India vs Kuwait SAFF Championship 2023 LIVE Updates and Score

That's all for Sportskeeda's coverage of the drama-filled clash between India and Kuwait in the final group-stage match of the SAFF Championship 2023. This is Sayantan and I hope to see you return for the knockout stages that promise to be blockbuster.

After 90 minutes and a little more of the all-encompassing action, India had to settle for a 1-1 draw against Kuwait and walk away with only a second spot in Group A.

The initial phase of the match was scrappy and none of the sides could string together any substantial threats. The first talking point of the match arrived in the 25th minute when Abdullah found the back of the net for the visitors but the referee ruled it for a foul in the build-up to the goal. However, right at the end of the first half, Sunil Chhetri turned savior once again with an inch-perfect side volley to put the Blue Tigers ahead.

India seemingly started on the front foot after the break but things went north as soon as the tempers started rising in the middle and on the sidelines. Head coach Igor Stimac was shown a second yellow for his continuous protests, collecting his second consecutive red card. More drama awaited the onlookers as a scuffle broke out in the middle just as the game was nearing the end of regulation time. Rahim Ali and Al Qallaf were both shown red cards and given marching orders.

The Blue Waves utilized the chaos to strike in the 92nd minute and they were aided by Anwar Ali, who unluckily deflected the ball into his own net.

FULL-TIME: India 1-1 Kuwait

90+4' IND 1-1 KUW

If the scoreline remains the same till the final whistle, Kuwait will top Group A while India will finish second in the standings.

90+2' INDIA HAVE CONCEDED!

All the focus had been shifted to the brawls on the pitch and the Blue Tigers have conceded in the death as Anwar Ali steered a cross from Abdullah Albloushi into his own net. Kuwait have crawled back into the match and the scores are level now!

90' Eight minutes of additional time to be played!

90' More red cards coming your way!

Both Rahim Ali and Alqallaf have been given the marching orders after a scuffle broke out in the middle.

Sent off for the second game in a row, Stimac pushes the crowd to cheer before sitting amongst them!#IndiaKuwait #BlueTigers #SAFFChampionship2023 pic.twitter.com/qLwUUpKLHe
— Anantaajith Raghuraman (@anantaajith) June 27, 2023

83' More changes for India: Chhangte and Chhetri make way for Udanta and Rahim Ali.

82' Igor Stimac has been collecting red cards like Infinity stones.

Hopefully, his absence from the sidelines will not have a major impact on India's performance.

81' A second consecutive red card for Igor Stimac!

The fourth official complained to the referee about the antics of the Croatian tactician on the sidelines and he's shown a second yellow. Although Stimac continues to protest, he's given the marching orders. He'll definitely miss the semi-final but it remains to be seen if he faces any further consequences.

77' A crucial block from Jhingan!

After playing a few swift passes in the opposition half, Kuwait goes through on the Indian goal and tries to have a bite at the cherry. But Sandesh Jhingan steps in with a crucial challenge on Alotaibi inside his own box. There's the reason why India have been able to collect one cleansheet after another.

69' Jeakson comes close!

The ball is first won by Chhetri in the air, who then passes it to Jeakson, whose shot is deflected for a corner. The delivery from Chhangte is flawless, allowing Jeakson to make the ideal contact, but his header flies wide.

65' Double change for Kuwait: Al-Rashidi and Abujabarah make way for Ayedh and Faneni.

63' The tempers are flaring in the middle and Igor Stimac, who just returned from a one-game ban, is in the middle of it all. The referee shows him a yellow card for his protests.

61' Both Anirudh and Ashique had a considerably poor outing throughout the night. Although the midfielder provided the assist for Chhetri's goal, he misplaced a couple of passes. Ashique too fumbled often during the attacking phases.

60' Double change for India: Anirudh Thapa making way for Rohit Kumar and Ashique Kuruniyan is replaced by Sahal Abdul Samad.

51' Net football from India!

Ashique's cross initially falls short of Mahesh, but he manages to keep it alive. His cross from the right eludes Chhetri in the centre but finds Ashique on the left flank, whose volley just clears the crossbar. In the opening moments of the second half, India has made all the plays, which is a promising start.

47' Stimac switches around things!

Lallianzuala Chhangte has been getting no rewards down the right flank, hence the Croatian gaffer has opted to deputize Mahesh down the right and Chhangte down the left in the second half.

46' THE SECOND HALF IS UNDERWAY!

Kuwait gets the ball rolling and they'll be hoping to claw back into the game.

Kuwait have been poor in terms of defending set-pieces and India finally utlized it. The routine seemed like plan, with players positioned near the edge of the six-yard box. A stunning volley by than Chhetri, nonetheless. #INDKUW #SAFFChampionship2023
— Rahul (@rahul_madh) June 27, 2023

45+2' GOOOOAAAAL!! Who else, but the man himself! @chetrisunil11 🔥

A side-footed volley off a @AnirudhThapa corner, and the ball nestles into the back of the net 🥅

🇮🇳 1-0 🇰🇼#INDKUW ⚔️ #SAFFChampionship2023 🏆 #BlueTigers 🐯 #IndianFootball ⚽ pic.twitter.com/gwMzNPSWoL
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) June 27, 2023

Half-time: India 1-0 Kuwait

45+2' GOOOOAAAALLLL!

