Press Trust of India
Guwahati, March 12: Star striker Sunil Chhetri struck twice in the second half as India notched up a 2-0 win over Nepal in a dominating display in the first leg of their 2018 FIFA World Cup football qualifying round one here Thursday.
The victory at the Indira Gandhi Athletics Stadium here gave newly-appointed India head coach Stephen Constantine a winning start in his second stint at the helm of affairs.
Chhetri scored in the 53rd and 69th minutes of the game. However, he failed to complete a hat-trick as he muffed a spot-kick in the 80th minute. A 3-0 verdict would have put India in an even better position when they play the second leg in Kathmandu March 17.
In spite of the miss it was a memorable performance from Chhetri, who used to wear the captain’s armband for the last couple of years but played as deputy to Subrata Paul.
The first goal came after a fine build-up by Lenny Rodrigues, Chhetri and his Bengaluru FC strike partner Robin Singh. The trio’s combination of passes hoodwinked the Nepal defence and the move got what it deserved – a perfect finish from Chhetri. The second was equally better as debutant Jackichand Singh unselfishly laid the ball for an unmarked Chhetri to fire in.
After a slow start, India found their groove midway into the first session and from then onwards, Constantine’s boys just ran away with the game.
India first had a shy at the rival goal in the 11th minute when Chhetri and Robin opened up the Nepal defence with a deft exchange of passes. However, Robin’s feeble shot was saved by Nepal goalie Limbu Kiran.
