Indian football team head coach Igor Stimac on Tuesday announced the second list of 15 probables for the Bhubaneswar camp ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Preliminary Joint Qualification Round 2 matches against Kuwait and Qatar. Notably, the first list of probables was announced on Saturday. The second list of players will train from May 15 in the Odisha capital.
“The 26 players from the first list will begin training in the Odisha capital on May 10. The 15 players from the second list, comprising of players from Mumbai City FC and Mohun Bagan SG, who contested the Indian Super League (ISL) Cup final, will join the camp on May 15,” All India Football Federation (AIFF) said in an official statement.
According to a statement by AIFF, a total of 41 players will take part in the national camp. The Blue Tigers will face Kuwait in Kolkata on June 6 before travelling away to take on Qatar on June 11 in their last two matches of Group A. India are currently placed second in the group, with four points from four matches.
The second list of 1__5__ probables for the Bhubaneswar camp ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers__
The 15 players from the second list, will join the camp on May 15! _
4__ week camp in Bhubaneshwar starts from 10th May 2024! #IndianFootball __ pic.twitter.com/3EeKcsArqE— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) May 7, 2024
The top two teams in the group will qualify for Round 3 of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers and book their berth at the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027. The Blue Tigers will take on Kuwait in Kolkata on June 6 before travelling to face Qatar in Doha on June 11 in their last two matches of Group A.
India are currently placed second in the group, with four points from four matches. The top two teams in the group will qualify for Round 3 of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers and book their berth at the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027. India’s quest for a place in the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup 2027 Preliminary Joint Qualifiers suffered a serious jolt when they went down to Afghanistan 1-2. The winners trailed 0-1 at halftime.
The loss of three points in this home tie left India with just four points from four matches in the four-team Round 2 group, at the second spot. While Qatar leads the group with nine points from three matches, Afghanistan, too, has four points from as many matches.
India have two more matches in hand. While defeating Asian champion Qatar in the away match would be a difficult task, it may finally boil down to India’s hope match against Kuwait on June 6. But Afghanistan can aspire to overtake India in the points table.
The second list of 15 probables for the Bhubaneswar camp (training from May 15): Phurba Tempa Lachenpa, Vishal Kaith, Akash Mishra, Anwar Ali, Mehtab Singh, Rahul Bheke, Subhasish Bose, Anirudh Thapa, Deepak Tangri, Lalengmawia Ralte, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Liston Colaco, Sahal Abdul Samad, Manvir Singh and Vikram Partap Singh.
