KOLKATA: Emotions will be running high when the charismatic Sunil Chhetri takes on India for the last time in a crucial FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Kuwait here on Thursday, hoping to give him a farewell gift after dominating the national football scene. Will take his team to the next round. Till 19 years.
The 39-year-old Chhetri will retire at the end of this match and will be looking to ensure that the team enters the last-18 stage of the World Cup qualifiers for the first time.
The top two teams from nine groups of four teams each will advance to the third stage. This round will decide FIFA's increased allocation of eight World Cup berths for Asia. It may be a bit far-fetched to imagine India at the 2026 World Cup in North America, but a win over Kuwait would give the team at least 10 matches in Asia. Being up against the best players will take you into unknown territory.This will also translate into some quality friendly games.
India, second in Group A behind Qatar (12 points) with four points from four matches, are ahead of Afghanistan and Kuwait on goal difference, who have three points each.
A win here will put India firmly ahead of Afghanistan, who will face Qatar in a tough encounter on Thursday. Afghanistan are seven goals short against India and a win against Kuwait will virtually keep the equation out of their reach.
India will face Qatar in the final round of matches on Tuesday, while Afghanistan will face Kuwait.Chhetri has carried the football hopes of the country, often called the 'sleeping giant' of world football, for 19 years. With 94 goals in 150 matches and a dozen trophies in his cabinet, the diminutive Indian captain is a true legend of the game. . And it will be an evening filled with immense emotions at the venue where his professional football career with Mohun Bagan took shape in the early 2000s.
A packed crowd is expected at the Salt Lake Stadium to celebrate Chhetri's last dance.
Chhetri has fond memories against Kuwait, he was instrumental in setting up the equalizer by Sahal Abdul Samad, which led to the penalty shootout and ultimately gave India a 5-4 win at the 2023 SAFF Championship in Bengaluru.India had defeated Kuwait in their group league opener in November last year with Manvir Singh scoring the only goal, it will also be a morale booster for Igor Stimac's side, who then suffered a 0-0 loss to Qatar. -3.
This was followed by a setback in the Asian Cup where the team could not score a single goal, lost all three of its matches and failed to score a single goal.
Things went from bad to worse for India, who resumed their World Cup qualifier against Afghanistan, and failed to score in a goalless draw. There was more trouble in their home match in Guwahati, where the Blue Tigers were beaten 1 The side suffered a -2 defeat, conceding a late goal to the South Asian neighbours.
The clash against Afghanistan revealed the deeper issues plaguing the national team.Despite creating chances, India's inability to convert key chances will be a significant concern. This shortcoming was quite evident against Afghanistan as the team managed just one shot on target compared to Afghanistan's five in the shock 1-2 defeat in Guwahati. Was able to hit only one shot.
Midfielders Anirudh Thapa and Lalianzuala Changte also failed to make an impact, further adding to the problem. Their lack of creativity and accuracy, worsened by ineffective ball control and passing, contributed to India's plight.
Meanwhile, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, who is the most experienced after Chhetri with 71 matches, will also have to step up.Their penalty concession due to a communication failure resulted in Afghanistan becoming winners in March. But India will go into this match well prepared.
They have made some interesting changes in I-League forwards Edmund Lalrindika (Inter Kashi) and David Lalhlansanga (Mohammedan Sporting), who will be aiming to become the first players to make their national debut from the second-tier league in five years.
However, the defense will have to deal with the absence of Sandesh Jhingan who has been ruled out of the Asian Cup in January due to injury. It remains to be seen whether the likes of Rahul Bheke, Anwar Ali and Subhashish Bose will be able to compensate for his absence, especially with his The air power that they have provided over the years.
The focus will also be on Lalianzuala Changte, who had a strong performance in the 2023-24 ISL season, scoring 10 goals and providing six assists for Mumbai City FC.They will be looking to continue the same form against Kuwait, who will have the firepower of Hassan Al-Enezi in defence. Kuwait are coming into the game after a 4-0 thrashing of Afghanistan, with Shabab Al Khaldi and Mohammed Daham being key. The forward pair have scored three goals between them. This pair will once again become a big threat for the Indians.
Kuwait will also have Mohsin Gharib, who performed well in their previous encounter, to be tasked with stopping Chhangte if he starts in the left-back position.
Squad:=====
India: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (GK); Nikhil Pujari, Subhashish Bose, Anwar Ali, Jai Gupta; Jackson Singh, Anirudh Thapa; Naorem Mahesh Singh, Brandon Fernandes, Lalianzuala Changte; Sunil Chhetri.
Kuwait: Suleiman Abdulghafour (GK); Rashed Al-Dosari, Khaled Al Ibrahim, Hassan Al-Enezy, Salman Bormea; Eid al-Rashidi; Hamad Al-Harbi, Faisal Zayed, Azbi Shehab, Mohammed Daham; Yusuf Nasir.Start: 7 pm.
