India vs Tajikistan football: Khalid Jamil’s Blue Tigers eye temporary relief amid crisis

The D-Day is here for Khalid Jamil as the Indian football team gets ready to play its first match under the new coach at the CAFA Nations Cup 2025. The Blue Tigers will be up against 106-ranked Tajikistan in Hisor as a new chapter starts in Indian football on Friday (29 August).

Indian football has been under a lot of uncertainty recently, with no clarity on when the Indian Super League (ISL) 2025-26 season will start. A possibility of a FIFA ban also hangs over the All India Football Federation (AIFF), with the new constitution pending since 2017.

Blue Tigers hope to provide relief amid crisis

The Supreme Court is expected to announce the verdict on the new AIFF constitution on 1 September. And while fans are hopeful of a quick resolution, the Sunil Chhetri-less Indian football team has an opportunity to provide some temporary relief to millions of its supporters

Chhetri reversed his international retirement earlier this year under former coach Manolo Marquez, but Jamil, who joined the Indian team from ISL side Jamshedpur FC, has not called up the veteran. Jamil feels he must use the CAFA Nations Cup 2025 to prepare the backbone of the team ahead of the crucial AFC Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers against Singapore and Bangladesh this year.

The task in the absence of Chhetri, however, is not anything but easy for the 133rd-ranked Blue Tigers, who also face the Islamic Republic of Iran (FIFA ranking: 20) and Afghanistan (FIFA ranking: 161) in Group B of the CAFA Nations Cup 2025.

All India games will take place at the Hisor Central Stadium in Tajikistan, while the Group A games between Uzbekistan, Oman, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan will be played in Uzbekistan.

India have reached Tajikistan after a 10-day camp in Bengaluru, but their squad has no Mohun Bagan Super Giant player as the club refused to release its footballers outside of the FIFA window.

“We had a good preparation for the CAFA Nations Cup. Every player worked hard before coming here. It is a pleasure for us to participate in this tournament,” Jamil said ahead of the match vs Tajikistan.

Nonetheless, Jamil sounded confident and added that the focus would be to build a “strong unit” for the upcoming matches.

“Yes, we know about them (Tajikistan). They are a strong side and have done well recently. But we must focus on our own game and be mentally prepared,” Jamil added.

“It is important for us to play as a unit and keep improving every match. The process will take time. We want to focus on both the juniors and the seniors to build a strong unit for the future matches.”

India vs Tajikistan football head-to-head

Historically, Tajikistan have a 3-1 head-to-head record against India in five matches. India’s only win over Tajikistan came in the AFC Challenge Cup 2008 final.

When and where is the India vs Tajikistan football match?

The India vs Tajikistan football match will be played on 29 August (Friday) at the Hisor Central Stadium in Tajikistan from 9 PM IST (8.30 PM local time).

Where can we live-stream the India vs Tajikistan football match?

The India vs Tajikistan football match will not be broadcast on TV, but the live streaming will be available on FanCode.

Indian football team: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Amrinder Singh, Hrithik Tiwari, Rahul Bheke, Naorem Roshan Singh, Anwar Ali, Sandesh Jhingan, Chinglensana Singh Konsham, Hmingthanmawia Ralte, Muhammed Uvais, Nikhil Prabhu, Suresh Singh Wangjam, Danish Farooq Bhat, Thounaojam Jeakson Singh, Boris Singh Thangjam, Ashique Kuruniyan, Udanta Singh Kumam, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Irfan Yadwad, Manvir Singh (jr), Jithin MS, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Vikram Partap Singh.