me and my coaches analysed India's game and we tried to put our young players who can counter those areas, especially on the wings. We played effective football. France did not win the World Cup by playing beautiful football, they did with effective football," Segrt said, adding that these young footballers are the future of the country's football, claiming that they are much sharper, fitter and faster than the previous generation.
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