AFC Asian Cup 2019: Jamal Rashid strikes injury-time winner as India lose 0-1 to Bahrain

The Indian men's football team slumped to a heartbreaking 0-1 defeat at the hands of Bahrain after Jamal Rashid struck an injury-time winner in their third and final Group A clash of the AFC Asian Cup at Al-Sharjah Stadium on Monday.

India played with full determination and managed to keep Bahrain at bay for almost the entirety of the clash. However, the Sunil Chhetri-led side conceded a penalty to Bahrain when Pronay Halder fouled Al Shamsan inside the box in the 90th minute of the match which eventually cost them the game. 

With the win, Bahrain have moved to the second spot and confirmed their spot in the round of 16 as one of the four best third-placed teams of the tournament. India, on the other hand, suffered a major setback as they have eliminated from the tournament after another group clash between hosts United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Thailand ended in a 1-1 draw. 

Here are the highlights :

# Full time!! 

Full-time! The Indians suffer a heartbreaking defeat after an injury-time winner from the spot for Bahrain.

Final score: 0-1 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# Goal!!! Penalty for Bahrain after Pronay Halder fouls Al Shamsan inside the box. Jamal Rashid scores from the spot, with three minutes left to play. India 0-1 Bahrain (90+ 1 minute)

# With just five minutes left to the final whistle, Bahrain are desperately looking for a goal in order to keep themselves alive in the tournament. Chhetri's side, on the other hand, are defending well  and managing to keep their opponents at bay. Goal. India 0-0 Bahrain (85 minutes)

# India make their final change of the match, with AnirudhThapa coming in to replace Halicharan Narzary. The two sides still struggling to find the goal. India 0-0 Bahrain (79 minutes)

79' - @StephenConstan makes his final change as @AnirudhThapa comes on for Halicharan Narzary.

 0-0 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# The game seems to have changed in favour of Bahrain now as they are continuously attacking the Indian goal, while Chhetri's side are struggling to keep the ball. However, India got a great chance to score a goal when Udanta Singh won a free-kick  in a danger area, only to see his captain failing to find target. India 0-0 Bahrain (71 minutes)

# The hour mark has already passed and the match still remains goalless. Though India seem to be comfortable to sit back and defend, a goal in their favour will only make their second spot in Group A more secure. India 0-0 Bahrain (61 minutes) 

61' - Bahrain's Komail Alaswad finds space to shoot from distance and his effort whizzes narrowly over the bar.

 0-0 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# Both the sides have made changes in their bid to find a goal. Bahrain got a free-kick in the 53rd minute of the match, but India managed to save it successfully. Meanwhile, the Indian fans have switched on their torches behind their phones to cheer up the side. India 0-0 Bahrain (53 minutes)

52' - The Indians are under some early pressure after the restart but the defence holds on well to absorb it. @Subhasishbose17 comes up with a fine interception on the left flank to deny the Bahrain forwards

 0-0 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# Substitute for India! Jeje Lalpekhlua comes in as a replacement for Ashique Kuruniyan after half-time. India 0-0 Bahrain (46 minutes)

46' - Second substitution for India as @jejefanai comes on in place of Ashique at the break.

 0-0 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# The second half is all set to begin!  

# Half-time!

# The two sides continue to remain goalless at half-time despite two more minutes being added for the teams to find a goal. Meanwhile, Bahrain (54 percent) have edged India (46 percent) slightly in the first 45 minutes in terms of ball possession. India 0-0 Bahrain (45 + 2 minutes)

 HALF-TIME:

It's goalless at the break in Sharjah.

 India 0-0 Bahrain #AsianCup2019 pic.twitter.com/WZusGXSJKJ — #AsianCup2019 (@afcasiancup) January 14, 2019

# With the match is already past the half-hour mark, the two sides are still struggling to create any clear-cut chances as they are only hitting the shots from distance. India 0-0 Bahrain (39 minutes)

39' - As Bahrain look to escape on the break, captain Pronay Halder tracks back and comes up with a crunching slide tackle to steal the ball for India.

 0-0 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# Meanwhile, the Indian fans are cheering their national team from the stands.

#INDBAH #AsianDream #BlueTigers #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball

: AFC Media pic.twitter.com/5yozx2XWtS — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# India are dominating the possession now. Captain Sunil Chhetri got a good chance to give India the lead when he received a grounded cross from the left. But he looked to take the aim, he was denied by a last-ditch tackle. India 0-0 Bahrain (28 minutes)

# While the Men in Blue have made just one foul so far, 113rd-placed Bahrain have added three fouls to their name. The clash still remains goalless. India 0-0 Bahrain (25 minutes)

22' - Halicharan looks to fire in a low cross from the left, which hits the defender and goes into the side netting for a corner. However, the set-piece yields no shot on target.

 0-0 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# India are slowly and steadily growing into the game after an early pressure from Bahrain. Sandesh Jhingan showcased another excellent move as he slided to grab the ball off the Bahrain attacker at the edge of the Indian penalty area in the 19th minute of the match. India 0-0 Bahrain (20 minutes)

# Following a nervy start, India finally came close to scoring an opener when Pritam Kotal came up with a delicate cross from the right flank. However, Ashique Kuruniyan failed to hit the target through his header as Bahrain goalkeeper made a good save. India 0-0 Bahrain (13 minutes)

13' - After a nervy start, the Indian side is starting to find its feet. @KotalPritam comes up with a delicious cross from the right flank but Ashique's resulting header is not on target.

 0-0 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# The Indian defence have experienced some early pressure as netminder Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was first forced to make a save off a deflected shot before being forced into a mistake. Bahrain have definitely kicked off the match on the frontfoot. However, the match still remains scoreless. India 0-0 Bahrain (9 minutes)

9' - The Indian defence is under some early pressure but @SandeshJhingan stands tall and comes up with a towering clearance as he heads the ball away.

