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Football: Indian football team invited to participate in CAFA Nations Cup 2025 after Malaysia withdrawal

by Devesh Jaganath

image Football: Indian football team invited to participate in CAFA Nations Cup 2025 after Malaysia withdrawal
Following Malaysia’s withdrawal from the tournament, India have been invited to replace Harimau Malaya at the 2025 CAFA Nations Cup. The second edition of the competition will be co-hosted by Tajikistan and Uzbekistan from August 29 to September 8.

India join Oman as invitees for second CAFA Nations Cup

India’s national football team will feature in the second edition of the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Nations Cup as special invitees alongside Oman, after Malaysia withdrew from the competition a couple of weeks ago due to logistical issues and player unavailability. 

The Blue Tigers have endured a tough period both on and off the field over the last 12 months, with results going against them and issues surrounding governance affecting progress - not to mention, the team are also without a permanent leader after Manolo Marquez’s shock resignation.

Team India will enter the CAFA Nations Cup having won only one of their last 16 matches across all competitions dating back to November 2023, with that sole victory coming over the Maldives in an international friendly. 

This tournament will therefore be crucial to help rebuild the morale around the camp ahead of the AFC Asian Cup 2027 Qualifiers - Third Round, which are set to recommence in October when the team will face Singapore back-to-back in the space of five days.

India have been drawn into Group B of the eight-nation CAFA tournament alongside Tajikistan, Iran and Afghanistan. Iran are the highest-ranked team in the Group at 20th, Tajikistan, India and Afghanistan are ranked 106th, 133rd and 161st, respectively. 

All of the team’s group stage matches will take place at the Hisor Central Stadium, while the final will be held at the Milliy Stadium in Tashkent. Iran beat Uzbekistan to win the inaugural edition of the CAFA Nations Cup last year. 

India’s 2025 CAFA Nations Cup Fixtures:

August 29: Tajikistan vs. India - Hisor Central Stadium

September 1: India vs. Iran - Hisor Central Stadium

September 4: Afghanistan vs. India - Hisor Central Stadium

AIFF rubbish Xavi, Guardiola head coach application claims 

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Following the unexpected resignation of Manolo Marquez as the head coach of the Indian national team, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) opened applications for the role, which grabbed headlines across the globe in recent weeks. 

This was due to widespread reports suggesting that former Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez and Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola had applied for the vacant role with the Blue Tigers. While the news brought major joy to Indian football fans, the AIFF have now confirmed that the applications were a hoax. They said: 

"The AIFF received an email furnishing the applications from Spanish coaches Pep Guardiola and Xavi Hernandez. The authenticity of their applications could not be confirmed, and it has since emerged that the email applications were not genuine."

The AIFF’s technical committee further mentioned that they had reviewed a total of 170 applications for the position of head coach and shortlisted three, though the names of the final candidates were not revealed. 

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