Team India is back in business, this time for a International Friendly against Vietnam.
The international break is back and the Blue Tigers are all set to play Vietnam in their upcoming friendly on 12th of October at the Thien Truong Stadium in Nam Dihn at 4:30 P.M. IST. The match was initially to be held on 9th of October as the Blues were originally scheduled to participate in a Tri-Nation friendly but after Lebanon's withdrawal, the match was shifted to 12th as per AIFF's request.
Head Coach Manolo Marquez on 6th October, Sunday announced the final 23 member squad that will be travelling to Vietnam. The squad includes:
Goalkeepers: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu(C)(BFC), Vishal Kaith(MB), Amrinder Singh(OFC)
Defenders: Nikhil Poojary(BFC), Rahul Bheke(BFC), Chinglensana(BFC), Anwar Ali(EEB), Aakash Sangwan(FCG), Subhasish Bose(MB), Ashish Rai(MB), Mehtab Singh(MCFC), Naorem Roshan Singh(BFC)
Midfielders: Suresh Singh Wangjam(BFC), Lalrinliana Hnamte(CFC), Jeakson Singh(EEB), Brandon Fernandes(MCFC), Liston Colaco(MB), Apuia(MB), Lallianzuala Chhangte(MCFC).
Forwards: Edmund Lalrindika(IK), Farukh Chaudhary(CFC), Manvir Singh(MB), Vikram Partap Singh(MCFC).
𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔… 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒑𝒖𝒕 𝒂 𝒔𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒆. 😌#IndianFootball ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/HjNALpFAoD
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) October 10, 2024
The squad looks pretty decent with all positions equally covered but some major names like Nandakumar (EEB), Anirudh Thapa(MB) and Rahim Ali(OFC) were dropped while fresh faces like Aakash Sangwan and Hnamte got their first National call ups. Farukh Chaudhary makes a comeback to the Indian squad after a 3 year gap. The boy from Ambarnath played his last match for the National squad back in 2021.
Sahal would also be a big miss for the blue as the talisman has suffered an injury and thus was not released by the Mariners.
In a statement released by AIFF, Marquez when asked about his squad selection said, "There are still some players who are performing well but they are not here. We're still in the beginning of the season. I don't want to talk much about the ones who are not here. If you speak with 20 people, all of them will give you a different list. We called these players because we think they are the best to play against Vietnam."
Ready to take up the Vietnam Challenge 👊🏼🇮🇳#IndianFootball ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/QzirUzZX9q
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) October 9, 2024
Mariners in Action:
A total of 6 Mariners will be in action against Vietnam which includes our Superman Vishal, our captain Subhasish, Ashish, Liston, Apuia and Manvir. The selection of Vishal is a very positive sign for football fans as he has been by far the best goalkeeper in India for quite some time but was always denied a chance. He has snatched victories in favour of Mohun Bagan in matches where the chances of winning were almost nil. We hope to see him in the starting lineup so that he can do the same with our national team.
Solid week of training under our belt, excited to get on the pitch with the boys tomorrow. #BlueTigers 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/O1VCgOgedN
— Subhasish Bose (@subhasis_bose15) October 11, 2024
2024 has been a year to forget for the Indian National Team. We are yet to win a single game in this calendar year. Back to back despicable performances in the Asian Championships, Asian WC qualifiers and in the recently concluded Intercontinental Cup has greatly affected the morale of both the players and the supporters.
The Tigers have dropped to 126th spot in the FIFA rankings. Change of coach has not worked till now as the 2 matches under Manolo have not looked promising either. The Viets,currently ranked 116th in the world, would be a tough nut to crack as they possess a solid defence with a potent attack. And with Sunil Chhetri's retirement, our team needs to work extra hard and find some way to break them down.
A win is a need of the hour and the Tigers need to do something by hook or by crook to get a satisfactory result as it is not only confined to stats anymore, it has now become a matter of pride and self respect.
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