Zeze saves India the blushes against Afghanistan

DHAKA - Substitute Zeze Lalpeklua struck in the dying minutes of the game as India managed to scrape through with a 1-0 win over Afghanistan in their opening Group A match of the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Cup here Saturday.

Zeze, who replaced forward Balwant Singh in the 72nd mintue, trapped in a long ball from Denzil Franco in the box and shot on the turn to score the winner for India just three minutes from the final whistle at the Bangabandhu Stadium.

India, who have fielded an under-23 side, played out a lacklustre first half and found it tough against the burly Afghans. Afghanistan came close to scoring on numerous ocassions and had it not been the heroics of goalkeeper Arindam Bhattacharya, India would have lost by a bigger margin.

While Sushil and Balwant were scrappy upfront for India, Afghanistan striker Zohib Islam caused some scare by rattlling the Indian defence.

Zohib took advantage of the lack of co-ordination between the goalkeeper and the defence line and made some excellent moves that put India under pressure. His powerful right-footer skimmed the bar in the 57th minute and on the hour mark, Bhattacharya put on a valiant dive to save his shot.

Sushil and Balwant hardly made any impact on the Afghan defence. Sushil got himself in a very good position in the 78th minute but his header missed the target.

India will face Nepal in their next match Monday.