India succumb to Brazil 4-0; fighting to bitter end against Goliath opponent

Kolkata: Brazil beat India 4-0 in an international friendly held here on Saturday. Estevao Willian (28’), Pedro (42’) and Samuel Lino’s brace(58’, 90+5’) helped the Latin Americans emerge winners against the home side at the VYBK stadium. Contrary to the scoreline, India put on an exceptional display against one of the biggest teams on the football map.

India started strong, letting Brazil have much of the ball without disrupting their defence. Khalid Jamil’s idea of keeping shape without committing blindly was executed perfectly by his side, managing to hold their shape against an explosive Brazilian attack with Vinicius and Estevao on both flanks.

India stuck to keeping their structure and pressed strategically when the right time arrived. Meanwhile, the Indians didn't shy away from keeping the ball when in possession. Their movement was fluid, with triangles connecting through the middle and on the flanks, with Williams and Sahal as the catalysts. Lalengmawia Ralte played the connecting presence in the middle, keeping the ball to his feet while evading pressure.

The old Indian football, which treated the ball like a bomb against big teams, was nowhere to be found as Khalid Jameel’s new India took their time with the ball, playing passes that count for something.

A clear-cut chance at goal was still far from in sight for the Indians, with Marquinhos and Andrey Santos diffusing much of their attack. Meanwhile, the Indian defence was top-notch for most of the game, with Bijoy Varghese announcing to the world what he's capable of on such a big stage.

Bijoy and Tekcham Abhishek Singh combined to keep Vinicius quiet throughout. India’s offside traps were executed to perfection to keep the South Americans from scoring.

Brazil, however, pulled off a classic Brazil, relying on Estevao's quick feet to break the deadlock with a shot that Indian goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu split into the net. Brazil’s Pedro found the net in similar fashion, with Sandhu helping the ball on its way, which led to his substitution.

India shifted to a more defensive structure, but Brazil broke in through the left flank, with Samuel Lino finding the third goal, for which the newly brought-on Prabsukhan Gill had no answer.

India continued on the back foot, leaving Williams and Manvir forward to make the run and trying to make use of counterattacks, which almost bore fruit in the second half, when Manvir found Williams with a delicate lobbed ball in a counter, but the striker sent it wide off the mark.

Brazil put Gabriel’s ball-playing ability to use, controlling more possession at the edge of the box, with most attackers loitering around the box.

The final quarter saw little action, with both teams controlling possession in phases without producing much. Samuel Lino produced a late goal in the final minute, cutting in from the flank to put the game to bed.

Despite minimal expectations to find something out of the game, India found themselves in good positions throughout, though they lacked meaningful actions in the final third. They handled the Brazilian physicality well, going head-to-head with world-class players and putting up a fight in every aspect of the game. The intent was evident, though the result wasn't favourable, and it's safe to say Khalid Jamil's side earned their flowers on the pitch this time.