India trailed 0-1 in the 16th minute through a Khonesavanh Sihavong strike but the home side replied in a remarkable fashion as they dominated all through the remaining part of the match, pumping in six goals -- including three in seven minutes -- to walk away with an easy win.
Jeje Lalpekhlua (42nd and 74th minute), Sumeet Passi (45th), Sandesh Jhingan (49th), Mohd. Rafique (83rd) and debutant Fulganco Cardozo (87th) were the goal-getters for India in the second leg of the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers play-off match at the Indira Gandhi Athletics Stadium.
They had to play in the play-offs after finishing at the bottom of their group in the joint preliminary round of the 2018 FIFA World Cup and 2019 AFC Asian Cup.
The victory and a berth in the Asian Cup Qualifiers will ease a lot of pressure on coach Stephen Constantine whose future has been under a scanner after a string of poor shows by the national team.
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India paid the price of relying on off-side trap as Sihavong found himself unmarked inside the box and he sent a low left footer past Indian goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu to the stunned silence of a sparse crowd at the stadium.
Jolted by the early reverse, India regrouped and they began dictating terms on their opponents. Just three minutes after the goal, Jeje had a chance to restore parity but his shot after a rebound from the goalkeeper went wide.
India found the equaliser three minutes before the lemon break with Jackichand, in his first touch, sent a fine cross from the right and the ball fell on Jeje after a dummy was sold by Passi inside the Laos box. Mizoram striker Jeje chested the ball down before slotting home past the Laos goalkeeper to the wild cheer of the home supporters.
At the stroke of halftime, India took the lead with Passi, playing in his second international match, sending the ball into the empty net off a low cross from Jackichand from the left. This was Passi's first international goal.
With a 3-1 lead, India had taken the game away from the visitors' reach but they did not relax a bit and scored three more goals against a hapless Laos to win the match in a tennis-like score and with one of the biggest margins in recent memory.
Jeje, who has been in the form of his life, scored his second goal of the match, as he received a beautifully weighted pass from Chhetri and sent a powerful grounder past the Laos goalkeeper into the bottom left corner of the net.
(REOPENS SPD19)
Constantine applauded the character showed by his boys, even after conceding an early goal.
"The order in which we won the match says a great deal about our character. We kept our heads high and fought for every inch. I am happy that Laos scored early on in the match as it gave us time to recover and stage a comeback," he said at the post-match press conference.
"The way we started the game I did not expect to win by five goals. Jackichand Singh changed the game for us as he had a positive effect from the time he was introduced," he said.
Constantine showered praise on Jeje Lalpekhlua, who was sitting besides him and said, "He (Jeje) is a complete striker, he works hard, he holds the ball and he knows what he is doing."
"I am really pleased with his performance and he has the potential to go and play outside of India in the European Leagues," he added.
"We stood united today, we attacked united and we played as a Team and that is how we won the game," Jeje added.
Laos head coach Valakone Pomphakdy credited the Indian team for their splendid performance.
"India were better than us physically and tactically. They deserved to win and the score-line speaks for itself. We cannot compare the two sides as one (India) is far better than us," he said.