Preview: India football team coach Stephen Constantine on Wednesday said St Kitts and Nevis cannot be taken lightly and his men would be guarded against the visitors when the two sides meet in the Tri Nation football series. “They haven’t travelled the other side of the world to lose. We can’t afford to expect anything less than a tough fight from the Caribbean boys. They are a tough bunch and a very skilful team. At the end of the day, it’ll be a very difficult game for us,” the coach said. [caption id=“attachment_3970225” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]
India football team train ahead of their match against St Kitts and Nevis in Mumbai. Image courtesy: Twitter/@IndianFootball[/caption] St Kitts and Nevis are ranked 125 in the world. India are on a good run winning nine matches in a row (including the unofficial match against Bhutan). India won their first game of the tournament 2-1 against Mauritius. Asked if with each match the pressure is mounting on the players, the Briton said: “I don’t believe so. We take one game at a time. What we did, it’s history now. “Every day starts afresh and we only get to look forward. As I’ve mentioned before we have a long way to go. A ticket to the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 is yet to be confirmed which is our ultimate goal.” India take on Macau next in the AFC Asian Cup qualifier. Constantine said the game would be treated like any other and not as a preparation for the all important Asian Cup tie. “We’d better treat it just like another game. It’s better to be called as the preparatory game before the Macau game — the same manner as we treated the game against Mauritius the other day,” he said. Meanwhile, St. Kitts & Nevis coach Jacques Passy said for them it would be like a virtual final. They drew with Mauritius the other night. “I’m a person who believes in ’no-excuse’. We were aware of the fixtures before touching down and now we can’t complain about the fixture,” Passy said. “Whatever ammunition we have, I believe we can put up a strong fight against India. Moreover, I can guarantee you that even if we lose, the tight schedule won’t be mentioned even once by us,” the coach said. “It’s a must win game.” With inputs from IANS
Highlights, India vs St Kitts and Nevis, Tri-nation series, football scores and updates: Hosts wins tournament despite being held to 1-1 draw
Catch all the live scores and updates from India vs St Kitts and Nevis in the Tri-nation series at the Mumbai Football Arena.
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That’s all from us here tonight. Hope you enjoyed our coverage.
The Indian football team collect their medals at the presentation ceremony.
The skipper reflects on a great learning experience.
The players thanks the crowds for their support.
It’s a 1-1 draw and India win the Tri-nation series!
St.Kitts & Nevis have eked out a draw vs India but the host win the tournament having beaten Mauritius 2-1 in the opener.
Final scoreline
Manvir Singh makes way for Jeje Lalpekhlua.
Another corner! Another chance missed by India.
The fans are loud as ever cheering on the home side.
Abhishek Bachchan shares his views on the game’s first half.
Scoreline at half-time
Jeje Lalpekhlua attempts another goal but it rolls past the goalkeeper. St. Kitts try to equalise but the hosts’ defence is solid as ever.
At half-time, India 1-0 St Kitts and Nevis.
Though the men in blue will enjoy the lead, they need to go back and reflect on the various missed opportunities. If they must compete against the top teams, they need to put on a more professional performance.
That was an exceptional finish from Jackichand.
Fans weren’t particularly happy with the call.
India have slowly started to dominate proceedings. Rowlin Borges wins another corner for India and Eugeneson Lyngdoh takes a long corner. Sandesh Jhingan does well to get it down but Jackichand balloons it way over the goal.
Sadly, these are the standards of Indian football.
The Caribbean team begin to look threatening on the left flank but Sandesh Jhingan does not let them breach the Indian defense. Jackichand earns a corner but India can’t capitalise.
Another chance goes begging as Balwant Singh can’t deflect into the goal with his header. But India earn another corner but they can’t convert.
The teams are done with the national anthems.
Fans are pouring in at Mumbai Football Arena. We’re 15 minutes away from kickoff.
Pro Kabaddi team Jaipur Pink Panthers are in the house to witness India take on St Kitts and Nevis.
Here’s what they’re playing for.
Here are the starting XIs for both teams.
An hour to go for kick-off.
Hello and welcome to Firstpost’s live coverage of the Tri-nation series in Mumbai Football Arena. India play their second match against Mauritius.
Stephen Constantine’s men won their first game of the tournament 2-1 against Mauritius despite a lacklustre start.
The Indians will look to extend their winning streak. They’ve already won nine matches in a row (including the unofficial match against Bhutan).
So stay tuned.