The Indian men’s national team suffered a narrow 1-2 defeat to Singapore in the AFC Asian Cup qualifying campaign on Tuesday at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Goa.

A goal in each half from Song Uiyong sealed the deal for the visitors as the Blue Tigers went down despite a bright start to the game. A lack of precision in the final third cost India yet again, scattering their dreams of qualifying for the AFC Asian Cup 2027.

Playing on home turf, Khalid Jamil’s men displayed a promising performance in the opening half, pressing high in the opposition half. The Blue Tigers lodged five shots in the opening 45 minutes, of which three were on target. Lallianzuala Chhangte and Liston Colaco continued to make moves down the wings while
Naorem Mahesh Singh and Apuia were pairing up with quick one-twos.

India broke the deadlock in the 14th minute thanks to Chhangte’s brilliant long-range strike that gave no chance to the Singapore goalkeeper.

Jamil’s men came close to doubling their lead in the 29th minute, but Liston Colaco’s attempt was cleared off the line. A beautiful passage of play saw the winger find the ball inside the box, but his shot was cleared off the line.

The Blue Tigers had another opportunity within the next few minutes, this time with Naorem Mahesh Singh, but he couldn’t double the lead. Sunil Chhetri laid off a brilliant ball for Mahesh inside the box, but the
East Bengal FC midfielder’s first-time attempt went straight to the opposition goalkeeper.

Khalid Jamil’s men were in pretty much control of the game until the equaliser just at the stroke of halftime. Singapore found themselves back on level terms through Song Uiyong, who made no mistake in finding the bottom right corner with a precise finish.

With that, India went to the halftime break with a 1-1 scoreline.

Going into the second half, India lacked intensity in the final third, while Singapore showed their intent to take home all three points. The Lions had their chances through Ilhan Fandi in the 52nd minute, who managed to control a long ball from the right but failed to beat Gurpreet Singh Sandhu in a one-on-one situation; however, the forward was flagged offside.

Singapore took the lead in the 58th minute, with Song netting his second of the night.

Ikhsan, Anuar, and Song combined well to stretch the Indian defence and find the No. 7 in a free position inside the box, who showed his composure when it mattered and rattled the net, leaving Sandhu helpless at the near post.

Jamil brought on a fresh pair of legs in the second half, replacing Naorem Mahesh Singh, Nikhil Prabhu, Liston Colaco, and Sunil Chhetri with Farukh Choudhary, Sahal Abdul Samad, Rahim Ali, and Udanta Singh.

Sahal and Brandon Fernandes also had their chances in the final stretch of the game to find the equaliser, but their efforts went in vain.

In the other game in Group C, Bangladesh held Hong Kong, China to a 1-1 draw earlier in the day. The result offered a glimpse of hope for the Blue Tigers ahead of kick-off, but the defeat to Singapore ended all chances of qualification for the AFC Asian Cup 2027.

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