It was an unforgettable night for Indian football fans as India picked up a first win in their 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifier match over Guam at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru. A wonder strike from Robin Singh (Delhi Dynamos FC) 10 minutes into the game was enough at the end of the night as India toiled hard on a rainy night.The national team fielded a starting XI that boasted 10 out of 11 players playing in the Hero Indian Super League this year. India Coach Stephen Constantine kept his faith in Gurpreet Singh Sandhu in goal with Pritam Kotal (FC Pune City), Arnab Mondal (Atlético de Kolkata), Sandesh Jhingan (Kerala Blasters FC) and Narayan Das (FC Goa) as his back 4. The midfield comprised of Eugeneson Lyngdoh (FC Pune City) and Sehnaj Singh (Delhi Dynamos FC) in the central positions while Sunil Chhetri (Mumbai City FC) who was also captaining the side occupied the left flank giving debutant Romeo Fernandes (FC Goa) the freedom of the right wing. Cavin Lobo (Kerala Blasters FC) started in the hole behind Robin Singh (Delhi Dynamos FC).India began the game on the front foot and their bright start to the game paid off when Captain Chhetri found Robin inside the Guam penalty area. The lanky striker cut back onto his right foot and hit an unstoppable shot into the top corner to put the hosts in the lead with just 10 minutes on the clock. Seven minutes later, Guam put the ball in the back of the net only for it to be correctly ruled out for off-side. India’s in-form striker Chhetri then ran at the Guam defense menacingly but his shot was blocked by the defenders. After cruising for most of the first period, Sehnaj Singh lunged into a tackle in the middle and was given his marching orders. India, eventually, got to the break with their noses still in front.The hosts faced a daunting task in the second half having gone down to 10 men due to Sehnaj’s red card. Guam did put the ball into the back of the net but it was disallowed as the corner had gone across the goal line before coming back into the field of play. Gurpreet Singh Sandhu – arguably India’s man of the match, was in great form in the second half denying the visitors with more than a handful of terrific diving saves to keep his team’s lead intact. The men in blue almost got caught out, but Guam missed a gilt-edged opportunity to level the scores in the 85th minute as Marcus Lopez skied his effort over the bar.With Guam pouring all their men forward, India had the chance to play on the break and Chhetri did just that in the 86thminute. Tearing down the left flank with all the energy he had remaining, the captain cut inside on his favourite right foot before sending a curling effort whistling past the post. A matter of inches to the left and he would have been celebrating India’s second goal of the night. Guam then had majority of the possession in the dying moments as the home side sat back and the final chance did fall to their opponents. A cross from the Guam left wing came all the way across to the far post but Sandhu was at hand once again to make a fine 1v1 stop. India then hung on until the final whistle to register their first win of the 2018 World Cup Qualifying campaign.
