Harvey decides to test Gurpreet from distance. This time, the Bengaluru FC goalkeeper makes a good save to deny Panama the leading goal.

India makes two changes, with Ryan Williams, Vikram Partap making way for Sahal Abdul Samad and Edmund Lalrindika.

Valencia tries to go for another attack and Vikram makes a timely save. The resulting corner is taken by Carrasqilla, and the shot comes off the woodwork.

The long-ranger strategy finally gives a breakthrough to Panama. Valencia shoots past Lalengmawia from outside the box. Gurpreet remains grounded and the ball dips and kisses the top-right corner.

Another chance for India as Manvir sends in another cross from the left. But Williams had run in a but too ahead as he misses the ball. Akash Mishra tries to whip in a cross, but the ball goes spinning and out of play.

India goes for another attack, with Williams waiting with the ball and releasing it for Manvir. Manvir crosses it to the centre for Williams but Reyes intercepts to grab the ball.

Vikram Partap gets the ball along the right channel and keeps the ball with a brilliant turn. However, his next challenge for the ball is late and gives Panama a free-kick that is taken quickly.

Panama continues to try and send in long ball into the box. This time, the target was Tomas, but the ball is overshot as the ball goes out of play for an India goal kick.

Herbert tries to get the ball off Lalengmawia Ralte and ends up pushing the midfielder down. India takes that free-kick quickly.

Panama is looking slightly frustrated with the low block, and is looking for long balls – something its coach Christiansen also looks to be indicating with his hands.

Ryan Williams gets a through ball in the midfield. he tries to run with the ball but is surrounded. he still keeps the ball and tries to switch play when Panama makes an interception.

Panama employs an overload in India’s box, with Tomas setting up Giovany with a cross. Giovany’s shot is held on well by Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.

India is maintaining a two-man defensive set-up to clear the second-balls. The host team now goes for a counterattack, with Abhishek sending in a cross for Manvir, but it goes out of the Mohun Bagan SG forward’s reach.

India is looking to maintain a steady low block at the moment to contain Panama’s early press. Valencia tries to make an early impact but India’s defence gets the ball out of danger with a timely clearance.

The match resumes in Bengaluru, with Panama making three changes: Londono, Murillo and Valencia come on and the visiting side gets the ball rolling. 

Ryan Williams’ goal separates the two sides as India, miraculously remains ahead at the halfway mark against Panama in Bengaluru.

India starts with quick attack – Akash Mishra thrown in to Bijoy, gets the ball back and sends in a long ball for Ryan Williams. Williams had made a run behind Panama’s defence and take control of the ball in front of Cordoba and Mullins.

He is all alone in the final third and he shoots past Marcos Reyes, the goalkeeper, to put India ahead.

Modelo and Vikram Partap are having a good battle along the right flank. This time Vikram tries to get the ball past Modelo, but ends up conceding a foul in the process.

Panama tries to go for an attack this time, with Eduardo shovelling in a cross for Mosquera on the far post. The No. 10 fails to control the ball as it goes for an India goal kick.

Bijoy takes India’s throw in and then gets the ball back. His cross is shot out by Panama’s defence, while the resulting corner is also safely hoofed away by the visiting side.

The match resumes after the first cooling break. And India tries a quick attack, with Ryan Williams switching play from the left to the right. Vikram gets the ball and tries a cross to his left for Manvir. However, he overshoots the ball, which goes out of play for a Panama goal kick.

Panama is trying to stretch India’s defence, which has looked fairly compact so far this season. Tomas runs in along the right but Akash steals it off him. The match now pauses for the first hydration break.

Ryan Williams tries to run with the ball but is fouled. He manages to get the ball up, with Ashique finally getting it inside the box. The Bengaluru FC winger tries to beat his marker and then shoots into the side-net.

Modelo makes a run behind India’s defence to get a long ball and barges into the final third. His cross to the centre is cleared by Anwar Ali. The resulting corner ends in a free-kick to India because of a foul by Panama in India’s penalty box.

