Bangalore: Captain Sunil Chhetri stamped his class yet again as he scored the match-winner to fire India to a 1-0 win over Kyrgyzstan in a fast-pace and entertaining Asian Cup qualifier match here Tuesday.
Chhetri drilled a lot shot with his right foot off a fine pass from Jeje Lalpekhlua in the 69th minute to lead India to a crucial win in the home leg tie of the Group A third round qualifiers for the 2019 Asian Cup.
This was Chhetri’s 54th goal in 94 games. He could have added to the tally had he not missed a sitter after getting past two Kyrgyzstan defenders in added on time. Striker Robin Singh was also guilty of missing an easy chance after Chhetri had put him free off a counter-attack. Robin also shot over the bar with only the Kyrgyzstan custodian to beat.
With the win, India went atop the group with six points – ahead of Kyrgyzstan and Myanmar who both have three points from two matches. Macau are yet to open account. The two top sides will qualify for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup to be played in UAE.
Kyrgyzstan had better ball possession and attacked more but were found wanting in their finishing. The Indian back-four of Sandesh Jhingan, Anas Edathodika, Pritam Kotal and Narayan Das were also superb in defending.
The visiting side were denied by the upright in the second half while Indian goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu made at least three brilliant saves to ensure that the hosts walked away with all three points.
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