Demons and Dreams: History of Football in Afghanistan | India vs. Afghanistan World Cup Qualifier Preview

Demons and Dreams: A History of Football in Afghanistan

Pic Courtesy : SportsKeeda

"I can tell you that the people in Afghanistan had just one thing they were happy about, and that was their national team. A lot of fans are telling us, 'The country is already gone, but please try to keep the national team together.'," Anoush Dastgir, former Afghan Senior Men’s National Team Head Coach to The Athletic.

There is something unexplainably magical in the game of football that makes it a such a unique method of pleasure, reassurance and at times a certain ray of hope. Be it in the finest European Academies, the Favelas of Brazil, the villages of Africa, or the war ravaged cities of Syria, a kick about dedicated towards a ball, be it made with synthetic leather with precise stitches or a crumbled up newspaper or even fruits like oranges and lemons, towards a single goal, somehow leads to such incredible, charging and emotional stories from everywhere around the world, it makes one stop and philosophise how insanely simple such a game is intertwined with such complex constructs of humanity.

Afghanistan always has found itself in the harsher and difficult side of the modern world. It has been a region ravaged by internal and external political and military exercises, with each and every force only taking away the country further away from its residents, alienating its own people from their land, making them question their own survival.

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A War to Begin It All

Afghanistan team in the 1920s

Throughout the late 19th century, the British, after taking control over India, managed to expand their territory into Afghanistan. Taking advantage of the losses suffered by the British in the First World War, Commander Amanullah Khan, along with the support of local tribesmen managed to inflict significant damages to the British and Indian solders in the third Anglo-Afghan War in 1919.

The Treaty of Rawalpindi stated that the British would recognise Afghanistan’s independence and not expand its borders beyond the Khyber pass. Amanullah Khan became the Emirate of Afghanistan, which now was a sovereign independent state.

Amanullah Khan introduced multiple social reforms to modernise Afghanistan. He established diplomatic relations with multiple countries. An important character for such progressive reforms was his wife, Soraya and a politician named Mahmud Tarzi, both of whom were ardent supporters of women's education and safety among other liberating principles.

The necessity to wear the burqa was removed, co-educational schools were established. It was during this, albeit short, era of intense social changes that football got introduced to Afghanistan. The Afghanistan Football Federation was formed in 1922. 

Afghanistan Football Archives (Courtesy: Tolo News)

However, Amanullah Khan’s era didn’t last long. His progressive policies alienated the rulers from conservative traditional public, which led to a Civil War, and his ousting. Although Amanullah’s cousin fought back and won, he proposed a slower approach to such modernisation, but was soon assassinated. Mohammad Zahir Khan, the latest and last King of Afghanistan took control for the next 40 years and had exercised relative leniency compared to the previous Kings.

Sayed Siawash Zimni for Tolo News writes:

Football first started to Afghanistan during the time of King Habibullah Khan after several foreign trainers started training Afghan students in Kabul. The first Afghans who received training were Abdul Hadi Dawi, Mawlawi Abdul Latif and several other students from Habibia high school at Hashmat Khat fort in Kabul.

Later, football teams were formed with competitions between Habibia High School, Isteqlal High School, Youth team and the Refugees team in 1302 – 1302 (1922). Larger matches were launched for crowds during special days such as Independence Day in Paghman district of Kabul province with high ranking government officials attending the matches. Some reports claim that even King Amanullah Khan would watch from the stadium in Paghman.

Thus football was allowed to continue, which might not have been allowed if a highly conservative monarch happened to seize control. In 1934, Mahmoudiyeh F.C. became the first football club to be founded in the country. The club played 18 games in India in the year 1937 in which they won 8, lost 9 and drew 1.

Four years later, Ariana Kabul F.C. was formed. The Kabul Premier League was started in 1946, which was the country’s top division until 2013 when it was replaced by the Afghan Premier League.

However, both club and country football never really gained significant momentum in the country throughout the 20th century. Eventhough Afghanistan had strong diplomatic ties with Germany and later the Soviet Union, with multiple collaborations for building of infrastructure, somewhere the cultural interchange was limited, thus football, which has wide popularity in Europe couldn’t establish a proper connect to the local Afghanis who preferred to take part in traditional games and sports such as Ghorsai, Koresh and their National Sport of Buzkashi where horse-mounted players attempt to place a goat or calf carcass in a goal.

