90+4: There goes the final whistle… India 3 Pakistan 1
Pakistan has increased their tempo towards the end of the match and has already hit thrice out in the last few minutes..
Hassan Bashir scores from a long ranger…
87: Goal!! for Pakistan
Lallianzuala Chhangte and Mohsin Khan sees red for an altercation off the ball
Trouble in the game.. Red for both sides
Faroukh finds Ashique, whose cross is headed into the net by Passi… He comes and he scores.. But what a cross that was.. A bunny for Passi
83: Goal!!!!! Passssiii
Goalscorer Manvir Singh is down after taking a knock on the face.. He eventually has to be stretched out and birthday boy Sumeet Passi replaces him…
Substitution for Pakistan — Sadullah Khan come on for Abdulah Qazi
78: Qazi keeps of Vinit to help Rashid take the ball outside the Indian penalty box, but his shot from the edge is straight at Vineet.
Manvir Singh scores his second of the match, firing into the net from a loose ball… Substitute Chhangte escaped three Pakistani defenders to find Vinit, whos first is loose but ends up in front of Manvir. The tall striker scores from a first-time shot.
70: Goal!!!
Meanwhile, the pitch is at its worst condition and hence both teams have decided to focus on long balls…
61: India counter after almost the entire Pakistan team had up in search of a goal from a corner. But Faroukh Choudhary’s pass is awful and Pakistan clears
The resultant corner is straight at Keith, who spills on the first attempt, but recovers well before any Pakistani player can ger to the ball
56: Now Manvir goes into the referee’s books for a challenge on Mohsin Khan. Free Kick to Pakistan. Mohammed Ali’s shot is deflected away for a corner by Davinder Singh
51: Abdulah Qazi gets a yellow for a push on Vineet Rai.
Brilliant run from Ashique down the left flank and he finds Manvir Singh, who scores to break the deadlock for India.
48: Goal!!!
46: A poor pass from Pakistan goalkeeper, but the defender gets to it before Manvir can snatch
The second half is about to begin….
India on the other had plenty of chances but as has been the case throughout the tournament, their forward line was wasteful. Manvir Singh had the best chance for India, but his header was wonderfully saved by Pakistan goalkeeper Yousuf Butt, who has been the man of the moment.
This has been an intriguing first-half. India was expected to have a cakewalk but Pakistan has applied themselves well and had the best chance to score when Hasan Bashir’s header just at the brisk of half-time escaped just inches above the bar.
45+2: Its halftime at Dhaka. India and Pakistan are tied 0-0
36: Pakistan have been awarded a free-kick and goalkeeper Vishal Keith keeps India alive, with a finger-tip save.
32: Ashique’s cross for Salman is not well-directed and Pakistan clears, but the ball once again falls for Sahique whose curling effort is cleared for Butt.
30: Pakistan goalkeeper Yousuf Butt is down. He has so far been Pakistan’s saviour in the match
24: Another chance for India, but Manvir’s shot is brilliantly saved by the Pakistan goalkeeper
9: Three Indians shoot one after another, but none of them are on target
The starting line-ups are out…..
India also has a phenomenal record against Pakistan in football, whose best finish in the tournament is a third-place finish.
Seven-Time champions of the SAFF Cup, India are also the highest-ranked (96th) team in the competition.
Ashique Kuruniyan and Lallianzuala Chhangte score in the first match against Sri Lanka, while Nikhil Poojary and Manvir Singh scored the two against the Maldives.
Despite the victories, coach Stephen Constantine will be aware that both the wins – especially the match against the Maldives – could have gone either way. The great news for India is though that all the four goals have been scored by four different players.
Meanwhile, Pakistan lost to hosts Bangladesh in the opening match of group A but beat Nepal and Bhutan to qualify for the semis.
India finished on top of group B to qualify for the semi-finals.. They defeated Sri Lanka and Maldives 2-0 in both the matches to remain the only side unbeaten in the competition.
Hello!! Welcome to the live coverage of the India vs Pakistan semi-final encounter in the 2018 SAFF Championship…