India's bid to qualify for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup kicks off against Cambodia in a Group D encounter on Wednesday. Having appeared in the 2019 edition, India will attempt to qualify for back-to-back Asian Cups for the first time ever.
In their way stand Hong Kong, Cambodia and Afghanistan in Group D. Six group winners and five best second-placed teams will join Australia, China, Iran, Iraq, Japan, South Korea, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam to make it 24 teams in the final tournament - with AFC seeking bids after China withdrew as hosts.
What is at stake?
On paper, qualification for the AFC Asian Cup. Existentially, much more. Indian football isn't in the best of places at the moment - a court-appointed Council of Administrators runs the All India Football Federation for the moment, with the sword of Damocles of a FIFA ban hanging over AIFF's head. An AFC Cup qualification would lift the mood, while failing to qualify would be another setback to India's footballing progress, robbing the chance for a promising group of youngsters coming through to represent India at the continental level.
No pressure, then.
Are India's hopes still resting on a 37-year-old?
In short, yes. Even if the Indian Super League season gone by saw plenty of Indian youngsters break through, India's frontline remains as dependent on Sunil Chhetri, if not more. India's captain is aiming to qualify for potentially his last ever major tournament, but his legs might not have enough in them to match his incredible will.
Liston Colaco is carrying a slight injury and is expected to be fit, but head coach Igor Stimac bemoaned Rahim Ali's long-term injury. Rahul Bheke is expected to miss the first game against Cambodia, while Apuia is out for all three games. Sahal Abdul Samad and Manvir Singh are coming off impressive seasons, although Stimac does have a tendency to stick with his favourites, irrespective of form.
How did India's preparations go?
Stimac seemed fairly positive about his preparations, describing India's performance in their 0-2 loss to Jordan in a friendly as 'compact'. A strange set of friendlies against domestic opposition - ATK Mohun Bagan (1-2), I-League All-Stars (2-1), West Bengal (1-1) preceded the Jordan game, which provided no real answers about how India would face up to their Asian opposition.
India have looked ordinary in attack, with a lack of cutting edge - although Liston Colaco returning to the fold after guiding ATK Mohun Bagan through to the knockouts in their AFC Cup campaign ought to provide some hope.
1️⃣ day to go and preparations are in full swing 💪#BackTheBlue 💙 #BlueTigers 🐯 #IndianFootball ⚽ pic.twitter.com/HRNGOI4znX
- Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) June 7, 2022
What's the lowdown on India's opponents?
India are the top-ranked side in Group D (106), followed by Hong Kong (147), Afghanistan (150) and Cambodia (171). Ordinarily, a gulf in rankings would imply easy progression as group winners, but the other teams on this group are on an upward curve, while India have been wildly inconsistent of late.
It would be a disservice to count Cambodia out, especially given India have done previously when it comes to losing to lower ranked nations like Guam (174) in 2015. Indeed, Cambodia come into this fixture having defeated Guam twice, albeit losing heavily to Asian heavyweights like Iran, Bahrain and Iraq soon after in the World Cup qualifiers. Their U-23 side impressed in the recently concluded SEA Games, with 19-yr-old Sieng Chanthea enhancing his burgeoning reputation with a string of impressive displays.
Ever since Japanese manager Ryu Hirose took over in March 2021 (with former AC Milan star Keisuke Honda assisting him), the Cambodian national team have won four of ten official games, losing the rest. Yet, the general sentiment is that Cambodia have a promising young generation coming through, who could give India quite the scare - as they chase their first ever appearance in an Asian Cup since 1972.
Speaking of scares, Afghanistan have already caused plenty of consternation for Igor Stimac's Indian side, earning two 1-1 draws in the World Cup qualifiers last year, one of which required a late equalizer from Len Doungel. A late change to qualification rules made the results moot later on, but if not for Doungel's goal, Afghanistan would potentially have eliminated India from qualifying for the AFC Asian Cup.
This is a team India have struggled to break down, with Gokulam Kerala's Sharif Mukhammad, in particular, looking to cause India plenty of problems in midfield. Afghanistan come into these qualifiers on the back of an 'impressive' 0-2 loss to Vietnam - a game where the scoreline hid the fact that Vietnam's goalkeeper, Dang Van Lam, had to pull off a series of superlative saves. Perhaps a first ever appearance at the AFC Asian Cup is not out of the realm of imagination for Anoush Dastgir's ever-improving side.
Hong Kong have lost their last seven games, with their most recent win coming against Cambodia (2-0) in 2019. Granted, they have faced tough, high-level Asian opposition since, yet the streak is troubling. Jorn Andersen has been in charge since December of last year, with plenty of experimentation on offer. He granted a debut to goalkeeper Paulo Cesar in their most recent friendly against Malaysia, but the naturalized Brazilian looked nervous in a 0-2 defeat - which ought to see stalwart Yapp Hung Fai return.
India ought to find some joy against a defence that has looked quite disorganised, but given the two sides are facing each other for the first time in a decade, one can never say for sure. India last faced Hong Kong in a friendly at Pune in 2010, which ominously, the hosts lost by a 0-1 scoreline.
What was the ticket fiasco about?
With a court-appointed committee overseeing matters temporarily in Indian football, it's perhaps understandable that communication and organisational gremlins are still being ironed out. It resulted in an initial claim that only 5000 spectators would be expected, resulting in the AIFF offering complimentary tickets, and Sunil Chhetri being trotted out, once again, to plead with Indian fans to come and back their team. This is the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, with India playing at home for the first time in three years in front of fans. Quite simply, Chhetri needn't have bothered - tickets were snapped up in minutes, with long lines during the distribution as well. A sizeable, vociferous crowd is expected. All's well that ends well, I suppose?
What are India's chances of qualification?
Each of the three games are potential banana-skins, especially with India struggling to score of late. However, backed by a home crowd, India could take advantage, and even second place in the group ought to suffice (five of the six second-placed teams qualify). Going through as group winners is the expectation, on paper, at least. Should India not qualify, this would count as a significant setback for Indian football, with the knives definitely out for Stimac in such a scenario.
India have matches scheduled on June 8, 11, and 14, which will be shown live on Star Sports 3 and Disney+ Hotstar.