International Friendly: India 2-2 Bangladesh - Five talking points

Bangladesh have also closed the gap

Photo Credit: AIFF Media

India’s showing at the 2013 SAFF Championship, where they were beaten by both Nepal and Afghanistan, confirmed that they are no longer the dominant force in South Asia. Bangladesh also nearly defeated them at SAFF 2013 but India equalised late on through Sunil. That performance might have been considered a one-off as they lost their other two group games but Lodewijk de Kruif’s side showed during the 2-2 stalemate in Goa that the gap between India and Bangladesh now is minimal, perhaps even non-existent. Their Federation Cup champions Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi outplayed two of India’s biggest clubs in the IFA Shield back in January and on Wednesday their new-look national team nearly recorded their country’s first ever international win on Indian soil. Bangladesh looked more comfortable on possession but were possibly a little naive as they don’t regularly play at international level.