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On the Brink of Asia (1940s - 1970s)

Afghan Contingent at the 1948 Summer Olympics (Courtesy: Tolo News)

Afghanistan played its first ever international football match in 1941 against Iran at home in the Ghazi Stadium in Kabul built by Amanullah Khan. Continued records of Afghani football don’t exist and most matches are lost in history. However, a significant milestone happened to be Afghanistan’s participation in the 1948 Summer Olympic Games. On the 26th of July, 1948, they played against Luxembourg but had to concede six goals and score none. It was the same year the AFF joined the FIFA.

Six years later, the federation joined the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Afghanistan withdrew from every Asian Cup Qualifier for its 1956-’72 editions, due to reasons unknown. Probably either the Government or the residents didn’t take the sport seriously or considered the team not ready enough. The National Team continued to play friendlies sporadically while club football was amateur. 

Afghanistan finally atleast participated in the Qualifiers for the 1976 Asian Cup held in the Al-Shaab Stadium in Baghdad, Iran. They were placed in Group 2 and their opponents were Iraq, Qatar and Saudi Arabia - since Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Jordan had withdrew. The teams played each other twice. Afghanistan lost it’s first five matches conceding 17 goals and scoring 3. In their last match against Qatar, they surprisingly drew 1-1 on December 2, 1975, the goalscorers remaining unknown.

Afghanistan Football Team Archives (Courtesy: Tolo News)

In the next Asian Cup qualifiers, after India, Iraq, Jordan, Nepal and Saudi Arabia withdrew, Afghanistan’s only group opponents were Bangladesh and Qatar. With top two teams sealing qualification, there was a slight chance for Afghanistan. They started convincingly with a 2-2 draw against Bangladesh at the Dhaka Stadium. However, they lost the reverse leg and the two games against Qatar.

In the other game against Bangladesh, Afghanistan lost 3-2. On the 8th minute, Afghanistan took the lead through Najibullah Kargar and sustained the scoreline till half time. Early into the second half, Bangladesh equalised through a free kick from near the corner spot.

Soon, Bangladesh took the lead but Afghanistan promptly equalised through Sabber. Late in the game, a quick counter attack ensured Bangladesh the winning goal through Salauddin. Had Afghnistan won that game, they would have qualified for its first ever AFC Asian Cup.

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A War to Kick the Ball Again (1980s - 2004)

Afghanistan Football Team Archives (Courtesy: Tolo News)

In the qualifiers for the 1984 Asian Cup held in Guangzhou, Afghanistan finished dead last in a Group which had China, Qatar, Jordan and Hong Kong. Their solitary point came from a 0-0 draw against Jordan, and their only goal a consolation in the 6-1 drubbing against Jordan.

Eventhough Afghanistan’s performances were grim, the Soviet-Afghan War followed by the Afghan Civil War put football to a complete halt. In 1996, The Taliban took control from the local militias, and sports was banned.

In 2001, the United States invaded and overthrew the Taliban on suspicion of housing Laden, the prime orchestrator behind the 9/11 attacks. This brought forward a new ray of hope to its people. After years of suffering, there was relative stability, peace and considerable improvements in the country's economy, healthcare, education, transport, and agriculture.

In 2002, Afghanistan returned to competitive football in the Asian Games where the faced South Korea. It was a valiant and commendable performance, but they lost the match with a margin of 2-0.

In January next year, they took part in the 2003 SAFF Gold Cup, held at the Bangabandhu Stadium in Dhaka. They lost their opening match to Sri Lanka 1-0. Their second match, played two days later, was a 4-0 drubbing to India where braces were scored by Mohun Bagan and East Bengal attackers Ashim Biswas and Alvito D’Cunha respectively. A goal for Pakistan in the 9th minute by Sarfraz Rasool in Afghanistan’s last game sealed their fate to the bottom of the group with zero points and goals scored.

Match scene between Afghanistan and Turkmenistan in a FIFA World Cup qualification match in Kabul, 2003 (Courtesy: By ShMa75 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0)

Afghanistan were in the Qualifiers for the 2004 AFC Asian Cup. It was a group of 3, the other two being Kyrgyzstan and Nepal. They would play each other only once. In the first match, held in the Dasarath Rangasala Stadium in Kathmandu on March 16, 2003 in front of 1000 spectators, Tahir Shah opened Afghanistan’s scoring in the 25th minute. There was no other goal in the first half. Kyrgyzstan equalised on the 63rd minute through Zhumagulov. Afghanistan pulled off a surprise win with Farid Azami scoring the winner in the 76th minute.

