Anirudh Thapa misses out as India names squad for Vietnam friendly
Mohun Bagan Super Giant midfielders Anirudh Thapa and Sahal Abdul Samad are not part of the squad nor is East Bengal FC’s Nandhakumar Sekar.
Published : Oct 06, 2024 17:54 IST , Chennai - 1 MIN READ
Indian senior men’s football team head coach Manolo Márquez | Photo Credit: AIFF Media
Indian senior men’s football team head coach Manolo Márquez, on Sunday, announced the 23-member squad for the one-off international friendly against Vietnam.
India will face Vietnam on October 12 after Lebanon withdrew from the tri-nation-friendly tournament. As per the original schedule, India was supposed to play Vietnam on October 9 and Lebanon on October 12.
Mohun Bagan Super Giant midfielders Anirudh Thapa and Sahal Abdul Samad are not part of the squad as is East Bengal FC’s Nandhakumar Sekar.
“There are still some players who are performing well but they are not here. We’re still in the beginning of the season. I don’t want to talk much about the ones who are not here. If you speak with 20 people, all of them will give you a different list. We called these players because we think they are the best to play against Vietnam,” Márquez said, in a statement released by AIFF.
The Indian squad has a couple of new names like left-back Aakash Sangwan and 21-year-old midfielder Lalrinliana Hnamte, who have earned their first national team call-ups. Farukh Choudhary has made his way back into the Blue Tigers squad after three years.
The forward debuted in 2018 and has represented India 14 times, scoring once against Nepal in a friendly in 2021. The same year, Farukh was part of the India squad that won the SAFF Championship in Maldives.