India 4 - 0 Pakistan: 3 things we learned | SAFF Cup 2023

India beat Pakistan 4-0 in their opening encounter of the 2023 SAFF Championship in Bangalore on Wednesday (21 June).

India are placed in Group A of the SAFF Cup along with Kuwait, Nepal, and Pakistan. Kuwait beat Nepal 3-1 in the first game of the day.

India came into the tournament having won the Intercontinental Cup on Sunday, June 18. Pakistan, on the other hand, were playing their first SAFF Cup after their ban was revoked and had a tour of Africa before coming to India for the tournament.

Any sporting encounter that features India and Pakistan facing off against each other promises to be a high-voltage encounter, and this was nothing short of that.

On paper, the tie looked to be a one-sided encounter, given the vast difference in rankings between the two sides and the fact that the Pakistani team arrived in Bangalore just a couple of hours before kickoff.

The match started with India attacking more while the Pakistani players tried to adjust to the wet conditions in Bangalore.

Pakistani goalkeeper Saqib Hanif made a huge blunder in the 10th minute when he fumbled his feet inside his box during a Sunil Chhetri diagonal press. The Blue Tigers' skipper placed the ball into an empty net to give the hosts the lead.

Chhetri doubled the lead for the Blue Tigers in the 16th minute from the penalty spot. India were awarded a penalty due to a handball by Pakistani defender Easah Suliman inside the box.

The scoreboard at halftime read 2-0 in favor of Igor Stimac's side.

The Blue Tigers came into the second half with renewed vigour. Sunil Chhetri completed his hat-trick in the 73rd minute as he converted again from the penalty spot.

Udanta Singh scored his first and India's fourth goal of the game in the 81st minute after he beat the offside trap with an intelligent run and picked up an Anwar Ali long ball, making no mistake in beating the keeper from inside the box.

The match ended with the scoreboard reading 4-0 in favor of the Blue Tigers.

On that note, let's take a look at three things we learned from today's game

#3 A moment of madness by Igor Stimac spiced up the encounter

Igor Stimac's moment of madness could have cost the Blue Tigers dearly (Image courtesy: AIFF Media)

The game was going smoothly for India. The Blue Tigers had a healthy two-goal lead, and their opponents didn't do much to threaten the hosts.

In the 45th minute, Pakistan tried to take a quick throw-in from in front of the Indian bench. Indian head coach Igor Stimac, however, intervened and flicked the ball away from the Pakistani player's hands.

Pakistan's players fumed and charged towards Stimac, and the Indian team came running as well to back up their coach. Fortunately, the referees intervened and calmer heads prevailed before the situation got out of hand.

Stimac was correctly shown a red card for his offense and the match had an added edge after the incident.

#2 Pakistan should not be too disheartened by the performance

Pakistan will look at the positives from today's game (Image courtesy: AIFF Media)

The Pakistani national team has resumed international football after a two-year ban. They have added nine players with Pakistani heritage to the squad, who have been playing in Europe. Players like Easah Suliman, Rahis Nabi, and Otis Jan found their place in the playing eleven today.

However, the Pakistani squad reached Bengaluru just a few hours before kickoff due to travel complications and couldn't get a single practice session before the game.

Pakistan head coach Shahzad Anwar has been vocal about his plans to implement possession-based football and some of those principles were on display against India on Wednesday. Whenever they managed to get hold of the ball, they tried to play it wide and create openings.

The team will need time and practice sessions together to improve their chemistry and fans shouldn't be too disheartened by the result.

#1 India win big, but the performance will make them think

India won the game 4-0, but won't be too pleased with the performance (Image courtesy: AIFF Media)

Although the scoreline suggests a convincing win for the hosts, the Blue Tigers will have some concerns regarding their performance. Two of India's goals came from the penalty spot and another was caused directly by a goalkeeping error.

India didn't test the Pakistani keeper enough, despite having more of the ball. They failed to create clear-cut opportunities against a side suffering from fatigue and lack of cohesion.

The Blue Tigers will need to focus more on their attacking third display if are to win the SAFF Cup and perform well in the King's Cup in September.