Indian senior men’s team head coach Igor Stimac, on Saturday, May 4, 2024, announced his first list of 26 probables for the Bhubaneswar camp in preparation for the FIFA World Cup 2026 Preliminary Joint Qualification Round 2 matches against Kuwait and Qatar. The second list of probables will be announced in a few days. India will begin their training camp in the Odisha capital on May 10. The Blue Tigers will take on Kuwait in Kolkata on June 6 before travelling to face Qatar in Doha on June 11 in their last two matches of Group A.
India are currently placed second in the group, with four points from four matches. The top two teams in the group will qualify for Round 3 of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers and book their berth at the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027.
India’s quest for a place in the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup 2027 Preliminary Joint Qualifiers suffered a serious jolt when they went down to Afghanistan 1-2. The winners trailed 0-1 at halftime.
The loss of three points in this home tie left India with just four points from four matches in the four-team Round 2 group, at the second spot. While Qatar leads the group with nine points from three matches, Afghanistan, too, has four points from as many matches.
India have two more matches in hand. While defeating Asian champion Qatar in the away match would be a difficult task, it may finally boil down to India’s hope match against Kuwait on June 6. But Afghanistan can definitely aspire to overtake India in the points table.
The first list of 26 probables for the Bhubaneswar camp:
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.
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