Football

India's Farewell to Sunil Chhetri in FIFA 2026 World Cup Qualifier Against KuwaitIndia's legendary captain Sunil Chhetri will bid farewell to international football in a historic FIFA 2026 World Cup Qualifier match against Kuwait on Thursday, June 6. The match, to be held at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, marks the end of an illustrious career for the 39-year-old striker.Chhetri, India's all-time leading scorer with 84 goals, has been instrumental in the team's rise in the FIFA rankings. Under his leadership, India has achieved its highest-ever ranking of 96th and has qualified for the AFC Asian Cup four times.The FIFA 2026 World Cup Qualifiers are a crucial step in India's quest to reach the global football showpiece for the first time. The top two teams from each of the nine groups of four teams will advance to the third stage, where Asia's eight World Cup berths will be decided.India currently sits second in Group A, behind Oman, with six points from four matches. A win against Kuwait would boost their chances of finishing in the top two and advancing to the next round.Kuwait, ranked 146th in the FIFA rankings, will be a tough opponent for India. The Kuwaitis have won two of their four matches in the qualifiers and will be looking to upset India in Chhetri's farewell match.The match is expected to be an emotional affair for Chhetri and Indian football fans alike. Chhetri has been a symbol of hope and inspiration for the nation, and his retirement will mark the end of an era.

Emotions will run high as the talismanic Sunil Chhetri leads India out one last time in a crucial FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Kuwait in Kolkata on June 6. The 39-year-old Chhetri, who has dominated the national football landscape for 19 years, will hang his boots at the end of this match.Chhetri's goal is to propel his team into the next round of the World Cup qualifiers as a parting gift. The top two teams from each of the nine groups of four teams will advance to the third stage, which will determine FIFA's increased allocation of eight World Cup berths for Asia.While it may be a long shot for India to qualify for the 2026 World Cup in North America, a win over Kuwait would take the team into uncharted territory, where they would face the best of Asia in at least 10 matches. This would also translate into some quality friendly games.India currently occupies the second spot in Group A behind Qatar, with four points from four games. They are ahead of Afghanistan on goal difference and Kuwait, who have three points. A victory would put India firmly ahead of Afghanistan, who face Qatar in a tough fixture later on June 6.Chhetri has been a bonafide legend of Indian football, with 94 goals from 150 appearances and a dozen trophies in his cabinet. His last dance will be at the Salt Lake Stadium, where his professional football career took shape with Mohun Bagan in the early 2000s.India will be coming into this match with solid preparation. They have made some interesting additions in I-League forwards Edmund Lalrindika (Inter Kashi) and David Lalhlansanga (Mohammedan Sporting), who will be aiming to become the first players in five years to make national debuts from the second tier league.However, the defense will have to cope with the absence of Sandesh Jhingan, who has been sidelined due to an injury from the Asian Cup in January. It remains to be seen if the likes of Rahul Bheke, Anwar Ali, and Subhasish Bose will be able to compensate for his absence, especially the aerial strength he has provided over the years.Focus will also be on Lallianzuala Chhangte, who had a strong 2023-24 ISL season, scoring 10 goals and providing six assists for Mumbai City FC. He will look to carry this form against Kuwait, who will have the firepower of Hassan Al-Enezi in the defense.Kuwait will be coming to the game after routing Afghanistan 4-0, with their key forward duo of Shabaib Al Khaldi and Mohammed Daham scoring three goals between them. The duo will once again be a big threat to the Indians.

Indian football team coach Igor Stimac has emphasized the significance of the upcoming FIFA World Cup Qualifier against Kuwait, describing it as a game that could "change the careers" of his players. India will face Kuwait at the Salt Lake Stadium in their penultimate second-round game, followed by an away match against Qatar on June 11.Despite their disappointing loss to Afghanistan in the home leg in March, India still has a chance to qualify for the third round of qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. Stimac believes that a victory against Kuwait could be a turning point for his team."It's a huge game. The careers of the boys can change with this game. I want them to enjoy and do their best in the game," Stimac said.India, currently ranked 121st in FIFA, will be looking to improve their performance against Kuwait, especially with talisman Sunil Chhetri playing his farewell match for the national team."For such an important game, we need to do a few things; in regards to strength conditioning, in regards to understanding what it needs, in regards to how important this game is, and in regards to mental strength and self-confidence," Stimac said."So, we work on all aspects needed for our boys to be on top of their form in this game."The head coach stressed the importance of patience and clever play against Kuwait."There are two key points for the preparations for this game. First, winning the game is crucial. And to reach that target, we need to be very clever. We need to understand that in the game, we require patience," Stimac said."If we don't open the scoring in the first half an hour, we need to be intelligent and play quality football together with pace. All these aspects are very important and we have to prepare for them."India has not won in six matches and has scored only one goal in those games. However, Stimac believes that his team has the potential to overcome Kuwait."Each of those matches was very tough and I can clearly state that we controlled all those games in superb ways," Stimac said."We dominated for the bigger parts in each one of these games. We were above them physically. But on other occasions, before the Kuwait games, we had many games that helped us reach that level.""But it is a different game now because they are coming here when we didn't have the opportunity to play games. No league is being played now, no club is available. But we did play two games between us to reach the intensity we required.""And I need to tell you that the boys were superb in those two games. I am very happy with them; happy with everything that was done in the last three weeks," the coach added.

