There has been some decline in the performance of the Indian football team in the recent past. To improve their performance, the team needs to play as many matches as possible. And for the same Football Association Indian team has organized a friendly match for the team. The Indian men’s football team will begin preparations for next month’s SAFF Championship (South Asian Football Federation) in the Maldives with an international friendly against Nepal on Thursday.
The five-team SAFF Championship will be played in Male from October 3 to October 13. Apart from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, host Maldives, and Nepal will participate. The Indian team will play two friendly matches with the Nepal football team before entering this tournament. A match is to be played on Thursday 2nd September. Apart from this, on September 5, the team will play in the second match. After this, the Indian team will start the SAFF Championship from the first match against Bangladesh on 4 October.
India’s head coach Igor Stimac said, “These two international friendly matches will help in preparing for the SAFF Championship.” The second match will be played on September 5. The Indian team is playing its first international match after the last group match against Afghanistan in the 2018 World Cup Qualifier and the 2023 Asian Cup Combined Qualifier.
Indian captain Sunil Chhetri thanked Nepal for inviting them to play for the Indian team in this difficult time. He said, “We understand how difficult the situation is in the world. Nepal invited us to play international football at such a time. We want to start the season well by winning these matches.”
