Indian football announces squad for New Zealand friendlies; Gurpreet Singh Sandhu not included

File Photo: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu captained India for the first time 2016 and permanently took over from Sunil Chhetri in June 2024. He is now out of the squad. | Photo Credit: PTI

Khalid Jamil, the Indian head coach, has announced the 23-player squad for the two friendlies against New Zealand on November 12 and 15.

Goalkeeper and captain Gurpreet Singh Sandhu has been left out of the squad on Friday.

The announced squad includes three players who are currently playing at the SAFF Championship 2026: Bijoy Varghese, Muhammad Suhail and Liston Colaco. The players will leave the tournament in Dhaka and join the squad, heading to New Zealand.

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“New Zealand are also a World Cup-playing nation and a strong opponent, and these two matches will be a good test for us away from home. We want to prepare well, play with discipline and use this opportunity to improve as a team,” said Khalid

India will assemble in Bengaluru on November 7 for a training session before heading to New Zealand. The two matches are set to take place at the Go Media Stadium in Auckland and One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch.

India Squad

• Goalkeepers: Hrithik Tiwari, Som Kumar, Vishal Kaith.
• Defenders: Abhishek Singh Tekcham, Akash Mishra, Bijoy Varghese, Jay Gupta, Mehtab Singh, Pramveer, Ricky Meetei Haobam, Roshan Singh Naorem.
• Midfielders: Anirudh Thapa, Ashique Kuruniyan, Jithin MS, Lalremtluanga Fanai, Lalrinliana Hnamte, Tomba Singh Haobam.
• Forwards: David Lalhlansanga, Edmund Lalrindika, Liston Colaco, Manvir Singh, Muhammad Suhail, Ryan Williams.