The 39-year-old Chhetri will retire at the end of this match and will be looking to ensure that the team enters the last-18 stage of the World Cup qualifiers for the first time.
The top two teams from nine groups of four teams each will advance to the third stage. This round will decide FIFA's increased allocation of eight World Cup berths for Asia. It may be a bit far-fetched to imagine India at the 2026 World Cup in North America, but a win over Kuwait would give the team at least 10 matches in Asia. Being up against the best players will take you into unknown territory.This will also translate into some quality friendly games.
India, second in Group A behind Qatar (12 points) with four points from four matches, are ahead of Afghanistan and Kuwait on goal difference, who have three points each.
A win here will put India firmly ahead of Afghanistan, who will face Qatar in a tough encounter on Thursday. Afghanistan are seven goals short against India and a win against Kuwait will virtually keep the equation out of their reach.
India will face Qatar in the final round of matches on Tuesday, while Afghanistan will face Kuwait.Chhetri has carried the football hopes of the country, often called the 'sleeping giant' of world football, for 19 years. With 94 goals in 150 matches and a dozen trophies in his cabinet, the diminutive Indian captain is a true legend of the game. . And it will be an evening filled with immense emotions at the venue where his professional football career with Mohun Bagan took shape in the early 2000s.
A packed crowd is expected at the Salt Lake Stadium to celebrate Chhetri's last dance.
Chhetri has fond memories against Kuwait, he was instrumental in setting up the equalizer by Sahal Abdul Samad, which led to the penalty shootout and ultimately gave India a 5-4 win at the 2023 SAFF Championship in Bengaluru.India had defeated Kuwait in their group league opener in November last year with Manvir Singh scoring the only goal, it will also be a morale booster for Igor Stimac's side, who then suffered a 0-0 loss to Qatar. -3.
This was followed by a setback in the Asian Cup where the team could not score a single goal, lost all three of its matches and failed to score a single goal.
Things went from bad to worse for India, who resumed their World Cup qualifier against Afghanistan, and failed to score in a goalless draw. There was more trouble in their home match in Guwahati, where the Blue Tigers were beaten 1 The side suffered a -2 defeat, conceding a late goal to the South Asian neighbours.
The clash against Afghanistan revealed the deeper issues plaguing the national team.Despite creating chances, India's inability to convert key chances will be a significant concern. This shortcoming was quite evident against Afghanistan as the team managed just one shot on target compared to Afghanistan's five in the shock 1-2 defeat in Guwahati. Was able to hit only one shot.
Midfielders Anirudh Thapa and Lalianzuala Changte also failed to make an impact, further adding to the problem. Their lack of creativity and accuracy, worsened by ineffective ball control and passing, contributed to India's plight.
Meanwhile, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, who is the most experienced after Chhetri with 71 matches, will also have to step up.Their penalty concession due to a communication failure resulted in Afghanistan becoming winners in March. But India will go into this match well prepared.
They have made some interesting changes in I-League forwards Edmund Lalrindika (Inter Kashi) and David Lalhlansanga (Mohammedan Sporting), who will be aiming to become the first players to make their national debut from the second-tier league in five years.
However, the defense will have to deal with the absence of Sandesh Jhingan who has been ruled out of the Asian Cup in January due to injury. It remains to be seen whether the likes of Rahul Bheke, Anwar Ali and Subhashish Bose will be able to compensate for his absence, especially with his The air power that they have provided over the years.
The focus will also be on Lalianzuala Changte, who had a strong performance in the 2023-24 ISL season, scoring 10 goals and providing six assists for Mumbai City FC.They will be looking to continue the same form against Kuwait, who will have the firepower of Hassan Al-Enezi in defence. Kuwait are coming into the game after a 4-0 thrashing of Afghanistan, with Shabab Al Khaldi and Mohammed Daham being key. The forward pair have scored three goals between them. This pair will once again become a big threat for the Indians.
Kuwait will also have Mohsin Gharib, who performed well in their previous encounter, to be tasked with stopping Chhangte if he starts in the left-back position.
Squad:=====
India: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (GK); Nikhil Pujari, Subhashish Bose, Anwar Ali, Jai Gupta; Jackson Singh, Anirudh Thapa; Naorem Mahesh Singh, Brandon Fernandes, Lalianzuala Changte; Sunil Chhetri.
Kuwait: Suleiman Abdulghafour (GK); Rashed Al-Dosari, Khaled Al Ibrahim, Hassan Al-Enezy, Salman Bormea; Eid al-Rashidi; Hamad Al-Harbi, Faisal Zayed, Azbi Shehab, Mohammed Daham; Yusuf Nasir.Start: 7 pm.