A disadvantageous match schedule forced the Afghans to return to the field only two days later against the home team, Nepal. Naturally the tired players stood no chance against Nepal who were playing their first match. The Afghans lost that game 4-0.

That defeat effectively put them out of the qualifiers. Afghanistan had a goal difference of -3, and eventhough Kyrgyzstan won by 2 goals over Nepal, which meant all teams finished on 3 points, Nepal just had the best GD and qualified for the AFC Asian Cup.

For the first time in their history, Afghanistan took part in the FIFA World Cup Qualifications for its 2006 Edition. They were eliminated in the first round in a 13-0 aggregate loss to Turkmenistan across two legs.

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On the Top of South Asia (2005 - 2013)

Afghanistan lineup against Turkmenistan at the AFC Challenge Cup (Courtesy: the-afc.com)

In the 2005 SAFF Gold Cup, Afghanistan lost their opening match 9-1 against Maldives, followed by a 1-0 loss to Pakistan. They bounced back in their third match, winning 2-1 over Sri Lanka courtesy of goals from Hafizullah Qadami and Gullestani at the People’s Football Stadium in Karachi.

They displayed some commendable performances against Chinese Taipei and Philippines where Hafizullah Qadami and Sayed Maqsood Hashemi both scored to produce a drawn result. They lost 5-1 in aggregate to Syria in the 2010 World Cup first qualifying round.

It was another disappointment at the 2008 SAFF Championship where they gave away 2-1 leads to draw 2-2 against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh and lost 3-1 to Bhutan. Harez Arian Habib scored four of their five goals.

With a draw and win over Bangladesh and Kyrgyzstan respectively, Afghanistan qualified for the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup where they lost 5-0 to Turkmenistan, 1-0 to India at the Gachibowli in Hyderabad and 4-0 to Tajikistan in the group stages.

A year later in the SAFF Championship, India U23s won 1-0 over the Afghans courtesy of a 86th minute goal by then 18 year old Jeje Lalpekhlua. Subsequent defeats against Maldives and Nepal followed. They also lost out to Palestine in the first round in the 2014 FIFA World Cup Qualifications.

Afghanistan finally showed good promise in the 2011 SAFF Championship. They won 8-1 against Bhutan, their highest ever margin, with Balal Arezou scoring a hat trick. A 3-1 win over Sri Lanka and a 1-1 draw with India made them table toppers.

Players are celebrating after winning their 2011 SAFF Championship Semi-final against Nepal (Courtesy: By Ahmad Faisal - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0)

They made it to the final after a gritty 1-0 extra time win over Nepal, but even after playing 120 minutes, the final was scheduled only two days after on the 11th of December at the JLN Stadium in New Delhi. In front of 30000 spectators, India scored in the 71st (pen), 79th, 80th and 90+5th minutes through Chhetri, Clifford Miranda, Jeje and Sushil Kumar Singh to win the SAFF Championship. It happened to be a spark of what was about to come two years later from the Afghans.

In the buildup to the 2013 SAFF Championship, Afghanistan played a FIFA approved friendly for the first time in 36 years against Pakistan, which they won 3-0, and entered the competition as its highest ranked team at 139.

After a 3-0 win over Bhutan, 3-1 win over Sri Lanka and a goalless draw against Maldives, Afghanistan, after a gap of one day, were set to face Nepal at the exact same venue, the Dasarath Rangasala Stadium in Kathmandu after 10 years, or 3838 days to be exact. Goalkeeper Mansur Faqiryar saved two penalty kicks late in the game, the first saved kick being ordered to be retaken, but got saved again. The revenge was successful, Afghanistan were in the final against India to be played on the 11th of September, 2013.

However, India were at a scheduling disadvantage this time as Afghanistan got two days of rest, while India only one. It was a sluggish and noticeably tired Indian team which was caught off guard on multiple occasions, two of which were exploited by Afghanistan in the 9th and 62nd minutes, as Mustafa Azadzoy and Sandjar Ahmadi put their names on the scoresheet. The team was organised by Afghani head coach Mohammad Yousef Kargar whose stint continued from 2004 to 2005 then 2008 to 2014.

