Despite Monday’s slow game against Malaysia, new coach Manolo Marquez will be able to learn a lot from it. The Indian defense was strong aside from a startling blunder by goalie Gurpreet Singh Sandhu that allowed the opponents their lone goal.
India vs Malaysia
India vs Malaysia : Apuia Ralte and Suresh Singh, the defensive midfield tandem, worked tirelessly. Additionally, there were indications that the outfield players, namely Brandon Fernandes and Lallianzuala Chhangte, were finally implementing Marquez’s tactics and methods, as they worked well with the forwards.
Marquez gave rookie Irfan Yadwad the task of finding a striker to take Sunil Chhetri’s place, who is currently retired. By sprinting into gaps, grabbing onto crosses, and applying pressure to the opposition’s defense, the tall Chennaiyin attacker shown that he could contribute to the answer. However, India simply lacked to find the eccentricity that is often required to succeed in international football, as has been the case this year. They paid for the lack of clinical play despite numerous crosses into the box, holding plays, and counterattacks down the flanks.
India vs Malaysia : Gurpreet would never want to revisit the replay of the howler that gave Malaysia the lead. A Malaysian defender cleared the ball toward the Indian goal in the 19th minute. Despite the lack of actual danger, Gurpreet went considerably off his line. He chose to head the ball rather than wait back and kick or collect it, but he made a huge mistake in his bounce assessment. Paulo Josue, a forward from Malaysia, received a freebie after it passed over his head. He just touched the ball and used his left foot to tap it into the empty net.
India continued to knock on the door, but a brilliantly performed corner 20 minutes later gave them the equalizer.
After the equaliser, India really took the game to their opponents
India vs Malaysia : Irfan, Brandon, and Farukh Choudhary worked well together to generate chances on the left, but the Malaysian center defense was as strong. Despite their best efforts, Brandon and Chhangte were never able to get the ideal ball in. Additionally, Irfan was the only man targeted in the first place.
India vs Malaysia : India needs to resolve this issue as they prepare for the Asian Cup qualifiers in March of next year. Having a single striker for the national team can become too taxing for the player because Indians don’t play as strikers for their clubs. For Irfan, the majority of crosses had to be placed precisely; otherwise, they would simply fall in no man’s land, as happened on Monday.
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