The beginning of Desi tiki-taka: India give Maldives a lesson

The much talked about, and eagerly awaited “new style of play” for the Indian football team finally gave a very good account of itself last night at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, when India beat Maldives 3 – 0 in their second game of the 2012 Nehru Cup. India went into the the 2nd half having scored through a Sunil Chhetri penalty just seconds before half time, and as the game progressed, played with a confidence that was refreshing to see. One of the most important aspects of last night’s performance was that the players finally played in the sort of uninhibited manner that they are expected to. They didn’t look bereft of confidence when they got the ball at their feet, passing it around in a quick and precise manner. Wim Koevermans’ observation of, “They are much better than what they think.” was spot on, as the team finally played close to its potential.

One could see the back four of Syed Rahim Nabi, Raju Gaekwad, Gouramangi Singh and Nirmal Chhetri hardly played the ball straight and long like they used to, banking on it to fall at the feet of the men ahead. Instead, attacks were carefully orchestrated by passing it to the deep lying duo of Mehtab Hossain and Lenny Rodriguez first. There was patience, not desperation, to make something happen out of the blue. Holes in the Maldives defence automatically opened up as the ball was swiftly moved from flank to flank. The “non existent” midfield of the Indian team, as it was described not too long ago, is now actually the seat of control. The most attractive period of play was after India got the second goal, up till the third when the midfield was completely dominating the game. Some of the one touch moves between Nabi, Mehtab and Lenny were a treat to watch. However, completely eliminating long balls is not the ultimate aim of the new approach India is taking, because when played at the right time, a well weighted long pass can split open a defence in seconds. The occasional long ball was played, but the great significant difference was that almost all of them were diagonal, with the objective of finding the free man on either flank, not aimlessly straight down the pitch.

Sunil Chhetri was at his usual best, always making those clever runs being at the right place at the right time. His diving header was perfectly placed and timed. Nabi and Mehtab Hossain are the engines of this Indian team. Mehtab dictating terms from the deep midfield and also not being afraid of giving it his all in helping the team defend. Nabi, on the other hand, was always ruffling the opposition with his overlapping runs and commitment. The passion he brings on to the pitch is unmatched. He arrived uninvited into the box like a ghost to head in India’s second goal. Robin Singh played well in patches on his debut, understandably nervous but shielding the ball well. Francis had a good game but it would be better if he improves on the accuracy of his passes. Same goes for Lenny Rodriguez who also played well in parts but lacked precision. Sanju Pradhan made an outrageous run into the box in the first half and found himself one on one with the keeper, only to be caught offside. Clifford Miranda did his job on the flank but was not up to the mark from set pieces, though his corner got the second goal. The defence was solid, Nirmal standing out and finally Subrata making some very good saves.

So, can we play this style? YES. All that needs to be done is keep the standards high and increasingly believe in our own abilities. India will hope to continue the good form against Nepal, whose standards seem to have dropped considerably after Graham Roberts left the top job. India should overcome the Nepal hurdle, before the Cameroon test that awaits them later.