Indian Football Team: After the 0-4 loss against Brazil, as the questions raised around the Indian football team, the most talked about is the goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (Gurpreet Singh Sandhu). His performance in the historic match was also criticized. In such a situation, many have demanded to remove Gurpreet from the national team squad. But Indian team coach Khalid Jamil is not walking on that path for now. Ahead of the match against Uruguay (India vs Uruguay), he made it clear that the door to the national team is not yet closed for Gurpreet.
‘If you play well, you will be in the team’
Khalid Jamil faced questions about Gurpreet in a press conference on Monday before the match against Uruguay. He said clearly, those who will give their best in front, will get a place in the national team. That is, not only the name or past performance, but the field performance in the upcoming matches will be the main criteria for team selection. It is also clear that there is still a chance for Gurpreet in Khalid’s statement.
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Khalid’s confidence in Gurpreet
The Indian coach gave a more specific message about Gurpreet. Khalid said he was satisfied with Gurpreet’s practice. According to him, Gurpreet can perform well in the next match. So there is no question of reaching any final decision about him now. That is, despite the disappointing result of the Brazil match, the coach is not completely removing the trust from the experienced goalkeeper.
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Where is the problem in the Brazil match?
After India’s 0-4 loss against Brazil, Gurpreet’s role has been questioned mainly around two goals in the first half. According to a section of critics, those two shots could have been blocked by Gurpreet. A goal early in the match put pressure on India and Brazil slowly took control later on. As a result, India had to concede four goals in the end.
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What did former goalkeeper Sandeep Nandi say?
Although he did not stand by Gurpreet in this debate, former Indian goalkeeper Sandeep Nandy saw the problem from a different perspective. He said that the first two goals against Brazil came from India’s own mistakes. Had Gurpreet been at his best at that time, it might have been possible to prevent two goals. According to him, the appearance of the match could have changed a lot if the first half had been kept goalless.
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Japan-Saudi example message
Sandeep Nandy also reminded that in the past India has scored six or seven goals against teams like Japan or Saudi Arabia. But while evaluating the loss against Brazil, it is also necessary to keep that point in mind, according to him. Mistakes cost a lot against the world champions — but India’s own mistakes were a big factor in the first two goals, he said. So the former goalkeeper is not in favor of looking down on the 0-2 loss.
Now it’s time to respond against Uruguay
The Brazil match is now in the past. Next is Uruguay. And this match is an opportunity for Indian footballers to prove themselves anew. Same is the case with Gurpreet. According to Khalid Jameel’s message, the doors of the national team are not permanently closed to anyone; If you give your best in practice and matches, you can get back to the place. So whether Gurpreet gets a chance against Uruguay or not, and how he performs if he gets a chance, the eyes of the football world are now on that.