Indian football's senior men's team head coach Igor Stimac has unveiled his second list of 15 probables for the Bhubaneswar camp in preparation for the FIFA World Cup 2026 preliminary joint qualification round 2 matches against Kuwait and Qatar. This announcement follows the release of the first list of 26 probables on Saturday.The 26 players from the first list will commence training in the Odisha capital on May 10. The 15 players from the second list, comprising players from Mumbai City FC and Mohun Bagan SG who contested the ISL Cup final, will join the camp on May 15.A total of 41 players will participate in the national camp. The Blue Tigers will face Kuwait in Kolkata on June 6 before traveling to Qatar on June 11 for their final two matches of Group A.India currently stands second in the group with four points from four matches. The top two teams in the group will advance to Round 3 of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers and secure their place at the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027.Second List of 15 Probables for Bhubaneswar Camp (Training from May 15):* Goalkeepers: Phurba Tempa Lachenpa, Vishal Kaith* Defenders: Akash Mishra, Anwar Ali, Mehtab Singh, Rahul Bheke, Subhasish Bose* Midfielders: Anirudh Thapa, Deepak Tangri, Lalengmawia Ralte, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Liston Colaco, Sahal Abdul Samad* Forwards: Manvir Singh, Vikram Partap SinghFirst List of 26 Probables for Bhubaneswar Camp (Training from May 10):* Goalkeepers: Amrinder Singh, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu* Defenders: Amey Ganesh Ranawade, Jay Gupta, Lalchungnunga, Muhammad Hammad, Narender, Nikhil Poojary, Roshan Singh Naorem* Midfielders: Brandon Fernandes, Edmund Lalrindika, Imran Khan, Isak Vanlalruatfela, Jeakson Singh Thounaojam, Mahesh Singh Naorem, Mohammad Yasir, Nandhakumar Sekar, Rahul Kannoly Praveen, Suresh Singh Wangjam, Vibin Mohanan* Forwards: David Lalhlansanga, Jithin Madathil Subran, Lalrinzuala, Parthib Sundar Gogoi, Rahim Ali, Sunil Chhetri

Indian football team head coach Igor Stimac has set a bold target for himself and the team: qualification to the third round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. Stimac, who has been at the helm since 2019, has made it clear that failure to achieve this goal will result in his resignation."If I don't take India to the third round, I will leave, with my pride, with my honor on everything that was done here in the five years of work," Stimac declared. "I will leave my position to someone else."India's path to the third round is fraught with challenges. They currently stand second in their group with four points from three games, one ahead of Kuwait. The Blue Tigers have never reached the third round of the Qualifiers before.Stimac is not deterred by the odds. He believes that the team has the potential to achieve its goal, but it will require hard work and dedication. He has called for longer preparatory camps for the national squad ahead of big tournaments, citing the positive results achieved during previous extended training periods."In my four years, there were three long camps that we had," Stimac said. "One was five years ago right here prior to games against Oman and Qatar, you remember how well the team played that time. Second was for the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers in Kolkata, the team was flying -- 3 games, 3 wins, 8-1 goal difference. Third long camp was last year prior to the tournaments that we played brilliantly, could see the intensity and everyone knew what they had to do."Stimac also expressed concerns about the lack of Indian strikers in the Indian Super League (ISL), with most of the positions being occupied by foreign players. He believes that this is hurting the national team's scoring ability."Scoring problem has been haunting us for five years, even before I came here," Stimac said. "I have mentioned that foreign players are occupying scoring positions and that is hurting us."Despite the challenges, Stimac remains optimistic about the future of Indian football. He believes that the team has the potential to achieve great things, and he is determined to lead them to success.

Milestone man Sunil Chhetri, India's all-time leading scorer, will be the cynosure of all eyes as the Blue Tigers seek to overcome their goal-scoring woes in the return leg of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifier against Afghanistan on March 26 in Guwahati.Igor Stimac's India fired a blank in a disappointing draw in the away leg Group A match in Abha, Saudi Arabia on March 22 against their lower-ranked opponents, extending their goalless run. India last scored a goal in November 2023 against Kuwait.In this backdrop, it will be imperative from India's point of view that Chhetri, who will be appearing in his 150th international match, rises to the occasion and makes his landmark game memorable at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium. Having played his first International in 2005, he has so far earned 149 international caps, 93 goals, and 11 trophies for the country. His team would be too happy to see him score one more time, lead them to victory, and brighten their prospects of reaching the third round of the World Cup qualifications, something they have not achieved.While Chhetri has always looked to deliver what is expected of him, his teammates understand it is not fair to rely only on a 39-year-old talisman. They will need to chip in with useful contributions if the 58th-ranked side is to excel and stay in the reckoning for a place in the third round.Stimac has prioritized qualification to the third round of World Cup Qualifiers and secure a direct entry into the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. However, with his team coming off a disappointing campaign in the last continental showpiece, the Croatian will be under pressure and will want his wards to show a lot more desperation, composure, and urgency upfront.The Blue Tigers currently stand second in the group with four points from three games, one ahead of Kuwait, who are on three points from as many matches. India can still advance to the third round, but the task has got a lot tougher following last week's stalemate, from which they gained only a point. India will need at least four points from their next three matches – against Afghanistan (Tuesday), Kuwait (June 6), and Qatar (June 11) to remain in control of their fate.Stimac hoped that Chhetri could make his landmark match all the more special with a performance befitting his stature in Indian football. "Being chosen to represent your country is a dream of millions of kids when they start kicking the ball, and to make it 150 times is possible only for the GOATs (greatest of all times)," said Stimac. "We hope our captain will make it memorable on March 26 for all Indian fans and himself."Stimac tried out almost all options upfront in the first leg, but they did not work, and a goal eluded the team. He admitted that the team needs improvements in a few areas, especially while attacking, and was not happy with the manner in which his wards complicated things instead of keeping them simple in the final third. "We need to be better in passing, creating chances, and attacking the box when the crosses are coming from the flanks," he said.The Blue Tigers had last played in Guwahati five years ago, when they suffered a 1-2 defeat at the hands of Oman in the 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2023 AFC Asian Cup preliminary joint qualifiers. Match starts at 7pm IST.