Sunil Chhetri-led Indian team won the SAFF Championship for the ninth time as they prevailed against Kuwait in a thrilling penalty shootout in the final after the scoreline stood at 1-1 at Bengaluru's Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Tuesday, July 4. The scoreline was shared not only after the normal stoppage time but also after the penalties (4-4), as the match went into sudden death where Mahesh scored for India and the goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu saved Hajiah's attempt to win it for India.
Kuwait began the goal-scoring on the night in the 14th minute with Shabib Al Khaldi finding the back of the net. India fought hard before finally getting some success in the 38th minute as Lallianzuala Chhangte scored the equaliser. Both teams sweated hard to get it right again as the second half was action-packed but the defence of both teams proved to be stronger than the attack.
As India clinched their ninth SAFF Championship title, let's take a full list of the award winners:
Highest goal-scorer: Indian captain Sunil Chhetri won the Golden Boot for scoring the most number of goals in the tournament (6).
Most Valuable Player: Chhetri bagged the MVP award as well not just for being the highest goal-scorer for his side but also leading his side to the ultimate glory - winning the championship.
Best goalkeeper: Bangladesh's Anisur Rahman Zico won the best goalkeeper award of the tournament.
Fairplay award: Nepal football team won the Fairplay award for playing in the spirit of the game.
Prize Money
The runners-up Kuwait received a cheque of USD 25,000 which is approximately INR 20.56 Lakh while the winning Indian team received a cheque of USD 50,000, which is approximately INR 41 Lakh, apart from the players of both teams receiving their medals. India remained unbeaten throughout the tournament as they beat Pakistan, Nepal in the group stage and drew with Kuwait. India then won on penalties in the semi-final against Lebanon and then Kuwait in the final.