Afghanistan were the 2013 SAFF Champions. Goalkeeper Mansur Faqiryar was adjudged the MVP of the Tournament. Along with him, defenders Mustafa Hadid and Zohib Islam Amiri and midfielder Rafi Barekzai made it onto Sportskeeda’s Team of the Tournament. 

Afghanistan won the 2013 SAFF Championship (Collected from: Goal)

Mansur Faqiryar didn’t reside in Afghanistan. He with his family had fled to Germany in 1987, where he played in FC Oberneuland Bremen, Goslarer SC and VfB Oldenburg in regional leagues. In an exclusive interview to FIFA.com, he stated:

"It’s a real football fairytale. You couldn't script it better if it was a Hollywood movie. If you look at how events unfolded, it's like it was meant to be. As a man of faith, I believe in this school of thought. I’ve been in Afghanistan a lot in the last few months because I now have a certain level of responsibility towards youngsters and children. I’ve seen the role football can play and I’ve noticed that the conditions for young people to learn and play football are simply not in place."

"On the evening after the final we were sitting in the hotel and saw what was happening back home. Watching all the people dancing out in the streets was the first real 'wow' moment. Then we got off the plane and the country’s most important officials were there to greet us, hundreds of thousands of people were celebrating in the streets and they accompanied us the whole way to the stadium. We needed over two hours for a journey that should have taken ten minutes. It was crazy."

"I still have lots of contact with Afghanistan and realise how important this success was for our country from talking to politicians, businessmen or just ordinary people who all have fond memories of last year’s success. It’s boosted everyone's self-esteem and enhanced the pride they have in their country. Moreover, people have a greater self-awareness: for the first time everyone sees themselves as Afghans. All the problems that are rampant within the country, particularly those between the different ethnic groups, were all cast to one side and for the first time everybody was cheering for Afghanistan. You can really sense the spirit of optimism in the country at the moment."

On the future of Afghan football in 2014, he commented "It’s developing slowly. At the moment we mustn't set any objectives that the people are unable to fulfill and that are utopian. The Afghan mentality is similar to the Latin countries: very emotional, with 100 per cent passion and commitment. That’s helpful when you want to reach new objectives. It could lead to quick progress, but it doesn't necessarily mean that things will be successful in the end. I believe that we've already taken huge strides forward in footballing terms and that we’ll continue to do so, but we shouldn't hope for things that aren't achievable."

Due to formatting changes, Afghanistan could enter the Qualifying rounds for the 2007, 2011 and 2015 Asian Cups since they were ineligible, categorized as "emerging countries" and could qualify for the 2015 Edition through winning either the 2012 or 2014 AFC Challenge Cups, the latter of which they progressed deep into, bowing out to eventual champions Palestine 2-0 in the semis and losing the third place match on penalties to Maldives.

On June 10, 2014 Afghanistan moved away from the SAFF and joined the Central Asian Football Federation (CAFF). FIFA awarded Afghanistan the 2013 Fair Play Award, and presented it to them at the end of the 2014 Ballon D’or Ceremony. FIFA stated that "Following a year of remarkable achievement in grassroots level football, building infrastructure to further develop football throughout the country and nurturing a professional league despite enduring over a decade of disorder stemming from war, Afghanistan has been presented the 2013 FIFA Fair Play Award."  

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A Candle in a Storm (2014 -)

Afghan national team before the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Japan, Azadi Stadium (Courtesy: By Tasnim News Agency, CC BY 4.0)

In the 2018 World Cup qualifiers, Afghanistan finished second last in a group with Japan, Syria, Singapore and Cambodia, where they won twice over Cambodia (3-0 and 1-0) and once against Singapore which got themselves a spot in the 2019 Asian Cup third qualifying round.

In the Asian Cup 3rd qualifying round group, they faced Jordan, Vietnam and Cambodia twice, where they drew twice to Vietnam and lost once to Cambodia. Had they converted one of two those draws against Vietnam to a win and won both times against Cambodia, they would have been in the Asian Cup.

