NEW DELHI (India): Beset by injuries, India play their crucial 2022 FIFA World and 2023 Asian Cup qualifying away matches on November 14 and 19 – birthdays of two former Prime Ministers.
At the half way stage of the campaign, the matches against Afghanistan and Oman could make or mar India’s chances of progressing to the next round or even being in contention for the 2023 Asian Cup in China.
The mach in Dushanbe (Tajikistan) is being played in a neutral territory due to security concerns in the strife-torn Afghanistan.
Weather, artificial turf pose a problem
External factors can make this match tough for Team India, who will have to play on artificial turf and most Indians are unused playing on such a surface.
The weather is also a factor – it has snowed there and night temperatures are as low as 1 degree Celsius.
Besides, temperature can be about 10 degrees Celsius since the match will be held in the evening.
With Indian Super League (ISL) matches being played in South, West and East India where temperatures are warmer, Indian players could face acclimatisation problems.
Bengaluru FC and Chennaiyan played each other in ISL last Sunday, and players from these two teams joined the national squad only on Monday.
So, India will have barely 48 hours to adjust to the weather and playing surface in Dushanbe. Training time on the artificial surface will also be limited.
Jhingan will be missed
The team will be without sturdy defender Sandesh Jhingan, still recovering from a knee operation besides their reliable defensive midfielders Rowlin Borges and Amarjit Singh Khayyam, both injured.
The 27-year-old Borges didn’t play in FC Goa’s 4-2 win over Mumbai City in the Indian Super League (ISL) last week.
Coach Igor Stimac thinks Borges is not fully fit. His defensive skills will be missed, but Pronoy Halder makes a return as a defensive midfielder.
Defence will be a major concern for Stimac, with Adil Khan also missing two recent ISL matches due to injury.
Right back Rahul Bheke and left-back Mandar Rao Dessai were shaky in the 1-1 draw against Bangladesh in Calcutta on October 15.
Kotal and Bose in playing XI?
It’ll be interesting to see if Stimac opts for the more experienced Pritam Kotal and Subashish Bose as wing backs.
On the basis of their sparkling performances for FC Goa in the ongoing ISL, Jackichand Singh and Seiminlen Doungel have been added to the squad.
Nikhil Poojary, who played in the 2-1 defeat against Oman on September 15, has been dropped. Up front, young Farukh Choudhary has been preferred to veteran Balwant Singh.
Goalkeeper Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem is a surprise inclusion instead of Kamaljit Singh, as he has yet to play a match in the ISL for ATK.
FC Goa’s promising goalkeeper Mohammed Nawas is in sparkling form. It is surprising that Stimac has not included him in probables, if he wanted a youngster as a third goalkeeper.
Dheeraj who was first choice goalkeeper for India in the U-17 World Cup in 2017 has probably been included on the basis of potential.
Poor start to qualifiers
When the qualifying group fixtures were released it was estimated that after the October 15 match India would be on four points from three matches, with a home win vs Bangladesh and maybe a home draw vs Oman.
Instead India has just two points. After these two away matches, Stimac’s boys should have bagged at least five points to be in the reckoning to progress from this group.
Otherwise, the remaining three qualifiers next year vs Qatar (March 26, Home), vs Bangladesh (June 4, Away) and vs Afghanistan (June 9, Home) will be of only academic interest.
A must win game for India
Novy your analysis is absolutely correct as the climatic conditions will be very crucial against Afghanistan the boys will face not only a fighting side the injuries & weather will make a significant challenge
After seeing last two matches , India needs to be improved in midfield and striker . In counter attack football the striker has to be first and shooting should be accurate and power .
Novy, your observations are absolutely right.I met Igor Stimac at Star Sports studio during my ISL commentary stint last week.It seems that he was fully aware of the facts you narrated but he sounded very much positive and desperate to win against Afganistan to be in the reckoning.So,expecting India in an attacking mould tomorrow for a win against all odds.If that happens, we will enjoy the game like anything from the Com box of Star Sports Bangla.Let us hope for the best.
Novy, we can stop complaining about weather and surface, like we have been for 50 years now. Sadly the average age of the team , if it is 27, to that, we need to add 4 (for massive age fraud in Indian sports). So, the real age is 31. If that is true, then, there are at least 3-4 Bhai Sahabs in the team who are 35.. At 35 you cannot play 90 min game at international level. Remember, Roger Milla, at 39 played only the last 20 min. So, I have attempted to prove that the fittest Indians are no on the pitch. Secondly, we hear last week an new 18 year star from Brazil scored for Real Madrid. If he was in India, he would have been posing as a 14y. So, again, I am pointing out, how the whole Nation’s Youth development programme is sabotaged by these cheats. And, instead of playing top flight football at 18, they do at 23, and they loose the momentum. Secondly, there are no Youth leagues (whatever are there, Like Subroto Cup are tournaments, are of age cheats), so the boys/girls do not know, how to handle pressure. For Eg the stats say, that a team is most likely to concede a goal, within 2 min of scoring one.. Therefore, all coaches from U7 to U19 tell the teams to focuss on defending for 2 min, after scoring a goal.. In the U17 World Cup, India scored against Colombia, and celebrated no end, and conceded a goal in 15 seconds. Also, our 6’5″ GK on a set piece concedes a goal on far post for the Bangladesh header, show lack of match practice. I would want India to win, however, it is unlikely.
India should have gone earlier to Dushanbe to get acclimatized. The ISL schedule should have been altered to allow the Indian players more time for practice in the cold capital of Tajikistan. Coach Igor Stimac must be given more time with his players. With Jhingan and Borges, two tough tackling players injured the defence is a cause of concern.
It is now learnt that Anas Edathodika has also returned to India due to the sad death of his mother. This makes the back four of India very unsettled. As Novy sir’s article has rightly pointed out that Stimac has a major headache trying to re-organize his defenders. Two main central defenders Sandesh Jhingan (injured) and Anas are missing. His ability as a coach will be seen how he can revamp the weakened Indian defense. Pronoy Halder could play as a defensive midfielder but as he is returning from injury let us see if he can match Rowling Borges snatching abilities. The article rightly says that Borges defensive skills will be missed.