India drop to 172nd

Zurich, Nov 5: India's slide in the global football rankings continued as they dropped five places to be 172nd in the latest FIFA charts released on Thursday, while Belgium created history by grabbing the top spot for the first time. India were 167th last month. The dip follows poor performances in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers where India have lost all three group matches played so far. Recently, they lost to Turkmenistan on October 8. India are at the bottom of Group D in the World Cup qualifiers and now have virtually no chance to even qualify for the Asian Cup by finishing third. The Stephen Constantine-coached side will face Guam, who won in the first leg, on November 12. Meanwhile, Belgium replaced World Cup 2014 runners-up Argenti, who are now third, from the top of the table. IANS