The Indian football team beat Mongolia 2-0 in its first match of the Intercontinental Cup 2023 tournament at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, on Friday.
For India, Sahal Abdul Samad (2’) and Lallianzuala Chhangte (15’) scored in the first-half. The match was the Indian men’s football team’s first-ever match in a competitive tournament in Odisha.
With the win, India are placed second in the Intercontinental Cup 2023 standings behind Lebanon on goals scored. Lebanon beat Vanuatu 3-1 earlier in the day.
As the match panned out, Blue Tigers made their intent clear from the start as they made attacking runs into the Mongolian half. Minutes into the match, India scored the opening goal. Anirudh Thapa made a pacy run down the right flank and crossed one into the middle of the penalty box. Mongolian goalkeeper Mönkh-Erdene Enkhtaivan managed to get a hand to it in an attempt to parry it away from a sprinting Sunil Chhetri.
However, an alert Sahal Abdul Samad collected the loose ball and slotted it into the bottom corner to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.
Spurred on by the early goal, India continued to turn the screws on the Mongolian defence in an attempt to double their lead. The constant pressure paid off from a corner as Lallianzuala Chhangte scored from the rebound after Sandesh Jhingan’s header from Anirudh Thapa’s cross was cleared off the line by a Mongolian defender.
India pressed forward while Mongolia looked to counter-attack in search of a goal. However, the Indian defence were up to the task and thwarted any attempts by the Mongolian team. The first half ended with India holding a 2-0 lead.
Keen to maintain their advantage, the Indian football team focused on maintaining ball possession in the second half. Mongolia, meanwhile, showed more attacking intent in order to find their first goal. As the game progressed, the Indian team fell back and counter-attacked. The Mongolians, despite attacking in waves, failed to break the Indian defence as the match ended with the hosts taking the spoils.
The Indian football team will play the 164th-ranked Vanuatu next on Monday.