Indian football team’s life without Sunil Chhetri leading the line starts with a FIFA World Cup Qualifier against Qatar. read more
In his last press conference as an India player , Sunil Chhetri made every effort to divert the attention from his impending retirement. But with the farewell game being played in Kolkata, the journalists naturally veered towards the nearing goodbye, at every opportunity. Chhetri countered them mostly by putting the focus back on the importance of a positive result in the Kuwait game.
A victory would have put them on the brink of history: a first entry into the third round of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.
Though, the game ended in a drab 0-0 draw as Chhetri’s storied and illustrious 19-year career came to an end.
Read: Chhetri’s watch ends with stalemate as Indian team fails to raise standards
What hasn’t ended is India’s quest for history.
Despite a tepid qualifiers campaign that has seen India not win in the last four matches, the Blue Tigers are still alive . A win against Qatar in their final qualifier, at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium on Tuesday, should be enough.
The only problem is that world No. 121 India is against 34th-ranked and Asian champions Qatar, which is nothing short of ‘Mission Impossible.’
The pressure is such that India coach Igor Stimac went so far as to claim that his players were prepared “to die on the pitch” if required.
“I’ve told them that the only thing they need to do is enjoy the game, be proud of their country, and take the opportunities that will make the 1.4 billion people back home happy,” Stimac said in the pre-match press conference. “It’s all about the 90 minutes for us tomorrow, and we are prepared to die on the pitch if required.”
The scenarios are such that a win against already-qualified Qatar will make India immune to the Afghanistan vs Kuwait result. Third-placed Afghanistan are also on 5 points, same as India, who are second in the group.
A draw will still keep India alive but it would need Kuwait and Afghanistan to play a draw as well. A defeat will of course mean elimination.
India, however, have a few things going their way and must capitalise on them despite the last few matches being all about sliding from the vantage point.
Qatar have picked a fairly young squad after sealing a spot in the next round. Star forward Akram Afif has been rested while Hassan Al-Haydos retired from international football in March.
Read: Stimac announces first India squad after Sunil Chhetri’s retirement
The majority of the players in the squad are under 24 and India can take confidence from the famous draw against Qatar in 2019. The unexpected one-point came without Chhetri, who missed out with illness.
India need a repeat of 2019 or else it could well be the end of Stimac’s tenure.
“We are not thinking about it (Chhetri’s absence). We’ve played several games over the last five years without him, and we have shown that we can play in a composed manner. We’ve got other leaders in the side, who now need to step up,” Stimac further said in the press conference, trying to keep the focus on the team rather than the individual.
“Of course Sunil has some great qualities – his personality, leadership skills, football quality, but I am not going to go back to it. This is about the team, not about any individual.”
Who will be the striker?
Life after Chhetri poses an obvious question: who will lead the forward line?
Against Kuwait, Chennaiyin FC striker Rahim Ali was afforded invaluable 45 minutes, though not always as a striker, and he came close on two occasions. There’s a good chance Rahim will be repeated given he had competitive minutes very recently but Manvir Singh and Vikram Partap Singh are also decent options.
The big changes can come in the midfield.
Anirudh Thapa and Sahal Abdul Samad were substituted at half-time against Kuwait after a lacklustre outing. They will, in all probability, be replaced by Jeakson Singh and Brandon Fernandes respectively.
The one change in defence could be Nikhil Poojary losing his place to Narender or a winger as India may look to play an attacking brand of football against Qatar.
India vs Qatar, FIFA World Cup Qualifier: The India vs Qatar football match will start at 9.15 PM IST on 11 June and will be streamed live on FanCode in India. The match will be played at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha.
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