Goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu the hero as India beat Lebanon via penalties

In all the chaos around him – of a teary-eyed Lebanon penalty taker, the overjoyed Indian players who were charging in the direction of their goalkeeper and the suspended coach who jumped in joy and hugged everyone in his vicinity in the stands – Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was the only one not to make too much of a fuss.The hero in India’s win over Lebanon via penalties, Sandhu celebrated in a muted manner, gesturing to his teammates as if to say, ‘Calm down, I’m here’. He’s always been there – taking blows to keep out ferocious shots in a celebrated draw against Qatar, standing like a rock in the goal to frustrate China, or, as he did on Saturday, saving penalties and winning matches against quality teams like Lebanon.Sandhu’s full-length dive to save Lebanon’s first penalty swung the momentum in the favour of India, who did not miss a single attempt. And after Khalil Bader sent the ball sailing over Sandhu’s goal, the result was beyond doubt.

A clinical penalty shootout sees INDIA 🇮🇳 progress to the #SAFFChampionship2023 FINAL!💙#LBNIND ⚔️ #BlueTigers 🐯 #IndianFootball ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/RH2luMdcOt
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) July 1, 2023
After not beating them for 46 years, India have now defeated Lebanon twice in two weeks. The 2-0 win in Bhubaneswar earned them crucial ranking points. Saturday’s grinding 4-2 win via penalties in the semifinals of the South Asian Championship, after neither team could break the deadlock in 120 minutes of open play, will give them a shot at regional glory. India will now face Kuwait in the final on Tuesday.
The Indian players looked relieved as much as they rejoiced. They knew the result may well have gone the other way. For, in a match where chances came at a premium in regulation time, it was Lebanon who could have taken the lead inside the first minute. The match was merely 50 seconds old when George Melki whipped in a cross from the right and found Nader Matar unmarked on the far post.
Sandhu was caught scrambling and the defenders had all but given up. All Matar had to do was control the ball and tap it in from a close range but the striker chose power over placement and the ball blazed over the bar.
That early miss set the tone for the remainder of the match as both sides missed the few chances that came their way.
There were glimpses, too, of why India are often goal shy. At the quarter of an hour, Sunil Chhetri pranced forward, drawing defenders close to him and opening up space for the others. With a cheeky outside-of-the-boot pass, the 38-year-old found young midfielder Jeakson Singh, who sprang into the national consciousness six years ago when he scored India’s first goal of the FIFA Under-17 World Cup.

Air Gurpreet ✈️#LBNIND ⚔️ #SAFFChampionship2023 🏆 #BlueTigers 🐯 #IndianFootball ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/ODoqIZcoIs
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) July 1, 2023
Jeakson, however, lacked the confidence he’d shown back then. He only had the goalkeeper to beat but instead of pulling the trigger, Jeakson played the ball across the goal to Sahal Abdul Samad, who wasn’t expecting the pass and had strayed marginally offside.
It’s the closest India came to scoring a goal in the opening half that quickly descended into an ugly physical battle, as the teams struggled to find any sort of a rhythm due to constant stoppages owing to crunching and, at-times, cynical tackles.
The second half was more of the same but a slew of substitutions that saw the introduction of defenders Nikhil Poojary and Akash Mishra along with midfielders Rohit Kumar and Naorem Mahesh gave India a renewed push while Lebanon were happy to sit back and catch India on the counter.
Mishra and Poojary were more enterprising than Subhashish Bose and Pritam Kotal – whom they replaced – and pushed forward more often, supporting India’s attacks. That helped India put more pressure on Lebanon, especially from the wider areas, and led to a flurry of corners in the closing stages. Once again, though, the delivery lacked quality and the Lebanon goal was never seriously threatened.
India did all the fancy bits. On the left, Ashique Kuruniyan nutmegged defenders and ran circles around them. On the opposite flank, Lallianzuala Chhangte skipped past his markers with the occasional bursts of speed and swung in crosses inside the box. But both wingers lacked precision and their deliveries were seldom dangerous.

THROUGH TO THE FINAL 🏆💙
Watch the #BlueTigers 🐯 celebrate moments after the penalty shootout ft. the man of the hour, @GurpreetGK 🧤🤩😍#LBNIND ⚔️ #SAFFChampionship2023 🏆 #IndianFootball ⚽️ #BlueTigers 🐯 pic.twitter.com/G8c1xKRC21
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) July 1, 2023
They did the boring things too – sitting back, rolling and recycling the possession as they waited to find a gap in the Lebanon defence. They even thumped long balls into the opponent’s box but nothing clicked.
The team’s Man Friday, Chhetri, took matters into his own hands and came agonisingly close early into the extra time. But his snapshot from the top of the box was tipped over the bar an outstretched goalkeeper.
All this, as coach Igor Stimac, suspended after being sent off the previous match, watched helplessly from the stands, sharing the box with cricketer Shreyas Iyer.
The late entry of Udanta Singh added more heft to India’s attack as the man nicknamed ‘Flash’ because of his pace showed flashes of his old self; of the days when he enthralled the Kanteerava crowd with his breezy runs on the wings in Bengaluru’s blue. On Saturday night, he looked just as menacing in the India jersey.
In the extra time, Udanta was at the centre of nearly every move as the hosts went all out in search of the winning goal. But as was the case all night, the finishing touch had eluded the team.
Unsurprisingly, on a night when attackers from both teams looked pedestrian, as the 0-0 scoreline after 120 minutes would suggest, it was the goalkeeper who had the final say.
Scoreline (after extra time): India 0 Lebanon 0
Penalties:
India (went in first): Sunil Chhetri (scored), Anwar Ali (scored), Naorem Mahesh (scored), Udanta Singh (scored)
Lebanon: Hassan Maatouk (miss), Walid Shrour (scored), Mohammad Sadek (scored), Khalil Bader (miss)