Intercontinental Cup 2019: India 2-4 Tajikistan | 3 Reasons why the Blue Tigers lost  

#1 A second-half collapse

The wingers who shined in the first half was kept quiet later on

The Blue Tigers had everything going according to the plan in the first half. Sunil Chhetri and Co. attacked right from the start. The wings were well used by Udanta Singh and Lallianzuala Chhangte. The two-goal cushion earned thanks to the brace by Chhetri was well guarded for the first 45 minutes.

Things turned upside down when match restarted after half-time. Tajikistan gained a level of confidence that India couldn't match up to. The blue shirts lacked fitness throughout the second half. Stimac's substitutions were not the best and failed to create an impact on the game.

In attack, India lacked quality and missed opportunities at the end. Sunil Chhetri missed a golden opportunity a few minutes from the restart. The wingers who shined in the first half were kept quiet later on. Sahal Abdul Samad and Anirudh Thapa did not recreate the magic in the midfield.

Gahlot and Adil relied on the two goals and were clearly at fault for most of the conceded nettings. Custodian Gurpreet Singh Sandhu too was caught out of position at times.

Overall, India gave away the match to the visitors at ease with their careless attitude in the second half.