KOLKATA: India suffered a heavy 1-6 defeat to Uruguay at the Salt Lake Stadium on Tuesday as Diego Forlán’s side produced a dominant second-half display to bring India’s international break to a disappointing end.
Anirudh Thapa scored India’s only goal after following up on a save from the Uruguay goalkeeper, but a double from Maxi Araújo and further goals from Darwin Núñez, Rodrigo Zalazar, Juan Sanabria and Rodrigo Aguirre gave Uruguay a convincing victory.
The result leaves India with one draw and two defeats from their international fixtures during the break. They had earlier drawn 1-1 with Panama and lost 0-4 to Brazil.
Núñez gives Uruguay early advantage
India began with attacking intent and looked willing to take the game to the South Americans.
However, Uruguay were handed an opportunity to take control when Pramveer was penalised for a challenge on Federico Viñas inside the penalty area.
Darwin Núñez made no mistake from the spot. The striker sent Gurpreet Singh Sandhu the wrong way to put Uruguay ahead in the 11th minute.
India continued to threaten whenever they found space on the counter, and their persistence eventually produced an equaliser.
Thapa restores parity for India
In the 22nd minute, Ryan Williams drove forward through the centre before unleashing a powerful effort from outside the penalty area.
Thiago Cardozo could only parry the shot, and Anirudh Thapa reacted quickest to the loose ball. The Indian midfielder calmly guided the rebound into the net to make it 1-1.
India briefly looked capable of turning the match around.
Williams then released Edmund Lalrindika into a promising position, but the Indian attack failed to capitalise as Uruguay survived another scare.
A lengthy interruption followed when the scheduled hydration break was extended because of a lightning stoppage. Play was halted for around 37 minutes.
Araújo strikes immediately after restart
The stoppage appeared to disrupt India’s rhythm.
Just a minute after play resumed, Uruguay regained the lead.
Nahitan Nández delivered a low ball across the face of goal, and Maxi Araújo arrived at the right moment to finish from close range and make it 2-1.
Uruguay carried that advantage into half-time, with India facing an uphill task.
Uruguay take complete control after break
The visitors returned for the second half with greater control and prevented India from launching the quick counterattacks that had caused problems earlier.
Rodrigo Zalazar extended Uruguay’s advantage in the 53rd minute with a powerful strike from outside the box that gave Gurpreet little chance.
Six minutes later, Araújo scored his second of the night.
Viñas played him through on goal, and the Uruguay forward showed composure to finish across Gurpreet and put the visitors 4-1 ahead.
India were now struggling to regain possession and create meaningful opportunities.
Uruguay add two more late goals
With both teams making several substitutions, Uruguay continued to find spaces behind India’s defence.
Juan Sanabria added a fifth in the 71st minute, volleying home after Facundo Pellistri’s cross took a deflection.
Uruguay completed the rout four minutes from full time.
Rodrigo Aguirre collected the ball on the edge of the penalty area before curling an excellent effort into the top corner to make it 6-1.
The final whistle confirmed a comprehensive Uruguay victory and another difficult result for India against elite opposition.
India end international break with one draw and two defeats
India’s latest defeat means they finish the international window with a 1-1 draw against Panama, a 0-4 loss to Brazil and a 1-6 defeat to Uruguay.
For Uruguay, the Kolkata performance offered an emphatic statement, with their attacking quality and control after half-time proving too much for India to handle.