It could only be him. Only him. Sunil Chhetri races to his 92nd international goal as he thumps home Anirudh Thapa's corner delivery with an inch-perfect side volley to beat Marzouq between the sticks. The Blue Tigers lead and they have one man to thank for the same.

45' Three minutes of additional time to be played at the end of the first-half.

40' India just haven't been able to utilize their superiority on the flanks against this resolute Kuwait defense. Midfielders Al-Fahad and Abujabara have done brilliantly to support their full-backs.

35' India's first real chance of the night!

Anirudh Thapa delivers a delicious cross into the box and Anwar Ali rises the highest to reach it. But the header is wide of the target.

34' Mahesh Singh, who has been India's most potent option, once again breaks the offside trap and gets through down the left flank. But the winger's drilled cross into the box is cleared by a Kuwait defender.

32' India have been given away possession through unforced errors on multiple occasions. The visitors are clearly on top here and every unlucky to have not troubled the scoreline so far!

27' UPDATE: Apparently, in the previous move, the ball did end up in the net but the referee disallowed the goal for an earlier foul. Hence, the Kuwait players were protesting in numbers.

25' India will have to thank all their old gods and the new!

A perfectly weighted through ball from Al-Khaldi from the edge of the box found Abdullah completely through on goal. However, the latter's effort struck Amrinder and thumped into the side-netting. The Blue Tigers completely rattled during that period.

The Kuwait coach has been cautioned for protesting a decision.

23' India have been able to carve open the West Asian outfit on multiple occasions but the offside flag hasn't been their biggest supporter so far. The Blue Tigers need to time their runs better and improve the weight on their final passes.

20' After Lallianzuala Chhangte's threatening ball is cleared by a Kuwait defender, the Blue Wave string together a substantial attack of their own with some silky passing. Al-Khaldi finds himself with the possession outside the Indian box and after his first effort is blocked, he lashes out the rebound for a second attempt. But the effort flies high of Amrinder's goal.

16' India have had a slight edge in terms of possession so far, however, neither team has managed to test their opposition goalkeepers.

14' FIRST YELLOW CARD OF THE NIGHT!

Sandesh Jhingan goes into the referee's books for a rash challenge in his own half.

11' So far, it's been a scruffy affair in the middle of the park. Some unnecessary challenges have been flying in, coupled with some misplaced passes from both outfits.

6' Fluid passing from India!

Igor Stimac's men combine a few swift passes together on the ground and Mahesh finds himself with possession on the left flank. He feeds Akash Mishra through on the overlap and later's cross is dangerously hooved into the box. But the ball evades Chhetri at the far post.

3' First substantial threat for India to handle!

A long diagonal ball finds Abdullah, who sneaked in behind Jhingan and Poojary, inside the Indian box. The Kuwait forward volleys it the first time with the left foot but his effort flies over his crossbar.

2' Some early possession for the visitors, however, nothing fruitful comes through the boot of Hamad Alqallaf.

1' KICK-OFF!

Amid scattered crowd in the Sree Kanteerava, India get the ball rolling as the referee blows the first whistle of the game.

The teams are out in the middle for the national anthems and the kick-off is just around the corner.

India vs Kuwait: Prediction, preview, predicted lineups, and more for 2023 SAFF Championship tie

Read about the three key battles that can determine the outcome of the clash between India and Kuwait HERE.

The lineups are out and HERE is all you need to about the changes in India's starting XI.

Kuwait XI: Abdulrahman Marzouq, Ahmed Aldhefeery, Hasan Alanezi, Sultan Alanezi, Mohammad Abdullah, Shabaib Alkhaldi, Eid Alrashidi, Hamad Alharbi, Abdullah Fahad, Redha Abujabarah, Hamad Alqallaf

Your #BlueTigers 🐯 XI for #INDKUW ⚔️🔥🤩#SAFFChampionship2023 🏆 #IndianFootball ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/xrQfbrdV8T
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) June 27, 2023

India XI: Amrinder Singh (GK), Anwar Ali, Sandesh Jhingan, Akash Mishra, Nikhil Poojary, Anirudh Thapa, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Jeakson Singh, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Ashique Kuruniyan, Sunil Chhetri.

THE LINEUPS ARE OUT!

India will host Kuwait in their third and final group-stage match of the SAFF Championship 2023 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium. Both teams have already secured a berth in the semi-finals, however, Sunil Chhetri and co. need more than a draw to secure the top spot in Group A.

So far, the Blue Tigers have negated threats from arch-rivals Pakistan (4-0) in their opener and then Nepal (0-2), runners-up of the 2021 edition, in the second round. But the Blue Wave will be the sternest test for Igor Stimac's men yet.

The 143rd-ranked side dished out a 3-1 defeat to Nepal before storming to a 4-0 victory against Pakistan. Currently, they are at the top of Group A based on goals scored and are already through to the knockouts.

At the senior level, India has faced Kuwait three times, winning just once and losing the other two times. The previous encounter between the two teams took place in an international friendly in Abu Dhabi in 2010, where India lost 1-9. The Blue Tigers only triumphed over the West Asians once, a 3-2 friendly victory in Kuwait City in 2004.