Thapa scores as India suffer hefty 6-1 defeat against Uruguay’s lightning-quick counters

Kolkata: The International Friendly game between India and Uruguay produced a high-scoring spectacle in favour of the visitors on a cold night at the VYBK Stadium. Uruguay defeated India by a massive scoreline of 6-1, with Diego Forlan’s team emerging victorious here on Tuesday. The match was suspended in the first half following a lightning strike on the pitch.

Khalid Jameel’s men started strong against the South Americans, dictating play and forcing errors out of the opponent defence line to create chances early in the game. Ashique Kurunian’s dancing feet gave Nahitan Nandez a handful to deal with at the left flank, with the full-back ending up in the referee’s books.

India’s relentless attack kept Uruguay on their toes until a penalty was given against the flow of play after Paramveer Singh brought down Uruguayan Federico Vinas with a lousy challenge. Darwin Nunes (12’) converted from the spot to give Uruguay the lead.

The goal, however, did not cool the hosts down as they kept pressing from the front to force more mistakes to create chances at goal. Khalid Jamal’s game plan to rely on quick build-ups against a rigorously pressing opponent bore fruit, with counters emerging from both sides in swift fashion, calling for an end-to-end game through the first quarter.

India continued the attack, with Ryan Williams once again being the key figure. Williams carried the ball through the middle to produce a shot from the edge of the box, which Uruguay goalkeeper Thiago Cardozo parried right into the path of an attacking Anirudh Thapa (22’). Thapa made no mistake from close range, levelling the game for the hosts.

Gaining momentum from the equaliser, Indians kept asking questions with Ryan Williams, once again finding Edmund Lalrindika from a perfectly weighted pass. Edmund took too many touches on the ball, being unable to launch a shot or lay it off to the cavalry approaching, and ended up with the Uruguay defenders closing down the attack quickly.

The game was then suspended due to lightning strikes at the venue. Uruguay responded fast to restore the lead, with Sporting’s Maxi Rodriguez (28’) scoring quickly after the match resumed, while India lost momentum due to the prolonged break in play.

India enjoyed the majority of possession trying to break down the defence, while Uruguay decided to sit back and diffuse the Indian attack while opting to counter-attack. One of the counters left Nunez in a one-on-one against goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, but the shot deflected off Sandhu’s head.

The game went downhill for India in the second half. Rodrigo Zalazar (53’) increased the advantage, occupying the half space to cut in and beat Sandhu with a shot driven towards the bottom corner. Maxi Araujo found the net with ease in the 59th minute to double his tally for the day, with Indian defence beaten by a delicate pass from Vinas, exploiting the empty spaces in the middle of the field.

Kerala Blasters’ new forward acquisition Mohammed Sanan almost struck gold, with a shot launched after toying with the Uruguayan defence. India stuck with trying to control possession around the box, but left Uruguay’s counterattacks unanswered as Juan Sanabria scored off a deflected cross to bag their fifth.

India kept looking for goals, with bringing more fluidity into the game yet again lacked quality in the final third. Rodrigo Aguirre’s finesse attempt in the 86^th minute found the top-right corner, putting the game to bed.

Khalid Jameel’s side ended the three-match window with a handful of goals conceded against some of the top sides in the world. The only scoreline that counted was managing a draw against higher-ranked Panama. The positives, however, are plenty, considering that the team tried to play every game in the way they wanted to and were adamant in executing it. That quest for an identity supersedes the results for the nation, as they try to pave their way into the big stages of world football.