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India lost five out of their first five World Cup qualifying matches on Tuesday when they were beaten comprehensively 3-0 by Oman at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat. Ahmed Kano (55') broke the deadlock before a brace from Abdul Aziz (67', 85') sealed the win for the hosts.
Indian coach, Stephen Constantine made four changes to the team that featured against Turkmenistan. Rino Anto, Rowlin Borges, Cavin Lobo and Bikash Jairu started the match for the Indian team.
Oman had several opportunities to open the scoring from a number of corner kicks. Gurpreet Singh saved the first header while the second was over the bar.
India’s only sight of goal in the first half came moments before the break when they broke forward on the counter-attack before Sunil Chhetri checked in from the right but his left-footed strike from distance fizzed over the bar.
The home team scored right after the halftime with a perfect team move converting a free kick from close range. They then doubled their lead in the 67th minute as Abdul Aziz found plenty of space around the penalty spot between the Indian centre backs to turn with ease before calmly slotting the ball into the net.
Gurpreet was made to pull off another couple of stunning saves with shots across the goal, denying the first effort with his feet before getting down to low to keep out the second. However, he was left with no chance as Abdul Aziz was once more given a lot of space in the penalty area as he placed his header from an unmarked position in the 85th minute.
The game ended in a 3-0 defeat for India, with the team totally humiliated by Oman. Constantine has to act fast or else the Indian contingent will surely finish their World Cup Qualifying campaign without any point.
Here are the player ratings for today’s match:
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu - 7/10
The Indian goalkeeper, who plays in Norway currently, was superb throughout the match. It was only because of Sandhu that the Indian team did not concede anymore goals.
However, he should have done a lot better during the first two goals. Sandhu slipped while covering the cross from the left side which was converted easily by Ahmed Mubarak for the Oman’s opening goal. This was the turning point of the match as the Indian team could not come back into the game after the first goal. The lanky custodian was undoubtedly the best player for India in today’s match.
Rino Anto - 4.5/10
The right-back endured a tough encounter. The first goal was a collective failure on the team’s part, but Anto couldn’t exert much influence going forward and was shaky in defence.
In the second half, he was hardly able to cover the right side and the Oman players kept utilising that to create opportunities for themselves. He was not up to the mark today. He had to be finally substituted in the second half.
Arnab Mondal – 5/10
The Indian captain and defensive rock Mondal was at fault for the first goal, as he left his man completely unmarked. Another poor performance by India’s stopper back, he has to improve if he wishes to get a spot in the team’s starting line-up in the future.
Sandesh Jhingan – 5.5/10
He tried manfully but found the Oman forward-line a tough nut to crack. He tried to cover the center along with sides, but he looked really tired in the second half. It was Jhingan’s error that led to the second goal. He should have been substituted in the second half.
Narayan Das – 5/10
The left back went up to support the attack many times but had his task cut out defensively, especially in the first half.
He too didn’t have a very good match, as he was given a tough time by the Oman forwards.
Das was not able to reach back to his position and defend whenever he went up to help the attackers. Jhingan had to shift and cover his position which made his task harder.
Francis Fernandes– 5.5/10
I-League 2014’s midfielder of the Year had a good first half but struggled to impose himself on the game in the second half. He worked well to cut off passing lanes for the Oman midfielders and looked to play balls in channels for his forwards to attack.
He combined well with Sehnaj in midfield and looked composed on the ball.
Rowlin Borges – 5/10
The young debutant tried to hold the center of the midfield by blocking and destroying Oman’s attacking play. But Constantine’s strategy hardly had any effect as the home team used the planks to attack rather than the center of the field.
Thus, Borges became the fifth or the sixth defender for the maximum time of the match. He needs more time and experience before he could start for the team.
Cavin Lobo – 4/10
Another miserable performance by the Goan midfielder. Neither did we see any spark of brilliance from him nor did we see any attacking moves that were initiated by the midfielder. His performance was so poor that he could hardly be noticed on the field.
Bikash Jairu – 5/10
Making his debut for the national team, Jairu tried his best to use the planks to marshall the team’s attacks. He also looked to try and get behind the defence, but without any reward.
He put in an industrious performance, but couldn't perform the same way that we have seen him do in the Calcutta League for East Bengal recently.
Sunil Chhetri – 5/10
Other than a freekick just outside the Oman box which went wide, Chhetri did not take one single good shot on target. India’s top goal scorer struggled against the Oman defence with strong tackles flying in to stop him from advancing. Comparatively Jeje was livelier with Chhetri hardly impacting the game, especially in the second half.
Jeje Lalpeklua- 6/10
Last year’s I-League winner with Mohun Bagan, Jeje was the only silver lining for India today. He kept running at the Oman defence throughout the first half with the defenders having to commit fouls in order to stop him. In the first half, Jeje looked to break into the box but was stopped from going clean through on goal by a last-ditch tackle on the edge of the area.
Substitutions
Aiborlang Khongjee – 5 /10
His introduction brought a little stability in the Indian defence replacing Rino Anto who had a nightmare of a match. Khongjee worked hard to close down the left channel although Oman hardly used that wing in the second half. Comparatively a better display by the experienced defender.
Sehnaj Singh– 4/10
Sehnaj hardly made any impact just like Borges whom he replaced in the second half. He tried to release the ball quickly to the flanks to try and counter but failed every time.
Inexperience got the better off him in this match.
Robin Singh - 5/10
The tall and well-built striker looked to provide knockdowns for his teammates and use the channels after coming on the field before the end of the match. He should have started the match as India lacked his physicality in the attacking zone during the first half. Robin hardly got any time to create any goal scoring moves for the team.
