Watch India Vs. Turkmenistan Football Live Online: Streaming Video For World Cup Qualifying Match


Fans can watch the India vs. Turkmenistan football match live online and see if the Indian team can perform in what amounts to a must-win game for their World Cup hopes.

The Indian team has lost each of its three games so far in the 2018 World Cup qualifying round, and now get what is likely their best chance at a win. Turkmenistan is just above India at the bottom of Group D, and the two are together near the bottom of the FIFA rankings, with India at No. 167 and Turkmenistan at No. 155. A win would likely give either team a chance to crawl back into higher contention.

The teams will face off Thursday at 6:30 IST from Sportkompleks Kopet-Dag in Turkmenistan. India will have a tall task ahead. The team only recalled its players from the Indian Super League on Sunday, and the team landed in Turkmenistan on Monday.

Some fans have called out India Super League officials for not releasing the players sooner, noting that the short turnaround give them little to no time to practice and play together before they are thrown back into World Cup qualifying. The late release also means that players did not have time to prepare for the rigors of travel, which included 16 hours in airplane and traffic.

And that isn’t all. Indian manager Stephen Constantine said the team has some injury issues to deal with, Sportskeeda noted.

From the game against Iran, Constantine will have to do without the services of Dhanpal Ganesh; the 21-year-old is ruled out for this one, having recently undergone knee surgery. Gurpreet Sandhu put in a reasonable performance against Iran and is expected to continue between the sticks.

Fans who watch the India vs. Turkmenistan football match live online won’t see an easy walk to victory for the Indian team. Turkmenistan just turned in a hard fought 1-1 draw against Iran, and Constantine said he is not underestimating the improved Turkmenistan squad.

“We are aware of the difficult task at hand. Turkmenistan had a fantastic result against Iran. It speaks about the ability and determination of the team,” he said (via First Post).

“Iran are a super power in Asia and we always respect a team which managed to get a point from them. So we expect a very difficult game. The past may be hinting at something different but Turkmenistan are a much improved side in the last few years,” he added.

For comparison, India was dismantled by Iran when the teams met in a previous World Cup qualifying match. Iran won the game 3-0, dominating India through both phases of the game.

There is now a sense of urgency from the Indian players. Defender Arnab Mondal said the team is ready for the challenges ahead, starting with Thursday’s critical match. Mondal added that Turkmenistan has been strong at home recently, and that India will have to play out Constantine’s game plan perfectly to leave with a win.

The teams do not have much of a history, and hardly anything of a rivalry. They have met only four times, with each side winning twice, and this will be the first time India has traveled to Turkmenistan since the 2002 Asia Games.

Starting rosters (via Sportskeeda)

Turkmenistan (4-3-3)

Gorbunow, Babajanow, Annamyradow, Soyunow, Paparow, Atayew, Amanow, Geworkyan, Annaorazow, Mingazow, Muhadow

India (4-2-3-1)

Gurpreet, Pritam Kotal, Arnab Mondal, Sandesh Jhingan, Narayan Das, Pronay Halder, Eugeneson Lyngdoh, Francis, Sunil Chhetri, Jeje, Robin Singh

Fans who want to watch the India vs. Turkmenistan football match live online can click here for streaming video. Live updates from throughout the match can also be found at the official official AIFF Twitter handle and official Facebook page.

[Image via ROBERT CIANFLONE /Getty Images]

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