FIFA World Cup qualifiers: India defeated Kuwait 1-0 at home away from home. Throughout Manvir Singh’s football career, coaches have valued his towering presence in an Indian team that isn’t particularly tall.
Manvir was once again the band-aid that would have to be applied when Igor Stimac brought up the subject of his lads’ lack of height against Kuwait in their first World Cup qualifier Round 2 away encounter.
The Mohun Bagan forward gave India the game’s lone goal late on Thursday night to give their Fifa 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign a winning start. He was the holding man for the attacking line.
The largest group of immigrants among all the expatriate populations in Kuwait comes from India, where there are just under 10 lakh residents in the Middle East. The Indian supporters in the 60,000-seat Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium outnumbered the Kuwaiti supporters, who were outnumbered by that demography.
When India gained possession of the ball, the applause intensified, and they peaked when Sahal Abdul Samad, an Indian attacking midfielder who spent his formative years in Kuwait, got his hands on the ball.
This was the third meeting between the two sides this year; the first was renowned for its caliber, and the second for its intense matches, which concluded with India winning the SAFF Cup in a penalty shootout.
Sunday’s match was far less exciting, with India controlling any opponent attacks but lacking the technical skill to hang onto the ball and link together great passes, and Kuwait controlling the game for significant portions of it but never posing a serious threat to Gurpreet Singh’s goal.
India had just one opportunity in the first half, when captain Sunil Chhetri skied a Nikhil Poojary cutback over the crossbar. The opportunity arose from yet another Indian high-press, a style of play that the national team has adopted and improved upon over the first half of this year.
Kuwait had a better start to the second half, but that momentum quickly faded. They did a decent job of keeping the ball, but their play with it was subpar. As cramps began to develop in their legs, India found themselves in a situation where they had a limited amount of time remaining and may steal a goal.
The 75th minute soon brought that opportunity. Akash Mishra slid by the Kuwaiti midfield with a run on the left flank, setting up Lallianzuala Chhangte with a ball. The Mizoram winger, who was substituted in and often plays out of the right, guided the ball into the center of the Kuwaiti box. Manvir made a comeback to the national team after lifting his left foot and guiding the ball into Abdulrahman Kameel’s near post. Manvir had just taken one step on left-back Sultan Al-Enezi.
This victory seemed improbable a few weeks ago. Jeakson Singh, a metronomic passer who would hardly ever give the ball away, and Anwar Ali, a central defender who exudes composure when handling the ball, were both hurt and sidelined. vital to this Indian team’s style of play, and the dearth of individuals with comparable skill sets meant that this match would need to be fiercely contested.
India emerged victorious, gaining further cushion in the group. They will next play at home in Bhubaneswar against the reigning Asian Champions, Qatar. Earlier on Thursday, Qatar trounced Afghanistan, the other team in Group A, 8-1. India will now get to experience that difficult test in Qatar in four more days.
