A brace from captain Sunil Chhetri saw the Blue Tigers claim a 2-0 victory over Cambodia in the 2023 AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers at Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Kringan, Kolkata. The brace tallied up Sunil Chhetri’s count of international goals to 83. Sunil is now third with 83 international goals, after Argentine superstar Leonel Messi(86) and Portuguese megastar Cristiano Ronaldo (117) .
The 37-year-old forward turned up big for his side as he scored two important goals despite the attacking woes of the team. Although India had 23 shots, they could register only two goals. Manvir was hardly involved in the game, with mistimed crosses and runs. Most of the attack was coming from the left as well with Manvir making a lot of back passes. Chhetri who was leading the front line looked a little dissatisfied with the ATK Mohun Bagan forward. Manvir was later subbed off at the halftime following his performance.
The lack of physicality in India’s midfield has been a huge matter of problem for India. Along with that, the Indian midfield lacks the creativity of the feeder that can create chances for the forward to slot in. Although India had a combined 23 shots on the goal, lack of coordination among the front three along with the lack of finishing deprived India of more goals that would have helped in broadening the goal difference
