Shahrukh Sohail, Chief Editor, Kathmandu
The Pak Shaheens played brilliant football in the first half, but their inability to score and sheer lack of luck saw them leave the Darasath Rangasala Stadium without anything to show for their efforts.
With attacking football all around and some players looking extremely impressive, Pakistan should have at least gotten a draw, but without luck their plans were hampered severely, something which coach Shahzad Anwar believes eventually cost them three points.
“My congratulations to the Indian team. Unfortunately my team were very unlucky,” he said in the post-match press conference.
“Insha’Allah my boys will continue to play like this against Nepal.”
Luck played a major role in the game, but it was also down to Subrata Pal’s heroics that saw the Indian team clinch victory.
“Yeah lucky win for India. My team squandered a lot of chances in the first half and their goalkeeper saved a lot of chances. And same in the 2nd half, so you can say we had bad luck. My team dominated the first half and the Indian team were under pressure in the 1st half, although they tried to come back in the remaining 45 minutes.”
Commentating on Pakistan’s chances, the coach added the players bounced back quickly after conceding the own-goal from captain Samar Ishaq, but they had unfinished chances to blame for the eventual defeat.
“Yes, the team concedes an own goal, but they also missed a lot of opportunities to score,” he added.
The own-goal was a miscommunication between Kamran Khan and Samar, and according to Shahzad it affected the entire line-up.
“Yeah, everybody was let down. It was misunderstanding between the defenders and the goalkeeper. But we had hope that we would score in the remaining minutes, but we have five foreign players and we used four. And you saw the difference between the foreign players and local ones.”
“But we will now build up on this momentum,” added the trainer.
Lastly, the former U-19 coach claimed that Nepal were going to be even tougher opposition, but his charges were ready to battle for glory.
“Nepal is a better side and they played very well against Bangladesh but if we talk about this match, we lose the game, but the morale of the players is high,” Anwar concluded at the post-match press conference.
Pakistan now face Nepal on the 3rd of September at the Darasath Rangasala Stadium.
It just goes to show how important foreign-based players are to Pakistan! Moreover, Hassan Bashir struck the cross-bar and almost all the foreign-based players had a good match. If we could just have Nabil Aslam, Etzaz Husain, Adil Nabi and Luke Dean on the team, we would have one of the best teams in Asia, let alone South Asia! Come on Pak Shaheens, we have to beat Nepal and Bangladesh inshAllah!
Yes, this is the case FootballPakistan has been arguing for quite some time!
However, Etzaz and Adil are still young, so they should be approached in 2-3 years.
Nabil didn’t have his documents made on time and Luke has not been very supportive of playing for Pakistan.
I believe we need mohammad ali, atif bashir, nabil aslam, shabir..i hope every one saw what 4 players showed in the game, bring 3 or 4 more in the starting line up and you will see result/
The linesman didnt do justice to Pakistan, Pakistan could have had a goal at least,as a afghan watching India in this game, I think we can beat them easily this time round and revenge of last game would be sweet for us if referees don’t help them.
hurd luck but played is very well (y)
Very well played by Pakistan. A treat to watch. Seemed like reward for years of loyalty. It wasn’t a perfect game by Pakistan, but certainly the best against a tough opponent that I can remember. The players were talking to each other, which is key. The keeping was great, although Yusuf Butt was caught out a couple of times and was lucky not to have conceded. Central defence was a weak point, whereas India’s attack was completely shut down on the wings. Central midfield was solid offensively and did a good job of getting the ball out to the wings. The strikers lacked the finishing touch but really got into good positions to create chances.
Most importantly, long balls were kept to a minimum, which allowed Pakistan to keep more possession and create more chances than we have ever seen in recent history. The defence was succeeding in building the attack from the back and down the wings, which allowed Pakistan to keep possession and create more scoring chances.
But everything was not perfect. The central defence and central midfield allowed India too many openings which could well have resulted in a more lopsided result. The central defence also seemed somewhat disorganized at times, and ultimately this weakness was the reason for the loss, conceding an own goal which resulted in a bitter loss for Pakistan. Fortunately, the full backs absorbed and blunted much of the Indian attack.
Offensively, some players were hesitating a bit too long to take a shot, while others were rushing their shots or trying to do something fancy when a simple pass may well have resulted in the much desired goal. The finishing must be improved.
Overall, however, it was the best Pakistan side that I can remember watching in over a decade of supporting Pakistani football.
