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India vs Bangladesh FIFA World Cup Qualifier | Preview, Indian Team, Key Players, When and Where to watch

Following on from a disappointing but encouraging 1-0 defeat against Qatar, here is all the lowdown on India's World Cup qualifying clash against Bangladesh on Monday night.

India vs Bangladesh World Cup Qualifier AFC Asian Cup Sunil Chhetri Gurpreet Singh Sandhu
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A moment from India's match against Bangladesh in 2019 (Source: AIFF)

By

Sayan Chatterjee

Updated: 7 Jun 2021 12:58 PM GMT

With India already out of contention for a World Cup berth, the Blue Tigers need a positive result against neighbours Bangladesh on Monday to keep hopes of automatic qualification for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers alive.

Catch all the updates on our LIVE BLOG here

We have three points from six games and are currently 4th in Group E. However, with tomorrow's match against Bangladesh and the subsequent one against Afghanistan still to be played, nothing but full points would satisfy Indian football fans who have been waiting for an international victory for quite some time.

Match Preview

Although India were beaten 1-0 against Qatar, the result came on the back of an 18th-minute red card for defender Rahul Bheke. Following that incident, the Indian defence managed to hold its shape quite well and frustrate the Qatari attackers for long durations. However, India's attack looked quite toothless in that game, and the likes of Sunil Chhetri, Manvir Singh and Bipin Singh will have to do much better in the remaining two games. It would also be interesting to see if head coach Igor Stimac goes for an extra midfielder to replace Bheke after a defensive-minded starting eleven against Qatar.

For Bangladesh, who find themselves at the bottom of the group, the match against India will provide another opportunity for them to frustrate Sunil Chhetri and co, like they did in the 1-1 draw back in 2019. They will also gain confidence following a hard-fought point against Afghanistan three days back and will look to build on that on Monday.

Key Players

For India, Manvir Singh came the closest to getting on the scoresheet against Qatar, and the ATK Mohun Bagan forward will be hoping that he can finally do that against Bangladesh. If Stimac does play an extra midfielder to help the side's attacking cause, one feels it has to be Brandon Fernandes considering his ability to pop up in pockets of space and thread difficult passes through to the strikers.

On the other hand, captain Jamal Bhuyan remains Bangladesh's biggest attacking threat. The Danish-born midfielder has been a consistent performer for his nation, and having played for Mohammedan SC in the I-League this season, he should be extra motivated to put on a good display against India.

Indian Team

Goalkeepers:

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Amrinder Singh, Dheeraj Singh.

Defenders:

Pritam Kotal, Rahul Bheke, Narender Gehlot, Chinglensana Singh, Sandesh Jhingan, Adil Khan, Akash Mishra, Subhashish Bose.

Midfielders:

Udanta Singh, Brandon Fernandes, Liston Colaco, Rowllin Borges, Glan Martins, Anirudh Thapa, Pronoy Halder, Suresh Singh, Apuia, Abdul Sahal, Yasir Md, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Bipin Singh, Ashique K.

Forwards:

Manvir Singh, Sunil Chhetri, Ishan Pandita.

India vs Bangladesh Venue

The match will be played in Doha's Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium.

When and where to watch India vs Bangladesh

The match kicks off at 7:30 pm IST and can be watched live on Star Sports 2, Star Sports 3 and across Star Network's regional channels. You can also stream it live on Disney+ Hotstar and Jio TV.

Catch all the updates from the game on our LIVE BLOG here


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