The positive vibes surrounding the Indian football team a month ago — when they held Panama to a creditable draw and gave a reasonably good account of themselves against Brazil — now seem a distant memory. Khalid Jamil’s men capitulated to a 5-0 defeat against New Zealand in the first of two international friendlies in chilly Auckland on Thursday, inviting probing questions and a barrage of trolls from disgruntled fans.

The All Whites, as the New Zealand national team are nicknamed, were the fourth 2026 FIFA World Cup-bound side the Blue Tigers had faced across two FIFA international windows. The aggregate scoreline from their last four matches against Panama, Brazil, Uruguay and New Zealand — all ranked comfortably above India — makes for grim reading: two goals scored and 16 conceded. That, however, is hardly surprising.

If Khalid’s men had at least shown flashes of promise in the three home fixtures, despite their lowly FIFA ranking of 138, they cut a particularly sorry figure against the physicality and technical ability of the New Zealanders. Vishal Kaith, who was handed an opportunity in goal after Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was dropped following a series of erratic performances, was arguably India’s best player. He managed to restrict the damage to five goals and saved a second-half penalty.

The only redeeming aspect of this two-match tour of New Zealand is perhaps that, unlike the considerable financial burden the AIFF took on by hosting Brazil and Uruguay, the ongoing visit is part of a cultural exchange programme between the Indian and New Zealand governments.