Final round qualifier

AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia: The 0-2 loss against Thailand was somewhat of a bitter pill to swallow for the Blue Tigers at the Thammasat Stadium on Wednesday. Regardless of the result against Thailand, the Blue Tigers now shift their focus to the task at hand in their AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Final Round Qualifier against Hong Kong on June 10.

The senior India men’s national team, who had travelled to Thailand with a 28-member squad, will now shift base to Hong Kong five days prior to their Asian qualifier with a 25-man squad, sans goalkeeper Hrithik Tiwari, centre-back Mehtab Singh, and full-back Subhasish Bose, who will travel back to India directly from Thailand. Bose was ruled out of the match against Thailand as well due to an injury.

Looking back at the match against Thailand, India head coach Manolo Marquez stressed the importance of capitalising on the opportunities that the team creates.