India vs Kuwait: Preview and Prediction
After cementing their feet in the AFC Asian Cup, which will take place in January, next year, India hasn’t looked back even once. They are in blazing form and after capturing the Intercontinental Cup earlier this month, they are looking forward to winning the SAFF Cup too.
In the pursuit of their ninth South Asian Football Federation Championship triumph, the Blue Tigers will lock horns against Kuwait in their third and last group stage match. Interestingly, Kuwait has also been unbeaten in their cup campaign yet. Thus, both sides will look forward to having a perfect group stage run before stepping into the final four of the competition.
Current Form
India is currently in incredible form following their recent Intercontinental Cup triumph and the matches they have played in the SAFF Cup until now. After taking down Lebanon in the final of the recent championship, it has been confirmed that the Blue Tigers will be taking a flight in FIFA rankings.
Entering the SAFF Championships as the second-best-ranked side, India started their campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan. The visa and NOC problems suffered by the Green Shirts were actually quite devastating. However, Sunil Chettri made things worse for Pakistan with an astounding hat-trick in the cup opener.
After the Indian skipper made the score 3-0, Chettri’s former teammate, Udanta Singh also smashed his third goal for the country. Sunil Chettri’s experience and on-ground prowess proved to be too much for Shahzad Anwar’s side as they lost the match 4-0 against Igor Stimac’s men. In the second match, India locked horns against Nepal and again, it was a forgettable evening for the visitors. With the help of goals from Chettri and Mahesh Singh, the Blue Tigers booked a spot in the playoffs.
On the other hand, Kuwait has also been in an outrageous form against their fellow group mates. Despite getting a first-round exit in the 25th Arabian Gulf Cup in January this year, they are not showing any chances of slowing down in the South Asian Football Federation Championship.
In the first match, they hammered the Nepalese football team with a score of 3-1. Consequently, they gave a much-improved performance against Pakistan by staying compact until the very last minute despite unfavorable weather conditions. Kuwait’s young poacher, Mubarak Al Faneni scored a brace to end Pakistan’s hopes of potential advancement.
Head to Head Record
India and Kuwait have officially locked horns against each other at three different junctures. The results have been in favor of Kuwait as they have recorded two wins over the Blue Tigers, while India has won only once. Their first meeting took place in the 1978 Asian Games, which was won by Kuwait with a significant margin of 1-6.
Locking horns against each other in an international friendly, the Blue Tigers took an act of perfect revenge over their rivals in 2004 with the scoreline stating a victory 3-2 in the subcontinent’s favor. Thus, they last met in 2010, when Kuwait walked out victorious with a thumping eight-goal win.
Team News
Like India, Kuwait is also unbeaten in the SAFF Championships yet
Interestingly, India is yet to concede a goal in their last nine matches. Moreover, they have recorded nine winning results in their last ten fixtures playing across two sub-confederation. Igor Stimac’s men are doing brilliantly in midfield as well as defense, moreover, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu has been utterly magnificent. However, the only loophole on the Indian side is the attack.
The offense fails to convert chances into goals with Chettri absent from the line-up. Stimac has been trying different combinations for a long time, from Nandhakumar to Sahal Abdul Samad, he has tried putting a bunch of players in the attack, however, all the permutations and combinations have failed until now. Thus, it’s highly likely that Sunil Chettri will proceed to lead the pack just like he has been doing throughout the competition.
Consequently, no suspensions or injuries are reported inside the Indian team yet. However, Stimac can look forward to squad rotation as a spot in the playoffs is already fixed after wins over Pakistan and Nepal. Mahesh Singh has shown his decent skills of striking and taking chances in his few recent appearances. Thus, he may be the right-hand man who’ll play alongside the Indian skipper against Kuwait.
On the flip side, Kuwait will be feeling confident after dominant wins over Pakistan and Nepal. Moreover, Thamer Enad and Rui Bento will be satisfied with the team’s attacking performance as until now, they have six different goalscorers as compared to India’s only three.
Kuwait might look forward to making a defensive change as they’ll be planning to tame Sunil Chettri by hook or by crook. Thus, Khaled Hajijah can look forward to giving a chance to Ali Abdel Al-Rasoul against the Blue Tigers.
Predicted Starting XIs
India (4-4-2): Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Nikhil Poojary, Anwar Ali, Sandesh Jhingan, Akash Mishra, Jeakson Singh, Anirudh Thapa, Sahal Abdul Samad, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Sunil Chhetri ©
Kuwait (4-3-3): Abdul Rahman Al-Majdali, Abdullah Al Fahad, Khaled Ebrahim, Hamad Al Harbi, Hamad Al Qallaf, Fawaz Ayedh, Khaled Hajijah ©, Mobarak Al Faneeni, Shabaib Al-Khaldi, Athbi Shehab, Mohammad Daham
Prediction
India as well as Kuwait has successfully managed to secure a spot in the semifinals of the 2023 SAFF Championships already. However, after their match, the final positions will be decided. Thus, Kuwait will be looking forward to breaking India’s momentum before they put their first leg forward into the playoffs.
However, Igor Stimac has transformed the Indian side into a team that is graced with young as well as experienced players. Hence, ultimately, Kuwait is highly unlikely to get the better of India, keeping in mind the incredible form of Sunil Chettri, Sandesh Jhingan, and most importantly, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.