Mohammed Yasir ruled out ahead of India's clash against Mauritius in Intercontinental Cup 2024

Mohammed Yasir was set to feature for the national team after last playing against Malaysia a year back.

Manolo Márquez, the new head coach of the Indian football team, confirmed that Indian midfielder Mohammed Yasir has been injured and cannot take part in the Intercontinental Cup, which is scheduled to begin on September 3rd, 2024, at the newly-renovated GMC Balayogi Athletic Stadium in Hyderabad. 

In the pre-match press conference, when asked about the fitness of the team, Manolo Márquez confirmed that the team now has 25 players. He said, “We have 25 players at the beginning. We were 26. Yasir is out because he suffered a serious injury in the last game in the [trophy]. But everyone else is ready.” 

The Intercontinental Cup started in 2018 as a replacement for the Nehru Cup. In the first edition, played at the Mumbai Football Arena, India defeated Kenya with a final score of 2-0. Indian football legend Sunil Chhetri scored eight goals, including two crucial ones in the final encounter. 

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea won the second edition by defeating Tajikistan with a margin of 1-0 in the grand final. The Indian football team could not win a single game and managed to draw against Syria 1-1. 

In 2023, India was victorious for the second time. The competition was held at Kalinga Stadium, where the Indian team defeated Lebanon in the final with the help of two goals by Sunil Chhetri and Lallianzuala Chhangte, and won the Intercontinental trophy for the second time.

However, Sunil Chhetri, the highest goalscorer for the Indian team in this tournament with a total of 13 goals, will not be available this time, as he announced his retirement after the World Cup qualifiers against Kuwait in Kolkata.

This tournament will be the first for the new head coach, Manolo Márquez, after the departure of Igor Štimac. Manolo Márquez announced the probables on August 21st, when Mohammed Yasir returned to the national camp after March 2023. He played his last game for the national team on March 22, 2023, against Myanmar, where India defeated them by a margin of 1-0. 

Mohammed Yasir has appeared 13 times for the national team, debuting against Oman in March 2025.  In the South Asian Football Federation Championship (SAFF Championship), 2021, he provided an assist in the final to Suresh Singh, who scored the second goal. India went on to win the trophy after defeating Nepal 3-0.

The 26-year-old midfielder has made 92 appearances in the Indian Super League(ISL), scoring 8 goals and providing 15 assists for his team. In June this year, he signed a permanent four-year contract with ISL club FC Goa.

The competition will start tomorrow, with India kicking off the tournament by engaging Mauritius. The Blue Tigers’ next game will be in the final fixture of the tournament as they encounter Syria on September 9th. Syria and Mauritius will take each other on in between the two games on September 6th. All Intercontinental Cup 2024 matches will start at 7:30 PM.

Other players available 

Goalkeepers: Gurpreet Singh, Amrinder Singh, Prabhsukhan Singh Gill 

Defenders: Nikhil Poojary, Rahul Bheke, Chinglensana Singh Konsham, Roshan Singh Naorem, Anwar Ali, Jay Gupta, Asish Rai, Subhasish Bose, Mehtab Singh 

Midfielders: Suresh Singh Wangjam, Jeakson Singh, Nandhakumar Sekar, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Lalengmawia Ralte, Anirudh Thapa, Sahal Abdul Samad, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Lalthathanga Khawlhring 

Forwards: Kiyan Nassiri Giri, Edmund Lalrindika, Manvir Singh, Liston Colaco

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