Sunil Chhetri a role model, but he will have to fight for his place: Igor Stimac
Football | May 24, 2019 16:29 ISTIndia's football team coach Igor Stimac has warned that players won't be selected on reputation.
India's football team coach Igor Stimac has warned that players won't be selected on reputation.
The 51-year-old Stimac, who was part of Croatia's 1998 World Cup squad that finished third in France, was on Wednesday officially appointed as head coach of the Indian team.
As a coach, Stimac's major achievement was guiding Croatia to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
India and Myanmar got seven points each from three matches but the home team advanced to the third round on the basis of superior goal difference.
Sven-Goran, who was in charge of England for five years until 2006, had last month expressed his interest regarding the job to the All India Football Federation (AIFF).
Bahrain scored the decisive and only goal of the match in the injury time to beat India in a do or die clash.
India secured a stunning 4-1 win over Thailand before going down 0-2 to hosts United Arab Emirates in a group match in which Sunil Chhetri and Co. had more clear chances than their opponents.
A draw against Bahrain, currently ranked 113, will be enough for India (ranked 97) to qualify for the round of 16 for the first time in the continent's showpiece event.
UAE moved top of the table in Group A with four points from two matches while second-placed India still remained in the hunt for a knockout berth with three points from two outings.
The Indian defence played a vital role in keeping the Thai attackers at bay in their last game, and Kotal believes that the back-four has a good chemistry between themselves.
Four days after creating a flutter with a stunning 4-1 drubbing of Thailand, India are now looking an upbeat lot in the continental showpiece.
India will play their first match on Sunday against Thailand here, followed by games against UAE (Abu Dhabi) and Bahrain (Sharjah) on January 10 and 14 respectively.
The continental tournament is starting from January 5 in the UAE and will be held till February 2.
India take on Thailand in their opening match of the AFC Asian Cup 2019 and Jeje sounded confident.
Indian start their Asian Cup campaign on January 6 when they take on Thailand. They will play UAE on January 10 followed by the match against Bahrain on January 14.
The launch of the national team's new kit took place in the Capital on Wednesday with seven players.
This was a climbdown for Stephen Constantine's men weeks after holding World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi's higher-ranked China to a goalless stalemate.
Chhetri suffered the injury during Bengaluru's Hero ISL match against Kerala Blasters on November 5.
Second half substitute Renu pumped in five goals (52nd, 54th, 75th, 89th and 90th minute) after India led 9-0 at the breather in a completely one-sided match against the hapless Pakistan side.
The draw is also expected to take India higher in the FIFA rankings. They are now placed 97th while China are at 76th spot.
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