Indian football was always going to have it tough in the post-Sunil Chhetri era.
And on Tuesday, that was clearly evident as Manolo Marquez's stint as Indian football team's head coach began with a goalless draw against lower-ranked Mauritius in the Intercontinental Cup opener in Hyderabad.
India enjoyed possession early on even as the tourists started the game on a lively note at the GMC Balayogi Athletic Stadium. But India failed to put the finish touches even after creating scoring opportunities.
The failure to make the third round of 2026 World Cup Qualifiers still fresh in memory, which led to the unceremonious exit of former coach Igor Stimac, India failed to find the back of the net and once again left their fans disappointed.
Ranked 124th in FIFA rankings, India are placed as many as 55 spots above 174th-ranked Mauritius.
Speaking after the match, coach Márquez said: “It was a good game because from here it's difficult to play worse than this."
India's below par showing saw #Indianfootball trending on social media.
The internet saw a lot of discussion among the Indian football fanbase and the disappointment was palpable.
'No tactical awareness, no confidence, no intensity to win, no fight, and no hunger. Feel for all the #IndianFootball fans who have to watch this kind of football from our players again and again. #INDvMRI,' read a tweet.
'We play literally s**t. That's it. !! Sorry for being negetive but people who think coach is the problem should realise it's deeper than that. There is no confidence, no intensity, no fight, and lack of hunger to win. We are absolutely clueless. #INDvMRI #IndianFootball.'
One handle Mohunbagan: The National Club of India @krirapremi was scathing of the team selectors.
'In #IndianFootball we have 2 quality Box stickers 1. Ishan Pandita 2. Suhail Bhat. Both aren't selected in National team. No fresh faces in Striker's position despite no improvement in performance of current ones,' he wrote.
Another handle, Playmakerindia summarised the match thus: 'Some Highlights from India vs Mauritius - reeked of Gawli ball rather than manolo ball! Jeakson is the best DM! Manvir is not a no.9. Chhangte needs help from his no.9 to play his best game! Bheke make shift CB, we need better option! #IndianFootball.'
'Only thing that won today was the crowd at Gachibowli. From few hundreds during #ISL for #HyderabadFC’s games last season to now again in thousands, clearly speaks volumes. Hopefully this season #HFC experience this atmosphere. #INDMRI #INDvMRI #IndianFootball,' read another.
Marquez had only two training sessions with the team before naming a 26-member squad featuring new and returning players.
India face 93rd-ranked Syria next on September 9 at the same venue.
The format of the Intercontinental Cup 2024 will see all three teams play each other in a single-legged round-robin format. The winners of the stage will be declared champions.
This is the fourth edition of the Intercontinental Cup, which began in the place of the Nehru Cup in 2018.
