The standard of refereeing has to change, demands Mahesh Gawli

The assistant coach lambasted the decision-making as India dropped points to Kuwait in stoppage time.

India played out a 1-1 draw against Kuwait to wrap up the group stage fixtures of Group A. The Blue Tigers opened the scoring with a ferocious Sunil Chhetri volley late in the first half before Kuwait pulled one back late in injury time with an own goal from Anwar Ali.

With this draw, India have now finished second in their group and will play Lebanon in the semifinal up next. India’s head coach Igor Stimac was again shown a red card and therefore assistant head coach Mahesh Gawli addressed the media after the game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXvAtg9EsAE

Referee’s decision

The assistant coach began by sharing his thoughts on the referee's decision of giving India's head coach a red card. He said that the standard of the referee should be improved in such high-intensity matches because it was a poor display by the referee.

“SAFF has to think about it because in high intensity matches the referee has to control. It was just a conversation between the player and the coach. The referee came and gave a red card. Coach did not say anything to them but they were targeting the coach. The standard of the refereeing has to change and if they continue with such a referee it is very bad for SAFF,” he asserted.

Kuwait’s gameplay

Kuwait tried everything in their power against India. They attacked from left, right and centre but India stood firm on most occasions. Speaking about Kuwait’s performance, Mahesh Gawli said that it was a resilient performance by them but his boys played very well.

“I think today the boys were brilliant and the performance was very nice. They played excellent football and I am proud of my boys. But Kuwait were very rough and the referee was very poor,” he said.

Words on Sunil Chhetri’s goal

Sunil Chhetri scored his 92nd goal for India with a picture-perfect volley from an Anirudh Thapa corner. Speaking about Chhetri’s goal, the assistant coach said that it was a great goal and Chhetri runs like he’s 21.

“It was a brilliant goal and you should appreciate this legend. Whatever intensity he brings at this age is great. He is 38 but he was running like a 21-year-old. We should appreciate him,” he quipped.

Words on Anwar Ali’s performance

Anwar Ali has been one of India’s best defenders in recent times. He has improved a lot in the past few seasons. He put up a great performance against Kuwait despite scoring an own goal. Mahesh Gawli praised the young lad and said, “He was very good. You can see his confidence. It was such a tough match but he was cool and confident. It was a good performance by him,” and he signed off.