The Indian football team faced a 0-3 defeat at the hands of Uzbekistan team in the AFC Asian Cup on Thursday, January 18. This loss marked India's second consecutive setback in Group B, following a 0-2 defeat to title hopefuls Australia. Despite earning praise for their spirited effort against Australia, India's performance against the Central Asian team at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium was markedly less impressive.
Uzbekistan secured their victory with goals from Abbosbek Fayzullaev (4th minute), Igor Sergeev (18th minute), and Nasrullaev (45+3 minute), achieving their first win of the tournament after an initial draw with Syria.
Coming off a promising performance against Australia, India hoped for a strong start but quickly found themselves under pressure. They conceded an early goal, with Fayzullaev capitalizing on a chance created by Shukurov, who had headed a Nasrullaev cross towards him at the edge of the Indian penalty area. Fayzullaev's swift header left Indian goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu with no chance to save.
Facing a challenging match against their 68th-ranked opponents, the 102nd-ranked team led by Igor Stimac struggled, as Uzbekistan aggressively targeted the Indian defense with their offensive strategy.
In contrast to their performance against Australia, India was unable to contain Uzbekistan's assaults, which breached their defense early in the game.
Uzbekistan continued to assert their dominance and capitalized on India's defensive errors. Rahul Bheke lost possession around the halfway line, and although Akash Mishra managed to get a touch, his attempt at clearing the ball resulted in it hitting the post and returning to play. Igor Sergeev seized this opportunity to extend Uzbekistan's lead to 2-0.
As India tried to recover, Uzbekistan maintained their high level of play and scored their third goal just before half-time. Nasrullaev found the net on a rebound, exploiting the Indian defense's inability to react promptly.
Entering the second half with a significant deficit, the Blue Tigers of India were in dire need of a miracle to turn the game around. However, their efforts were largely focused on minimizing the margin of defeat, resulting in a disheartened exit from the field.
The decisive blow had already been dealt in the first half, and India's overly defensive approach only played into the hands of their physically stronger and more skilled Uzbek opponents, leading to a reduced offensive impact from the Indian side.
In terms of team changes, Lallianzuala Chhangte began the game on the bench, making room for Naorem Mahesh Singh, while Anirudh Thapa replaced Deepak Tangri. Additionally, Akash Mishra was brought in to take the place of Subhashish Bose.
India is set to face Syria in their final group match on January 23.
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