India 1-6 Uruguay: Key takeaways from Blue Tigers' fighting clash against La Celeste
Blue Tigers set to play against New Zealand in the November window.
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India wrapped up their FIFA International window with a 1-6 defeat to Uruguay in Kolkata, marking the end of a three-match run where the Blue Tigers faced off against three World Cup-playing nations.
Darwin Nunez set the tone early with a goal from the spot before Anirudh Thapa brought things back to level terms with a historic goal in the 22nd minute.
Lightning struck at the wrong time for India as the Blue Tigers lost their rhythm due to the pause, while Uruguay regained their dominance and made the most of it.
Maximiliano Araujo restored the lead for the Le Celeste immediately after play resumed, before the visitors netted four goals in the second half to put the game beyond India’s reach.
On that note, let us take a look at the key takeaways from this game.
India’s half baked success
When the game began, India went toe-to-toe against Uruguay and took the game to them. The Blue Tigers did not shy away from taking their chances in the attacking half, with Edmund and Ryan Williams combining really well to cause problems for the Uruguayan defenders.
Akash Mishra and Abhishek Singh looped curling balls into the box through their respective flanks and forced the Uruguayan defenders into action.
Interestingly, India recorded more final third entries than Uruguay at one point in the game. They won crucial duels and even forced the Uruguayan players into committing mistakes. At one point, it felt like India had what it takes to compete at the highest level until a reality check popped up. All the good work that the Blue Tigers had done in the last three games was undone in the second half of this game as Uruguay ran riot against Khalid Jamil’s side.
India played without structure while the players made schoolboy mistakes, making it a one-sided contest. The players have definitely learnt a lot from these friendlies, but it would be unfair to label their incompetence as ‘learnings’ every time.
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