SAFF Championship: India and Kuwait draw, players of both teams clash, Indian coach gets red card
A lot of excitement and hue and cry was witnessed in the SAF Championship match between India and Kuwait on Tuesday. The match played between the two teams in Bengaluru ended in a 1-1 draw. This was the third match of the Indian team in the tournament which ended in a draw. The entire match turned into a high voltage drama, in which players from both the teams clashed several times.
In the first half of the match itself, there was a heated argument and scuffle between the players. Here India’s Akash Mishra and Kuwait’s players clashed with each other and both had an argument, which calmed down after some time. After this, in the second half, the Kuwaiti players played the game adopting an aggressive approach and continued to harass the Indian players. Kuwait’s Hamad Alkallaf pushed India’s Sahal Samad and brought him down. India’s Rahim Ali brought Hamad Alkallaf down, which led to a heated argument between the players of both the teams.
Due to this argument, the referee showed red cards to Rahim and Hamad Alkallaf and both had to sit out. At the same time, the Indian team has been shocked by this red card because Rahim will not get a chance to play in the semi-finals.
Indian coach got red card
In this match, not only the players of the Indian team but also the head coach of the Indian football team, Igor Stimac, got the red card. Earlier, he had received a yellow card for obstructing the game, after which he received a red card in the match played against Kuwait, after which he had to leave the field. This is the second time when he has got the red card, before that he has also got the red card in the match played against Pakistan. In this match, the coach was seen arguing with the officials and was shown a red card in the 81st minute.
Indian team’s match was like this
Despite captain Sunil Chhetri’s stellar performance, India were thrashed 1-1 by Kuwait in the last group match of the SAFF Football Championship on Tuesday. Stopped at 1 draw. Chhetri opened India’s account in injury time in the first half but Anwar Ali’s own goal in extra time in the second half cost India dearly. This was the first goal India had lost in nine matches. India and Kuwait both finished with seven points but Kuwait topped the table on the basis of better goal average.
India will face Lebanon in the semi-finals while Kuwait will face either Bangladesh or Maldives. India and Kuwait, who have already qualified for the semi-finals, played aggressively from the very first moment. India attacked from both the wings and came close to scoring in the sixth minute but Chhetri failed to hold on to Akash Mishra’s cross. India got another chance in the 35th minute but Anwar Ali’s header from Aniruddha Thapa’s corner was wide of the target.
The relentless onslaught paid off for India in injury time when Chhetri volleyed home a superb cross from Thapa. It was Chhetri’s fifth goal in the tournament and 24th in 26 SAFF Championship matches. India’s Rahim Ali and Kuwait’s Al Kallaf were shown red cards during the match.
