Chhattisgarh, Gujarat open Group B of Swami Vivekananda U20 Men's NFC with victories
Narainpur (Chhattisgarh), Apr 28 (UNI) Hosts Chhattisgarh defeated Andaman & Nicobar 4-0 on the opening day of Group B of the Swami Vivekananda U20 Men's National Football Championship at the Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama Ground, here on Monday.
In the other match of Group B, Gujarat emerged victorious with a 2-1 scoreline against Tamil Nadu.
Chhattisgarh and Gujarat occupy the top two positions in Group B, respectively, with three points each. The hosts are provisionally ahead by dint of a superior goal difference.
While Tamil Nadu and Andaman & Nicobar have started with defeats, Karnataka are yet to play a game. Only the top team from the group will make it to the quarter-finals.
In a dominant victory against Andaman & Nicobar, Chhattisgarh started off with an early lead in the 13th minute. Tushal Yadav scored in an open goal after confusion in the Andaman & Nicobar ranks. Shashikant Kumeti doubled the lead with a perfectly-weighed right-footed chip in the 25th minute.
Yadav made it three in the 36th minute with a strike from inside the box, while Kumeti finished off the game as he coolly dodged past the goalkeeper in a one-on-one opportunity and scored in an empty net in the 73rd minute.
In the second match of the day, Gujarat defeated Tamil Nadu after edging them in the first half. They took the lead early on through Jesse Kom's 10th minute strike.
The Gujarat forward, lurking in the box, stole a loose ball and toe-poked it past the keeper to put his side in the lead. Nine minutes later, Gujarat skipper Kishan Singh's hopeful attempt from distance rattled the cross-bar, before falling to Ashish Rana, who nodded in the rebound.
Leonardo Christy L pulled one back for Tamil Nadu in the 71st minute to make it a nervy ending for Gujarat, but the latter held on to the three points.
UNI BM
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