India vs Kuwait preview, FIFA World Cup Qualifiers: The Indian football team take on Kuwait in their penultimate Group A match of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers 2026 second round in Kolkata’s Salt Lake Stadium on Thursday, in what will be Sunil Chhetri’s final international game.
Chhetri had announced in May that he would be hanging up his boots from international football after the game against Kuwait in June. The 39 year-old has made 160 appearances for India and scored 94 goals for his country.
India are in second place with four points from as many matches and cannot afford to drop points from their last two matches. Qatar are placed first with 12 points, with Afghanistan (Four points) third and Kuwait (Three) in fourth place. So, even if the Blue Tigers do win against Kuwait on Thursday, other results might have to go in their favour.
Thursday’s game will be followed by their final group match against Qatar on 11 June, which will be played in Doha. India will hope for a clinical outing against Kuwait.
The hosts will miss the services of Sandesh Jhingan, who has been out of action since sustaining a right knee injury during the AFC Asian Cup in January. As a result, the onus will be on the likes of Anwar Ali, Subhasish Bose and Rahul Bheke to step up.
In midfield, it will be up to Anirudh Thapa and Lallianzuala Chhangte to perform with full creativity and intensity.
India’s only win in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers came against Kuwait in a 1-0 win in November last year. Since then, the Igor Stimac-coached side have lost five and drawn one (0-0 against Afghanistan) across competitions, including the Asian Cup, where they failed to secure a point. India’s latest defeat was a 2-1 loss to Afghanistan in March this year. Kuwait, on the other hand are coming on the back of a three-match winless run.