Team India’s FIFAe Nations Cup 2022 campaign ended after suffering back-to-back losses against Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Mexico, and Morocco at the Bella Arena in Copenhagen on Thursday.
The eTigers made their first appearance in the FIFAe Nations Cup 2022 that started on July 27 and the nation was represented by Saransh Jain, Charanjot Singh, and Siddh Chandarana, accompanied by their coach, Lokmanyu Chaturvedi.
The team registered their first win against debutant Morocco and drew against Italy and Mexico. At the end of Round 1, India was placed 5th on the points table of Group D after securing 5 points but a horrid pointless second day saw India plummet to the bottom of the standings and crash out of the tournament from the group stage.
Match 1: India 1-5 Italy
The return leg of the group stage began with India up against Italy. Team Italy was dominant and pressurised the Indian team from the get-go. Eventually, they got their goal within 18 minutes. Italy scored two more goals to end the first half with a 3-0 scoreline.
In the second half, Italy extended their lead by 5 goals, which was beyond India’s reach. However, Charanjot & Co. pulled back one, but the outcome of the match was already decided.
Match 2: Netherlands 3-1 India
The next match was against the Netherlands, ranked 3rd in the world. They are one of the top seeds in the tournament and are considered the favorites in Group D. The Netherlands made a mark in the early minutes itself, creating chances after chances although the first half ended with a 0-0 scoreline.
The Dutch dominated the second half and eventually broke the deadlock after the hour mark. In around the 77th minute, the Netherlands scored another one and were up by 2-0. Charanjot & Co. quickly scored one and halved the deficit with 10 minutes remaining.
Team India tried to equalize but failed to do so as the Dutch team used the smart tactic of running the time out and extended their lead by scoring the third goal during the added time. The game ended with the Netherlands winning by a score of 3-1.
Match 3: India 0-1 Poland
The third match was a tight contest. At the end of 90 minutes, with the scoreline still 0-0, it seemed like the match would end in a draw.
The eTigers had to suffer an additional time penalty, and Poland edged past India, collecting all three points. India’s exit from the competition was certain after losing to Poland.
Match 4: Mexico 1-0 India
In the fourth match, India was up against Mexico, which is ranked 7th in the world. As expected, Mexico dominated the pitch from the very beginning. Team India managed to hold their fort and the first half ended in a deadlock.
At around 62 minutes, Mexico found its way to the back of the net. The second-half goal was the difference between the sides at full time.
Match 5: India 0-3 Morocco
In the first leg, India defeated Morocco 2-1 to seal their first win of the tournament and there was a glimmer of hope for Team India to end their campaign on a winning note by doing a double over the African nation. However, Morocco turned the tables in their favor as they upped the ante from the get-go and scored their first goal within 6 minutes.
Morocco found the back of the net again after 30 minutes and courtesy of a penalty kick, Morocco secured a 3-0 lead at half-time. India could not manage to finish and ended their campaign with a 3-0 loss.
At the end of Round 2, India sat at the bottom of the table with 5 points from 10 matches. The team’s FIFAe Nations Cup campaign ended here with an exit from the group stage. Not the result India was hoping for in their debut FIFAe Nations Cup campaign. Nevertheless, the Indian eFootball contingent made the nation proud with their efforts and valor.