Brazil’s players greet India players before the start of the international friendlyat the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, October 3, 2026.
| Photo Credit: K.R. Deepak
India showed fight and intent, but Brazil’s attacking quality proved too hot to handle as the South American giant ran out a 4-0 winner in the historic international friendly at the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday (October 3, 2026).
India held its shape in the opening 25 minutes but was hesitant to commit numbers into the attacking third, leaving Brazilian goalkeeper Pedro Morisco with little to do.
Apuia had a crack at goal in the seventh minute, but his effort was off target. Eight minutes later, Bijoy Varghese played a delightful ball over the top to Manvir Singh, who timed his run perfectly and found himself through on goal. Brazil captain Marquinhos, however, tracked back brilliantly to nick the ball away.
At the other end, Vinicius Junior began to turn on the style. The Real Madrid star made three attempts in the first eight minutes, but right-back Abhishek Singh stood his ground to deny him on the first two occasions. Vinicius then cut inside onto his right foot and got his shot away, only for Gurpreet Singh Sandhu to produce a save.
Gurpreet came to India’s rescue again in the 20th minute when Vinicius broke into the box, with the Indian captain blocking his effort.
Brazil’s pace and movement eventually stretched the Indian defence. Estevao broke the deadlock in the 28th minute, cutting in from the right before unleashing a fierce left-footed shot. Gurpreet appeared well positioned, but had no answer to the powerful strike as the ball deflected off his hand and nestled into the net.
The goal opened up more space for Brazil, and Pedro doubled the advantage in the 42nd minute with an angled drive. Gurpreet got a hand to it, but he spilled the ball and it crossed the line.
Brazil made five changes at half-time, but the intensity did not drop. Samuel Lino, brought on for Vinicius, scored twice after the break (58th and 90+5) as Brazil completed a comfortable victory.
For Khalid Jamil’s India, the scoreline does not reflect the encouraging intent it showed early in the game. This experience definitely gave the hosts a taste of football at the highest level. With both sides agreeing to make a maximum of 11 substitutions, a majority of the Indian squad got the opportunity to experience the Brazilian flair from close quarters and share the pitch with some of the biggest names in world football.
The result: India 0 lost to Brazil 4 (Estevao 28, Pedro 42, Samuel Lino 58, 90+5).
Published – October 03, 2026 09:59 pm IST