After beating Bangladesh 4-0, Bhutan 3-0 and Maldives 4-1, Afghanistan trounced Sri Lanka 5-0 in the 2015 SAFF Championship Semi-Final and again faced India in the final. In front of 40500 spectators at the Trivandrum International Stadium, Afghanistan lost 2-1 in extra time.

The final match report on the SAFF website states:

The opening goal came in the 70th minute, and it was the defending champions who took the lead after being on the backfoot for majority of the match. Captain Faysal Shayesteh slid in a ball into the path of Zubayr Amiri who made no mistake in finding the back of the net from inside the box.

Hosts struck right back two minutes later to score the equalizer. A cross from the right met Sunil Chhetri’s head who flicked it in behind Syed Hashemi for Jeje Lalpekhlua to level the scoreline.

India had two chances in the space of two minutes to take the lead in the game. Narayan Das attempted an audacious chip from distance that was tipped over by Ovays Azizi. The Afghan custodian was brought into action once again when Sunil Chhetri struck a free kick on target.

The score stayed 1-1 after 90 minutes of entertaining end to end action, with hosts playing the better football out of the two teams. Coach Petar Segrt threw on top scorer Khaibar Amani after restart, hoping to provide a focal point to Afghan attack.

India took the lead in the 101st minute after Jeje Lalpekhlua’s quick free kick found Sunil Chhetri’s run into the box who slotted the ball past Ovays Azizi to make it 2-1. The Indian skipper had caught both Mustafa Hadid and Syed Hashemi sleeping with his run.

Coach Petar Segrt was sent off from his area after protesting referee’s lack of action against an alleged hand ball inside the box. The Head Coach of Afghanistan went over to the Afghan supporters before making his way off the field.

Afghanistan vs. India 2015 SAFF Cup Final (Collected from: Sportskeeda)

In 2021, Afghanistan lost the protection of the West and thus the Taliban took back control swiftly again. Unlike their other era of control, they did not ban sports, atleast for the men. During the desperate attempts to flee the country during the siege, people were seen clinging to the wheels of airplanes only to fall down to their demise. One such person happened to be 19 year old budding footballer Zaki Anwari.

In the lead up to Afghanistan’s first match after the takeover, a friendly against Indonesia, then head coach Dastgir stated to The Athletic:

"I can tell you that the people in Afghanistan had just one thing they were happy about, and that was their national team. A lot of fans are telling us, 'The country is already gone, but please try to keep the national team together'."

"When we played in Iran once, many Afghan refugees in Iran sold their mobile phones to buy a ticket and a bus ticket to come to Tehran just to watch the game. No matter if we win or lose, they said, ‘You are on that stage, that makes us proud'."

In the game against Indonesia, Afghanistan took a comfortable 3-0 lead courtesy of Norlia Amiri, Amiruddin Sharifi and Hossein Zamani. Indonesia made a charge scoring 2 goals in 5 minutes but could find the equalising third.With draws against India twice, Bangladesh once, and a win over Bangladesh, Afghanistan crashed out of the 2022 FIFA WC Qualifiers, and disappointed against Cambodia (gave away 2-0 lead to a 2-2 draw), India (conceded in 90+1 which made it 2-1 to India) and Hongkong (2-1 loss) and yet against failed to qualify for the Asian Cup too.

Even though there is no criteria that only member nations can take part in the SAFF Championship, Afghanistan, after joining CAFF in 2015 were not invited to the SAFF Championship again.

In the inaugural edition of the 2023 CAFF Nations Cup, Afghanistan walked out of the first group match against Kyrgyzstan due to an alleged hand ball in the build up to Kyrgyzstan’s winning goal in the 90+7th minute. They were allowed to take part in their next match against Iran which they lost 6-1.

After two friendly draws with Bangladesh and a defeat to Philippines, Afghanistan impressed by winning 1-0 over Mongolia across two legs in their 2026 World Cup Qualifier First Round.

Afghanistan’s first recorded head coach was Sardar Mohammad Farooq Khan Seraj who trained the team around 1949. This was followed by a few coaches from the Soviet Union. Interestingly, an Indian, Khwaja Aziz coached Afghanistan for six long years from 1981 to 1987.

They welcomed their first European Coach (barring the Soviet Union) in 2005, German Klaus Stark who was with the team till 2008. After the departure of Mohammad Youself Kargar in 2014, Croatian Petar Šegrt (2015-16), German Otto Pfister (2017-18), Afghani Anoush Dastgit (2018-2023), Kuwaiti Abdullah Al Mutairi (2023) and currently Englishman Ashley Westwood have been the permanent head coaches.

