What happened when Indian footall team faced Tajikistan last time?

India are set to play Tajikistan in the opening fixture of the CAFA Nations Cup 2025.

Amid adverse times in Indian Football, the national team has flown to Tajikistan to participate in the CAFA Nations Cup 2025. The Blue Tigers are participating in the biennial 8-nation tournament for the first time.

India cashed in on the invitation to participate in the tournament when Malaysia decided to withdraw from the competition due to player unavailability. The national team will play a minimum of three matches in the tournament against teams like IR Iran, co-hosts Tajikistan, and Afghanistan.

The Indian team, under the newly appointed head coach Khalid Jamil, will play Tajikistan on August 29 to begin their CAFA Nations Cup 2025 campaign. This will be the sixth meeting between the two sides. Tajikistan dominate the record books with three wins and conceding only one defeat. This will be the first meeting between the two teams since 2019.

The last time they faced each other was in the 2019 Intercontinental Cup hosted by India. In this article, we will recall what happened when India played Tajikistan last time.

Also Read: ‘We must play as a unit’: Newly-appointed India coach Khalid Jamil confident ahead of CAFA Nations Cup 2025

Setback for Stimac’s India

It is a full circle for the Indian team. The Blue Tigers were going through a similar situation the last time India faced Tajikistan. Igor Stimac had just taken over the Indian team as the head coach, and his first serious assignment was the Intercontinental Cup in Ahmedabad. After Stephen Constantine’s four-year tenure, Indian fans were expecting a fresh approach and aggressive gameplay from Igor Stimac.

To the sheer delight of Indian fans, the Blue Tigers started on the front foot. India played some brilliant football in the first 45 minutes. The dominance on the pitch resulted in a massive 2-0 lead for India, credit to the main man, Sunil Chhetri.

Stimac’s men got off to an unbelievable start as India were ahead in the first five minutes. Sunil Chhetri put the team in the lead as he converted a penalty exquisitely. This early lead helped India express themselves and keep the pressure on the opposition. This constant pressure led to the second goal just before the half-time as Chhetri again found himself on the scoresheet. Stimac couldn’t have asked for a better first half from his boys.

Disastrous second half for India

The Indian fans were ecstatic at halftime, but they had no idea what was in store for them. Tajikistan were on the money right from the first whistle in the second half. The Indian team had to deal with the early onslaught, which later proved to be a menace. Kumron Tursonov, who has played his club football in India, scored the first goal for Tajikistan in the 56th minute, laying the foundation for a valiant comeback.

The Blue Tigers were just trying to recover from the blow when Tajikistan attacked again. The time the Central Asian team taught India a lesson on how to be clinical. The Indian defence was left stunned as Sheriddin Boboev equalised for Tajikistan in the 58th minute.

The momentum had completely shifted, and the Blue Tigers were nowhere close to being the best team on the pitch. Since Tajikistan equalised, the game was all about the visitors dictating the play and the hosts trying to keep themselves alive in the game. Unfortunately, they couldn’t for too long.

Tajikistan went on to score two more goals, absolutely destroying the Indian defence. It was Muhammadjon Rahimov who earned the much-awaited lead for Tajikistan in the 71st minute. The obituary was already written for India, which was later stamped by Shahrom Samiev in the 75th minute as he doubled Tajikistan’s lead. The scoreline remained the same till the last whistle was blown, and Tajikistan secured a 4-2 win to earn three points in the Intercontinental Cup.

This is the result that will fuel Khalid Jamil’s Indian team to fight for each blade of grass when they take on Tajikistan again on August 29. It will be an arduous task for India to win against Tajikistan with a depleted side, but going by Khalid Jamil’s footballing DNA, his team will not surrender without a fight.

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