Kochi, March 15 (IANS) The iconic Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium is all set to welcome the Indian Senior Men’s Football Team after a decade, as it is confirmed to host India’s last match of the Asian of the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers Final Round against Hong Kong to be played on March 31.

The encounter, which will mark the end of India’s poor campaign in the ongoing qualifiers, will commence at 7:00 PM IST.

This will mark the first time in 10 years that Kochi’s Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium will host the Blue Tigers. In March 2016, India faced Turkmenistan in a FIFA World Cup qualifier at the same venue. That was also the last time the Indian senior men’s team played in Kerala.

India, who are out of the reckoning for a place in the AFC Asian Cup 2027, will aim to end their qualifying campaign with a win. Despite it being a dead rubber in the context of the qualifiers, as Hong Kong have also been eliminated, the match still carries significance with FIFA ranking points on offer.

It will be the third different home venue for India in the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers Final Round, after Shillong hosted the game against Bangladesh last March, and Margao hosted Singapore last October.

The Indian Men’s football team last participated in the Asian Cup in 2023, where the blue tigers were eliminated in the group stage.

On the other side, the Women’s team have secured their place in the Asian Cup after a remarkable performance in the qualifiers.

The Blue Tigresses delivered a flawless campaign — winning all four matches in convincing fashion. India recorded emphatic victories over Mongolia (13-0), Timor-Leste (4-0), and Iraq (5-0), before capping off the group stage with a crucial 2-1 win against higher-ranked hosts Thailand.

–IANS

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