2026 World Cup Qualifiers: Hope in Hideout

Amiruddin Sharifi celebrates the equaliser in Afghanistan's 8-1 defeat to Qatar (Courtesy: the-afc.com)

However, there were some serious internal issues brewing for a while now which led to twenty one first team players boycotting their World Cup Qualifier against Qatar, which they lost 8-1 with a shoestring second team, followed by a 4-0 defeat to Kuwait. The players alleged substandard treatment from the AFF and outlined their corruptible practices.

“We really want change. We want to help domestic players because the money they are getting from Fifa is not being used in the right way. We have the worst flights possible and we have to stay in substandard hotels,” said Noor Husin who plays for Southend United in the National League in England.

“Every year our federation gets financial support from Fifa and from the AFC. We want to show a positive Afghanistan to the world so we are asking Fifa to stop supporting our federation financially because the money is going into the pockets of a gang who is ruling football in the country,” said Faisal Shayesteh, who plays for I League side Sreenidi Deccan FC.

An article by The Guardian read:

Shayesteh and his teammates have also claimed that members of the AFF leadership have been misappropriating money from air fare tickets of players for travelling to play matches. In documents seen by the Guardian, the AFF claimed back almost $65,000 from Fifa for a trip to the Central Asian Football Association Nations Cup in Kyrgyzstan in June that was initially expected to cost about $45,000. The players’ letter also accuses the AFF president inflated bills covered by Fifa for hotel rooms.

All allegations have been, obviously, denied by AFF. Other allegations include that of match fixing against Malaysia in 2008, with the infamous name of Wilson Raj Perumal being involved too. The decision came 11 years later in 2019 with a permanent playing ban handed to seven players, but President Kargar was given the clean chit, which the players protest, occurred since thy were threatened to not testify against him. Kargar also defended his colleague who was banned by FIFA after being accused of sexual abuse.

The recent years of Afghanistan and its Football have been grim. With the protest still continuing, Afghanistan are set to face India on the 22nd of March at their current home venue in Saudi Arabia, and on the 26th at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Guwahati.

The boycott still continues as Afghanistan are ‘left with just four players from the full-strength squads that played, and won the playoffs against Mongolia. According to sources, only three players – midfielder Rahmat Akbari, Omid Popalzay and Mosawer Ahadi – have now returned to the national team, while influential players like captain Farshad Noor, his predecessor Faysal Shayesteh, and Southend United’s Noor Husin have not changed their boycott stance,’ reports Marcus Mergulhao for the Times of India.

They also have recently appointed ISL winner with Bengaluru FC Ashley Westwood as head coach. Chances of Afghanistan winning are bleak but the press statements of his opposition head coach Igor Stimac don’t instill much confidence in the Indian supporters, constantly reiterating the 2000m altitude of the Damac Stadium where the match will be played in along with the ever-lasting complains of lack of practice time. 

Getting into the rhythm as we gear up for the #FIFAWorldCup qualifiers! 💪🇮🇳#BlueTigers 🐯 #IndianFootball ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/XeWGlj67ht

— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) March 18, 2024

With only 28% possession, Afghanistan lined up in a 4-4-2 with nothing much to show except for a surprise equaliser in the 13th minute after which they conceded 7 more goals from Qatar. They faced 26 shots, 17 of which were on target. With the midfield general Rahmat, Omid and Mosawer returning, there will be more stability and Westwood might experiment with a more flexible version to launch effective counters, especially through the wings India tend to be quite aggressive from.

It should not be a difficult fixture for the Indian National Team given eighteen first team players are still not available, but India have been on a topsy turvy stagnating ride ever since they moved on from Stephen Constantine (who had took the team from the 170s to the 90s in FIFA Rankings).

After ending their Asian Cup campaign as the worst team of the tournament, with defeats against Australia, Uzbekistan and Syria, with the scorelines of 3-0, 2-0 and 1-0 respectively, India will have to bounce back with a win to help restore some hope to the fans and increase their chances to qualify for the third round of the World Cup qualifiers after already defeating Kuwait 2-1 and losing out 3-0 to Qatar.

Probable XI: Afghanistan vs. India:

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