My player ratings:
Yusuf Butt: Well kept. Saved several attempts and didn’t hesitate to rush out of his box when necessary. Distribution was very good, and he was often the initiator of an attack. Hopefully this match and tournament will allow him to cement his place as starting keeper for Pakistan,
Faisal Iqbal: Quite well done today. He was solid defensively and was often part of the build up to a successful attack. Good positioning and one two plays. I am not usually a fan of his, but he deserves to keep his place in the starting lineup against Nepal.
Samar Ishaq: Poor performance, but that’s nothing new from the captain. He showed flashes of one on one defensive brilliance, but as part of a defensive unit, he is a liability. There was no need for him to be where he was. He should have stuck with his man and allowed Kamran or Yusuf to handle the overhit cross. One point of improvement in recent years, however, has been his passing. He now looks to keep the ball on the ground, although often misplaces the pass. At best he is a decent option to have on the bench, although better defenders than him can surely be found in the PPL. He should be removed from the starting lineup against Nepal, but I’m sure that won’t happen.
Kamran Khan: Didn’t get time to settle down, but looked somewhat shaky until his substitution. He has done well in the past however, and would make a decent partner at CB for Zesh or Yaqub Butt.
M. Ahmed: Solid. Was a rock defensively and participated well in the attack, albeit not as well as Faisal. I have criticized him previously for playing too much long ball, but no evidence of that today. Should be kept on against Nepal.
Zesh: Defensively was average. Offensively, however, he stabilized the back line and did well in building the attack. Nothing brilliant from him today, but did enough to keep his place against Nepal. Should be used at defensive mid however.
M. Adil: Absolutely brilliant. Defensively solid and was involved in most of Pakistan’s shots on goal. Great attacking down the flank. Great vision and positioning. Only a lunatic would bench him against Nepal.
Adnan Ahmed: Solid offensively. Somewhat lightweight defensively. Did well to get the ball out to the wings and had some nice passes. Tried to get too fancy at times, but overall a solid performance.
Kaleem: Same as Adnan, but a bit better defensively. I would like to see him partnered with Hassan Bashir up front against Nepal, however.
Saddam: Very well played. Good pace, solid defending, good positioning and vision. Should be retained on the wing against Nepal.
Riaz: Impressive performance by the youngster. He is certainly the future star for Pakistan. Got into good positions, worked hard, and took his chances, albeit weakly. Should be used as a super sub, in my opinion.
Hassan Bashir: Excellent game. Great pace and ball control. Good positioning. Finishing needs a bit of improvement, but very unlucky not to get a goal. Somewhat selfish at times when he could have set up Riaz for a clear shot on goal.
M. Mujahid: Did well coming on as a sub. Wouldn’t mind seeing more of him in future matches.
Ahsanullah: Didn’t really get much time, but seemed a sensible player.
Shahzad Anwar: I don’t know if the improvement should be attributed to him, Zavisa, or Shamlan, but I hope it continues. I don’t know why he removed Kamran from the match, but if it wasn’t for injury, then it was a poor move on his part. He should also have subbed Adnan or Kaleem much sooner in the second half, since Yasir Afridi, Zia, or Yaqub might well have provided the spark which was dying down midway through the second half. But overall, fairly well done. Lets see if he will have the guts to bench Samar.
India: Didn’t live up to expectations. Relied on individual players. No real passing and eye catching plays. Desperate defending. Saved by their goalkeeper. Very lucky to win. They certainly won’t be successful in defending their title if they continue like this.
Lineup againt Nepal (assuming Samar is untouchable):
Yusuf
Faisal Samar/Yaqub Kamran/Zesh M. Ahmed
Adil Adnan Zesh/Afridi/Yaqub Saddam
Hassan Kaleem
Its not about foreign or local players. The best players today were Adil, Bashir, and Faisal. One of them is foreign. And Hassan Bashir would have been nothing today without Adil to feed him. It is all about teamwork and chemistry. We have good local players and good foreign players. The right combination must be achieved.
xesh,butt yarrr awsome saves class,hasan gud yarr bht ala and very good pakistan team foreign players really make a difference
well played team pakistan!we played beautiful football but luck was not in favour of us.
and a good defending from our defenders otherwise india could have punched us by 3 or goals.
Pakistan played pretty well but were unlucky to lose by giving away own goal. Communication between defenders need to improve when ball is being cleared. As in football every thing is done in seconds so no time to think is given. Its better to have proper co-ordination and reflexes. Pakistan needs to have ability to score goals and finish well if remaining two matches have to be won. Nepal and Bangladesh are tough teams to beat. Hope so our Shaheens win remaining two matches.
there is never luck i feel indian guys handle pressure very well…Congrats India for a better play.