Time and again, players and coaches of the Indian football team have stressed that the Blue Tigers’ stellar run of form was down to the collective and not the individual.
But grand occasions invite grand performances, where a certain player goes that extra mile to stand apart. Against Lebanon in the 2023 SAFF Championship semifinal, the night belonged to Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.
The 31-year-old made five crucial saves, one of which came in the penalty shootout, where he thwarted the spot-kick from Lebanon skipper Hassan Maatouk. Four came in the first half, including a stop in the eighth minute to keep out Zein Al Abdine Farran in a one-on-one situation and another to tip Maatouk over the bar from a freekick.
