scores for India against Maldives, hides big cracks

It was a muted celebration, a hallmark of a player who has scored more goals for the Indian National team than any other. That Sunil Chhetri had turned back on a retirement, celebrated with aplomb in Kolkata, only to return back to an Indian team that went winless for an entire year and then immediately won on his return, seamlessly papered over the canyon-like cracks within the Indian football ecosystem on Wednesday.
Three headed goals, two from corners and one godsend of an open play goal lifted India to a 3-0 victory over the Maldives in Shillong’s first-ever hosting of an international home game, albeit a friendly.
This game was a warm-up for India before facing off against Bangladesh in the AFC Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers. For Manolo Marquez, who at one point last year saw through ninety abject minutes of Indian football before declaring that it possibly couldn’t get worse, a first win beckoned. The Spaniard chose a second-string side, opting to start Chhetri and Brandon Fernandes.
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For starters, this was a Maldives team ranked 162nd in the world and composed of players who have yet to see a league game played in their conglomerate of atolls in the last two years. To beat them was expected but such has been the results that this Indian team had in 2024 that even that wasn’t a given.
For a large part of the first half, it was that very same team that showed up. Llessly moving the ball down the flanks and once there, a cross aimed at no one would arrive and inevitably find a Maldives defender. To repeat that pattern continuously despite getting zero dividends has been the hallmark of this team and the first half was no different.
India took the lead in the 35th minute. The goal arrived from a corner and central defender Rahul Bheke rifled in his second goal from a corner in the Manolo era. Minutes later Brandon Fernandes, arguably the most impactful player for India, was stretchered off the turf. The midfielder will be a huge miss for India against Bangladesh should he not be available.
As the game wore on, India, which had players fit from the Indian Super League season, displayed their higher fitness levels. Pressure kept getting piled on the Maldives defence and another goal from a corner came soon after. Story continues below this ad
The second goal came in the 66th minute from the head of Lon Colaco. The India No 7, rose highest in the far post to direct a header towards goal and earn his first national team strike.
The night couldn’t have been complete without Chhetri making a mark. The previous occasion that India faced Maldives had seen the 40-year-old score a brace. In Shillong, he met Colaco’s weighted cross and parried the ball for his first goal in his second debut.
While the result may favour India, the game against Bangladesh on March 25th would paint a clearer picture of where Manolo’s ways and means are taking this team. A result against them is crucial for India to take the necessary steps to make the 2027 Asian Cup.