New Delhi, September 05 (H.S.): Uruguay head coach Diego Forlan has announced a preliminary 46-member squad for the September international window, with star players Federico Valverde, Darwin Nunez and Ronald Araujo included for the friendly against India in Kolkata on October 6.

Forlan, who represented Uruguay in 112 international matches between 2002 and 2014 and scored 36 goals, took charge as the national team’s head coach after Marcelo Bielsa stepped down following Uruguay’s disappointing performance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

During the September international window, Uruguay are scheduled to face Japan, South Korea and India. The team will travel to all three countries for the fixtures. The match against India will also be a special occasion for Forlan, who is set to return to the country nearly a decade after his brief stint with Indian Super League side Mumbai City FC in 2016.

Uruguay’s schedule:

September 24: Japan vs Uruguay — Rifū

September 28: South Korea vs Uruguay — Seoul

October 6: India vs Uruguay — Kolkata

The preliminary squad includes 21 members of the 26-man squad that represented Uruguay at the World Cup. Among them are key players such as Valverde, Nunez and Araujo. Nahitan Nandez and former Arsenal midfielder Lucas Torreira have also returned to the squad, while naturalised defender Alexander Barboza has earned a place in the preliminary selection.

Uruguay’s Preliminary Squad

Goalkeepers: Santiago Mele, Christopher Fiermarin, Ignacio de Arruabarrena, Sebastian Sosa, Thiago Cardozo.

Defenders: Kevin Amaro, Jose Luis Rodriguez, Guillermo Varela, Nahitan Nandez, Santiago Mourino, Nicolas Marichal, Ronald Araujo, Alexander Barboza, Jose Maria Gimenez, Juan Rodriguez, Sebastian Boselli, Santiago Bueno, Sebastian Caceres, Mathias Olivera, Joaquin Piquerez, Lucas Olaza, Marcelo Saracchi, Juan Manuel Sanabria.

Midfielders: Emiliano Martinez, Lucas Torreira, Rodrigo Bentancur, Facundo Bernal, Santiago Homenchenko, Federico Valverde, Agustin Canobbio, Matias Abaldo, Facundo Pellistri, Luciano Rodriguez, Maximiliano Araujo, Lucas Villalba, Brian Rodriguez, Rodrigo Zalazar, Diego Rossi, Giorgian de Arrascaeta.

Forwards: Martin Satriano, Agustin A. Martinez, Rodrigo Aguirre, Federico Vinas, Miguel Merentiel, Darwin Nunez, Alvaro Rodriguez.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar