Positives & Negatives from Indian football team’s 6-1 loss to Uruguay

 Anirudh Thapa scored India’s goal at the VYBK Stadium against La Celeste 

The Indian football team started well against Uruguay at the VYBK Stadium on Tuesday. Khalid Jamil’s side pressed well and also scored a goal in the 22nd minute to send the Kolkata crowd into a frenzy. However, the strike turned out to be just a consolation. 

Uruguay started the game slowly but scored their first goal through a Darwin Nunez penalty in the 11th minute. Anirudh Thapa equalized for India, however, La Celeste quickly got back the lead in the 28th minute after lightning and bad weather disrupted the game for a few minutes. 

Trailing 2-1 at half-time, the fans expected their side to bring out their best game in the second half. However, the Blue Tigers were pegged back by quick goals from Maxi Araujo and Rodrigo Zalazar before Juan Sanabria and Rodrigo Aguirre handed the visitors a thumping 6-1 win in Kolkata. 

Here are the positives and negatives for the national football team from their encounter against Uruguay:

Positive: Anirudh Thapa scored a historic goal

After going 1-0 down, Blue Tigers piled on the pressure on Uruguay in the first half, and the Blue Tigers were rewarded for their efforts in the 22nd minute. Ryan Williams started a counterattack from his own half and ran at a backtracking Uruguayan defence. 

The Bengaluru FC player took a shot from outside the box, but his effort was saved by Thiago Cardozo. However, the Uruguay goalkeeper did not clear the ball to safety as Anirudh Thapa pounced and scored a left footed shot past the keeper to score India’s only goal of the game. 

Thapa became India’s second player after Manas Bhattacharya, to score a goal against Uruguay. 

Negative: The weather destroyed Blue Tiger’s momentum

The VYBK Stadium erupted when Thapa scored India’s equaliser, and the Blue Tigers seemed to have gained some more confidence. However, the atmosphere dwindled within minutes as a thunderstorm and lightning in Kolkata meant that the game had to be stopped. 

The players went down the tunnel and eventually returned on to the pitch around 30 minutes later. However, India lost their momentum and conceded a goal roughly a minute after the game restarted. Khalid Jamil’s side couldn’t get momentum back for the remainder of the game and slumped to a heavy defeat. 

Positive: India looked sharp and hungry in the first half! 

The Blue Tigers showcased their best football in the first half against Uruguay, playing as a well oiled and hungry unit. India dispossessed Uruguay multiple times and played on the counterattack. 

The hosts took multiple shots and were confident when in possession of the ball. While defending, India defended as a compact defensive unit, similar to their games against Brazil and Panama, making things difficult for Uruguay. 

Negative: Unneeded substitution at halftime

Given that India were defending well, it would have been wise to continue playing with the same backline in the second half. However, Khalid Jamil replaced Pramveer with Bijoy Varghese in what seemed like an unnecessary change at that time. 

Yes, Pramveer did concede the penalty for Uruguay’s first goal. But the youngster quickly bounced back and formed a good partnership with Anwar Ali. The reshuffle in defence failed as the Indian backline took time to adapt. Within this time, Uruguay struck two quick goals in the second half to end India’s fighting spirit. 

Negative: India started the second half poorly, once again! 

Trailing 2-1 at halftime, The Blue Tigers failed to keep up with their high-pressure game at the start of the second half, allowing space and time to Uruguay’s midfielders and attackers, which eventually proved enough for the South American giants, given their quality and experience at the highest level. 

It can be argued that the national team didn’t have enough time to recover following their game against Brazil on Saturday. However, the Blue Tigers failed to keep up with their high-pressing game against Panama and Brazil as well. 

While Khalid Jamil’s India impressed showed glimpses of brilliance in this international window, the coach will need to find a way to keep his players focused and energetic especially in the second half to see more results go India’s way. 

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