Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi felicitated some former India captains, thousands of school-children, transported from schools in and around Delhi, hunted for water in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. Disappointed and thirsty, they returned to their seats to vociferously and sportingly cheer their heroes against United States. The result, 3-0 in US’s favour, added to the despondency of the home supporters.
The felicitation, in keeping with the tardy arrangements overall at the venue, introduced Magan Singh as Bhaskar Ganguly. There was order, however, on the field where Ghana, giving a clinical exhibition of modern football, beat Colombia 1-0 in the opening match of the FIFA Under-17 World Cup here on Friday.
The United States team as expected outclassed the Indians, who struggled to match their skilful opponents. In terms of speed, ball possession and finishing, the home team appeared out of place.
The pressure on the defence meant the attacks were limited and the US capitalised with the pair of Josh Sargent and Ayo Akinola linking well. The latter was a constant threat on the left flank.
Chris Gloster was an untiring support for his strikers. He was the key as India, time and again, ran into him. The lone chance for India came late in the first half when Aniket Jadhav tested the rival goalkeeper.
Building the attacks
The US strikers chose to build the attacks, most of them from their territory, while India ran out of ideas in the opposition half.
Hounded by Akinola, the Indian defence finally gave in when Sargent won a penalty. Following a ball inside the box, Sargent looked to hoodwink Jitendra Singh. A panicked Jitendrea brought the lanky Sargent down and the referee, Gery Vargas, pointed to the spot.
The hush in the stadium gave way to boos as Sargent coolly sank the ball in the right corner. The game was 30 minutes old when US took the lead.
Two goals in the second half, by Chris Durkin and Andrew Carleton, did not reflect the story well. After Anwar Ali struck the bar, the resultant counter presented US with the opportunity that Carleton grabbed. True, US won, but the Indians earned appreciation for putting up a good fight.
Ghana and Colombia set the trend with an intensely fought contest.
Scorching pace
The pace, at times, was scorching, the lads looking far more mature in their movement, and the audience lapped it all. They had filled up the galleries in anticipation of India’s World Cup debut in a football event.
For Colombia, the momentum was generated deep from its defence with counter-attacks threatening to scatter the Ghana defence. It was in the defence that Ghana showed signs of disintegrating as Colombia aimed through the flanks. The relentless initial pounding by Colombia did not make an impact on Ghana which struck in the first half.
A superb combination from Eric Ayiah and Sadiq Ibrahim left Colombia crestfallen. A counter-attack, a stunning one at that, saw Ayiah find Ibrahim with a measured cross.
The unmarked Ibrahim, darting in swiftly, met the ball on the run to score in a flourish that reflected the confidence Ghana brought to its campaign on a humid evening.
The results: Colombia 0 lost to Ghana 1 (Ibrahim 39); India 0 lost to United States 3 (Sargent 30-p, Durkin 51, Carleton 84) .
