On Saturday, the national team played one of its better games over the last year – a year where they were kicked out of the AFC Asian Cup from the group stage without scoring a goal, and then missed out on reaching the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers after a humiliating 1-2 loss to Afghanistan at home.

Better does not necessarily mean good though, as Vietnam, a team on the decline, still managed to outclass the Indians, who scored a goal in the second half to salvage a 1-1 draw. The last time both these teams had faced each other, the Indians had been thrashed 3-0.

India were earlier supposed to play against both Lebanon and Vietnam but then the Central Asian country pulled out of the friendly tournament with Fifa ranking points on offer.

Slow start

As has been the case with the team recently, a slow start is almost a given at this point. It took all of ten minutes for Vietnam to get their first penalty of the match – a pointless barge by central defender Rahul Bheke in the penalty box. But Vietnam’s captain Hai Ngoc Que slapped a low and slow shot that wasn’t anywhere near a corner and it was an easy save for goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu to make and India graciously took the let-off.

They then had an early chance at goal as well. Farukh Chaudhary was chosen to lead the attacking line and the Chennayin FC player instantly created a chance out of nothing. With his back to goal and a defender on him, Chaudhary turned around, nutmegged his defender and then hit a rasping left-footed drive goalwards. The shot was saved.

Chaudhary had another hit on target later in the half when Brandon Fernandes found him with a clever, angled pass into goal, inside the box itself. Farukh’s shot was once again strong and on target – aimed at the keeper’s right bottom corner but was saved again.

Vietnam’s first goal came in the 37th minute. Usually when defending a ball flying into the box, the Indian team have been guilty of a lack of organisation and taking positions too deep.

It allowed Hao Vi Bui the chance to take a shot from right outside the box. Indian defender Anwar Ali got a foot to the ball but it ended in a deflection that rolled into the net despite Sandhu trying his best to push the ball away.

Vietnam had conceded a goal in their last eleven games, a poor record only matched by India’s inability to find an open-play goal (Only one since last November). Someone had to blink first in this contest of inferiority and fortunately for India, the home team made an error. A Suresh Wangjam pass from within the Indian half sailed over the Vietnamese defensive line and captain Que, who had already missed a penalty in the first half, found himself in a tricky position of either holding onto Chaudhary or, playing the ball. In the end, he couldn’t do either and the Indian striker lobbed the ball over Vietnam custodian Filip Nguyen.

Better in second half

Marquez’s team was better in the second half, keeping control of the ball for certain periods and even managing to open up the Vietnamese defence on occasion. But the final few minutes of the match saw the home team push ahead and try to take the win. Sandhu was called into action on multiple occasions, and the Bengaluru FC custodian did a good enough job to earn India a valuable draw against a mid-tier Asian country.

The national team will next face Malaysia for a friendly in the next Fifa international window. These friendlies might not have a lot of relevance but Marquez has made it clear that these windows are crucial, especially with the AFC Asian Cup qualification starting from early next year.