'Good selection after long time' - Fans react to India's probable squad for World Cup qualifier against Afghanistan

Igor Stimac has included some new faces for these upcoming matches.

India will try to recover and get things back on track in the Round 2 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Preliminary Joint Qualification against Afghanistan after a dismal start to 2024. India will face off against Afghanistan twice in the upcoming international window.

The first match will be played at the Damac Stadium in Saudi Arabia as a home game for Afghanistan on March 21 before a reverse fixture on March 26 at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati. Igor Stimac has already announced his list of 35 probables ahead of the national team camp. 

The Blue Tigers began their campaign with an historic 0-1 win against Kuwait away from home before facing a 0-3 defeat to Asian champions Qatar at home. They are currently ranked third in Group A and are level on points with Kuwait. 

After the announcement of the list of probables, Indian football fans took to their X (formerly twitter) handles and expressed their thoughts.

Anwar Ali’s comeback into the squad

A lot of fans expressed their joy as Anwar Ali prepares for a return to the national team after sustaining an injury last year. Some fans tweeted:

Inclusion of new players

The fans also appreciated the inclusion of Jay Gupta, Isak Vanlalruatfela and Amey Ranawade and tweeted:

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