Ashique puts his foot on the gas as India attempts an attack. Ryan sprints into the box but Ashique’s cross for him is intercepted by Panama’s defence, which clears the ball away to but that chance to bed.

India is pressing high up the pitch this time and Panama defender Jones tries to go for goal from distance. The shot, however, is off-target. 

Ryan Williams gets the ball to his feet and tries to go for goal. However, the shot goes inches wide off-target! That was clearly India’s best chance of the match so far.

Ryan Williams tries to go for an overlapping run and earns a corner for India. He takes the corner kick. Bijoy tries to get his head on it, but goalkeeper Antonio punches the ball out before the ball could reach the Indian defender.

Murillo sends in a cross from the right and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu pushes the ball away. Abdiel Rodriguez shoots on the follow-up to earn a corner. The corner is cleared by India.

Panama tries to build an attack along the left flank and tries to create a channel along the left. Abhishek Tekcham spots it in time to clear it to safety.

Anwar Ali threads in a through ball which Ashique passes to Akash along the left flank. Akash Mishra minuses from the left for Ryan Williams who fails to take a shot from the centre of the box. What a chance that could have been for India!

Bijoy Varghese has taken up the role of Sandesh Jhinghan in defence, and marks Mena well to deny any chance to manage a shot. 

Mosquera tries another run along the left flank and Vikram Partap marks him well for a corner. The resulting corner is kicked out by Abhishek, while the next one is cleared by India.

Panama is enjoying early possession and looks to find space in front of a heavy low block of India, a key feature of Khalid’s Jamil’s style of play. Panama tries to thread a through ball to Rafael, but too much force sees the ball go out of play.

The match begins with India starts from left to right while Panama starts from the other end. 

India starts in its new home kit – in all blue – while Panama is sporting its conventional red kit in this game. The kick off is slightly delayed due to pre-match formalities.

The players take the field at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium and queue up for the pre-game formalities. NA Harris and M. Satyanarayan, the AIFF vice-president and the general secretary, respectively, have settled in their seats.

The players of both teams are done with their pre-match warm-ups. Panama arrived late at the venue but will hope logistics do not affect its performance. The match begins in less that 15 minutes from now.

India will play three higher-ranked teams in this international window, facing Panama, followed by Brazil and Uruguay. All three teams were last in action in the FIFA World Cup 2026, making it a chance for the Blue Tigers to beat the odds and earn very high ranking points.

“Both nations have come out for the warmups as the scattered crowd across the stadium try their best to cheer them on. Half an hour to go and stadium remains largely empty,” Sportstar’s reporter Joan Mathew Jacob says from inside the stadium.

Interesting selection from Khalid Jamil, who has chosen to bench the team’s most in-form striker Edmund Lalrindika, with Ryan Williams and Manvir Singh leading the attack.

Ricky Shabong gets the nod over Sahal Abdul Samad in the midfield.

India’s shape likely looks to be a 4-2-2-2: Abhishek Tekcham, Anwar, Bijoy, Akash — Lalengmawia Ralye, Ricky Shabong — Ashique Kuruniyan, Vikram Partap Singh — Manvir Singh, Ryan Williams.

The team buses of both sides are at the venue, with about an hour left for kick off. The likes of Ryan Williams, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu and Sahal Abdul Samad get ready for the warm-ups as fans look to get to their seats in time for the game.

India will have fond memories of the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in the heart of Bengaluru. It was here that it beat Kuwait on penalties to lift the SAFF Championship 2023.

1,178 days ago, to be exact.

The number gets extra daunting because the Blue Tigers have won only one competitive match at home since. Failure to qualify for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and the Asian Cup 2027 marked the last three years before freefalling almost 40 places to 138th in the world rankings.

When India returns to the stadium on Friday, it will hope to feed off whatever energy remains and hit the reset button against 44th-ranked Panama, perhaps the least intimidating of India’s three upcoming high-profile FIFA friendlies (Brazil and Uruguay are the others).