BENGALURU: After a spirited fight against Australia, the Indian football team will be looking for more of the same when they take on Uzbekistan in their second game of the 2023 Asian Cup at the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan on Thursday.
In many ways, the challenge against Uzbekistan will be an extension of the one that the Blue Tigers faced against Australia. Their ranking of 68 may not be reflective of their true standard as Uzbekistan had the quality to hold the likes of Iran and Mexico over the last few months.
Their first game against Syria may have ended in a draw but that was only because the latter did not have the same momentary lapses of concentration that India suffered in the second half against Australia. In many ways, that match played out quite similarly to the India-Australia game. Uzbekistan dominated possession and unleashed wave after wave of attack, while Syria struggled to get out of their half. Yet some dogged defending by the underdogs meant that not too many chances were created.
As such, Igor Stimac’s focus will be cutting out the mistakes that cost India dear in their previous game. “It is a huge match for us,” he said at the pre-match press conference. “The first game was an experience for the boys, and now we face another difficult match. Uzbekistan are a very competitive side, and since they did not gain a victory in their last game, we expect them to put a lot of pressure on us. Uzbekistan dominated Syria with 65 percent possession in their last game and had many shots on goal, but Syria are also a physical side and played a 4-4-2 formation with strong counterattacks.”
The defenders in blue did a wonderful job in the first half, restricting the Aussie side to just a couple of shots on goal. However, the pressure on them kept building due to India’s inability to transition from defence into anything remotely resembling attacking, as the ball just kept coming back into the Indian half. This was more or less down to India’s shocking passing while in transition. The numbers from that game are dire. India made only 37 passes all game in the opposition half, not even a tenth of what Australia managed. Only a single Indian pass entered the Aussie penalty box. Only twice in the match did they manage to string together ten passes or more.
Of course, there are limitations to attacking intent when facing a team of much superior quality, but Stimac will have to find the right balance between defence and attack in his team selection. “What we are looking for are more attack-minded players,” he said. “We also saw against Australia that instead of just clearing the ball, we could find the flanks. We did that in the first half, but there was no intent to do the same in the second. If that happens, they will keep coming and you keep getting tired.”
Getting even a point on Thursday will be tough. But if the Blue Tigers manage to hold the White Wolves at bay, they would be able to go into their final game against Syria — a team of comparable quality — knowing that a victory will likely take them through to the knockouts.