 0-0 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# India climb up to the second spot in Group A table after  Ali Mabkhout scores for UAE against Thailand in the eighth minute of their match. 

# Stephen Constantine is forced to make an early change after Anas Edathodika was hit by a short free-kick from Rowllin Borges. Salam Ranjan Singh comes in as a replacement. Not a good start for India as a good partnership of Jhingan and Anas is broken. India 0-0 Bahrain (4 minutes)

4' - India forced into an early change as @anasedathodika goes off due to injury and is replaced by Salam Ranjan Singh.

 0-0 #INDBAH #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball #AsianDream #BlueTigers — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# India are heading into the match with a same 4-4-2 formation as they went in their first two matches against Thailand and hosts UAE.

# The big encounter is all set to get underway!

Warmed up and ready! #AsianCup2019 pic.twitter.com/7eOrjNJKJO — #AsianCup2019 (@afcasiancup) January 14, 2019

# The two sides have walked down the pitch for the national anthem! 

# Meanwhile, this is what Indian coach Stephen Constantine has to say ahead of the match! 

My interest is to get enough points to get into the next round. We will go for nothing less than a win. We need to take charge and control what we do on the pitch and not think about other results: @StephenConstan #INDBAH #AsianDream #BlueTigers #BackTheBlue #IndianFootball — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# Team India are in the house to take avenge of their 2011 defeat to Bahrain.

The #BlueTigers are in the house!#INDBAH #AsianDream #IndianFootball #BackTheBlue

: AFC Media pic.twitter.com/FKQHHCeXRE — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

# Captain Sunil Chhetri is making his 107th appearance, thus drawing him level with former Bhaichung Bhutia for most Indian caps . 

# Here are the lineups of the two sides!

 India  Bahrain 

Lineups are in for the third and last game of group A for both sides.#AsianCup2019 pic.twitter.com/FgR8cRnHiF — #AsianCup2019 (@afcasiancup) January 14, 2019

# INDIA vs BAHRAIN

Come on boys! 

India  vs Bahrain  tonight at 9:30 PM IST.#BackTheBlue #BlueTigers #AsianDream #IndianFootball #INDBAH

: AFC Media pic.twitter.com/NML91fE7Lb — Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) January 14, 2019

After going down to hosts United Arab Emirates (UAE) in their second Group A clash of the AFC Asian Cup, the Indian men's football team will look to bounce back and clinch a historic knock-out berth when they square off with Bahrain in their third and final group clash of the tournament at Al-Sharjah Stadium on Monday. 

If India manage to even seal a draw against the 113rd-ranked team, then it will be the first time that the 97th-placed team will book their place in the last-16 of the prestigious football tournament after their failed attempts in 1984 and 2011.

The match is all the more special for Indian captain Sunil Chhetri as it will see him equal former captain Bhaichung Bhutia's record of highest appearances for the nation, i.e, 107. 

The Men in Blue kicked off their campaign in the ongoing tournament with a stunning 4-1 triumph over Thailand in their opening match and they had even managed to outplay UAE in the first half of their second match before their failure to convert half a dozen chances saw them slump to a 0-2 loss. 

Bahrain, on the other hand, began their tournament with a 1-1 draw against the hosts, but they slumped to a 0-1 defeat at the hands of Thailand in their second Group A match to languish down at the bottom of the table. 

If we look at previous records between the two sides, India have sealed just one win out of seven matches they have played against Bahrain so far. The Men in Blue's lone triumph came during an international friendly in Bahrain in October 1979, courtesy Shabir Ali's brace. 

Out of the remaining six matches between the two sides, Bahrain have sealed victories five times while one match ended in a draw. 

Interestingly, India will head into the match on January 14, the same date when they lost to Bahrain 5-2 in the Asian Cup in Qatar in 2011. The Sunil Chhetri-led side will be keen to take avenge of that defeat. 

However, even a loss against Bahrain at Al-Sharjah Stadium on Monday will see India qualify to the round of 16 as one of the four third-placed teams if they do not concede too many goals. 

And if both the sides lose their last group matches, then India will be the third team in Group A due to a better head-to-head record than Bahrain.

The two squads are as follows: 

INDIA

Coach: Stephen Constantine

Goalkeepers: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Vishal Kaith, Amrinder Singh

Defenders: Pritam Kotal, Sarthak Golui, Sandesh Jhingan, Anas Edathodika, Salam Ranjan Singh, Subhashish Bose, Narayan Das

Midfielders: Udanta Singh, Jackiechand Singh, Germanpreet Singh, Pronay Halder, Anirudh Thapa, Vinit Rai, Rowllin Borges, Ashique Kuruniyan, Halicharan Narzary

Forwards: Sumeet Passi, Balwant Singh, Sunil Chhteri, Jeje Lalpekhlua.

BAHRAIN

Goalkeepers: Sayed Shubbar Alawi , Yusuf Habib Hasan , Abdulkarim Fardan 

Defenders: Sayed Mahdi Baqer , Waleed Mohamed Alhayam, Hamad Mahmood Alshamsan , Ahmed Merza Moosa, Ahmed Ali Juma , Sayed Redha Isa , Ahmed Mubarak Bughammar , Ahmed Abdulla Ali 

Midfielders : Sayed Dhiya , Abdulwahab Ali Alsafi , Mohamed Jasim Marhoon , Ali Jaafar Madan , Ali Abdul Haram , Jasim Ahmed Alshaikh , Komail Hasan Alaswad, Jamal Rashed Abdulrahman 

Forwards: Mahdi Faisal Alhumaidan , Abdul Yusuf Helal , Mohamed Saad Alromaihi , Sami Mohamed Alhusaini