National Team Friendly

National Stadium
Spectators: 10300 (Terracing: 7725, Seating: 2369, VIP seats: 206) Dark clouds were building up when the players entered the field. None of the them looked very eager to play. Leonardo Rancel started the match with the kick off. Heman Mahal showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Leonardo Rancel in the 4th minute of the match. In the 6th minute, Jeronimo Arriola hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. When the match clock showed 12 minutes, the score became 0-1 when Leonardo Rancel sped through U21 India's defense and sent away a curving shot that went into the net to the right of Heman Mahal. In the 17th minute, Karunanidhi Gaikwad got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. U21 India's Heman Mahal played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Liher Casasola in the 18th minute of play. 20 minutes into the match, U21 Venezuela's goalkeeper Gaztea Araña had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Anucakra Sailo. When U21 Venezuela's Leonardo Rancel in the 27th minute got a chance for a shot 27th didn't hesitate and placed the ball to the right of the goalie. A beautiful save bye U21 India's goalie prevented a goal. An unexpectedly hard shot by Liher Casasola in the 37th minute of play forced U21 India's goalkeeper Heman Mahal to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Karunanidhi Gaikwad struck a weak shot in the 38th minute. Gaztea Araña didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for U21 India. An unexpectedly hard shot by Anucakra Sailo in the 41st minute of play forced U21 Venezuela's goalkeeper Gaztea Araña to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. 41 minutes into the game, Marco Inchausti was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. U21 Venezuela's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave U21 India the free kick. In the 41st match minute, U21 Venezuela was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Marco Inchausti to maneuver through the defense. The fans had the chance to grab some refreshments as the whistle went for half-time. The score stood at 1-1 after a close first half.

The audience was convinced that Karunanidhi Gaikwad's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Gaztea Araña was relentless in the 54th minute of the game. In the 56th minute Anucakra Sailo shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Gaztea Araña saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. An unexpectedly hard shot by Karunanidhi Gaikwad in the 60th minute of play forced U21 Venezuela's goalkeeper Gaztea Araña to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Asurayana Bawa during the 65th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. In the 65th match minute, U21 India was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Asurayana Bawa to maneuver through the defense. U21 Venezuela's Leoiar Suazo was substituted for Guido Viado. In the 67th match minute, U21 India was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Asurayana Bawa to maneuver through the defense. Gaztea Araña took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Anucakra Sailo, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. The U21 India fans' excitement grew in the 69th match minute when U21 India's Karunanidhi Gaikwad looked to have a clear shot with the ball near the goal. The shot wasn't hard, but the ball still rolled over the goal line to make it 2-1 before the goalkeeper had a chance to intervene. U21 Venezuela's Leonardo Rancel got a good chance for a goal in the 72nd minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. In the 84thth minute of the game Samant Dhamija who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but U21 Venezuela's Gaztea Araña was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. If Samant Dhamija had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 86th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. After a rather tough play, U21 Venezuela's Marco Inchausti got a free kick in the 87th minute. The audience was convinced that Samant Dhamija's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Gaztea Araña was relentless in the 93rd minute of the game. The crowd rose to their feet and cheered when the referee blew the final whistle. U21 India had won after a very even match.