Football: Uruguay reach Kolkata, Brazil due on Thursday

Fresh from their 4-1 win against South Korea, Uruguay arrived here on Monday evening for next week’s football friendly against India. A group of players also got a feel of the conditions at Salt Lake stadium where they will play India on October 6.

With five-time world champions Brazil due to check in on Thursday, the city will, for the first time, host teams who have won the World Cup multiple times. Winners of the 1930 and 950 World Cup, Uruguay are ranked 20th in the world.

Coached by Diego Forlan, who replaced Marcelo Bielsa after a disappointing World Cup, Uruguay are here without skipper Federico Valverde. The Real Madrid player injured his ankle in La Liga’s Madrid derby and will be sidelined for a few weeks. Emiliano Martinez has been named as replacement.

Veteran striker Luis Suarez is another notable absentee as Forlan looks to rebuild, though the long list he named earlier this month included several big names. Such as Ronald Araujo, loaned from Barcelona to Liverpool, Darwin Nunez, who plays in the Saudi Pro League, Lucas Torreira from Galatasaray and Tottenham Hotspur’s Rodrigo Bentancur.

Nunez comes fresh from a brace against South Korea. Giorgian de Arrascaeta, who plays for Flamengo in Brazil, got one goal and the fourth was an own-goal from Kim Min-jae. Uruguay went to South Korea after a 1-3 defeat to Japan.

This is Uruguay’s first visit to Kolkata since the inaugural 1982 Nehru Cup which they won, Enzo Francescoli making his debut in that invitation tournament. Uruguay are due to train on the Salt Lake stadium practice pitches on Thursday evening.