Akash Mishra's late goal guides India to narrow win over IFA XI in friendly

The full-back scored the only goal of the game in the 49th minute.

A day after beginning national team camp in Kolkata, the Indian football team faced the IFA (Indian Football Association) XI in a friendly match on August 16. IFA, which is the West Bengal state association of football, fielded a team coached by Ranjan Bhattacharjee in the friendly match, which was organized at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata. The match was also part of the preparations for the upcoming friendlies against Nepal.

The India national team started their 15-day training camp in Kolkata on Monday with a 24-member squad under head coach Igor Stimac. It marked the first time in over 15 years the Blue Tigers have assembled for a national team camp in Kolkata. The last time the Blue Tigers held a national training camp in the city dates back to 2006, prior to their FIFA World Cup qualifier match against Saudi Arabia.

Akash Mishra's calm finish with two minutes remaining took Igor Stimac's India to a 1-0 win over IFA XI in a friendly match at the Salt Lake Stadium. With the national team players beginning their camp on Monday, the game was limited to just 50 minutes (two halves of 25 minutes). India played well and came close to scoring on several occasions, but IFA XI defended deep and kept the opposition at bay. Eventually, with two minutes remaining, Mishra made a memorable run and found the net with a low powerful shot.

Watch India vs IFA XI Live streaming below:

Second half full video below:-

Build up and first half video below:-

Igor Stimc named a young playing XI for the friendly match against the IFA XI. In the absence of goalkeepers, Gurpreet Singh and Amrinder Singh, Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem found his way between the sticks while Pronay Halder slotted in as a makeshift centre-back. Mandar Rao Desai also made a comeback at the left back role for India while Glan Martins operated as the only holding midfielder. Meanwhile, Ishan Pandita led the line for India with Farukh Chaudhary and Bipin Singh were deployed on either flanks.

India XI: Dheeraj Singh (GK); Rahul Bheke, Sana, Pronay Halder, Mandar; Sahal, Glan Martins, Brandon Fernandes; Farukh, Bipin Singh, Ishan Pandita.

IFA XI: Priyant (GK), Nabi, Koushik, Mahitosh, Surajit, Vivek, Tuhin, Pritam, Srikumar, Prasenjit, Tanmoy.

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