- By Himanshu Badola
- Sun, 14 Jan 2024 11:04 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
India vs Australia, AFC Asian Cup 2023: Indian men's football team head coach Igor Stimac took out positives despite's team's 0-2 defeat against Australia in their opening Group B match of the AFC Asian Cup 2023 at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium on Saturday.
India put up a remarkable display of determination in the first half to keep the scoreline 0-0 also managing to create a golden chance before skipper Sunil Chhetri put it wide off an open header.
Things went out of the hands early in the second half as India conceded a goal in the 50th minute after experienced goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu failed to grab a cross from the right by Martin Boyle.
Instead, Sandhu, in his third Asian Cup campaign, punched away the ball lightly only as far as Jackson Irvine who slammed it home with his left.
The Australians found the second goal in the 74th minute when two substitutes, Riley McGree, and Jordan Bos, combined to leave the Indian defenders stranded, with the latter finishing the job in the end.
“We expected a very difficult match for us with the physicality of Australia and suffering from the corners that were coming, especially from the right side. But overall, there is positivity with regard to the performance. I’m not so happy with the result at the end because both goals came out of sloppy reactions. These goals didn’t come out of Australia’s brilliant display or action; it came just because of our irresponsibility at certain times," Stimac conveyed during the post-match press conference.
Australia were clearly the dominating side and deserved the victory, having the 70 percent possession and winning the multiple set-pieces. They bagged 28 shots against the Blue Tigers but managed to find the back of the net just twice as the defensive display from the Indians was something that emerged out as the biggest positive from their opening fixture.
Stimac went on to acknowledge the fighting display from the backline but mentioned the need for improvement going by their second-half performance.
“I’m happy as a coach to hold on to Australia in the first half in a goalless draw. There was only one clear chance during the first 45 minutes, and this chance was on our side, so we couldn’t open the score. But the second half was not good," he said.
“We couldn’t get out of that zone where we were just not capable of making that second pass and going over the half-line, on which we have been working really hard. These actions were missing there. Especially the experience of Australian players was holding back this situation because they were better game readers and quicker in their reactions, especially when dealing with second balls," he added.
Igor Stimac commended the performance of 24-year-old defensive midfielder, Deepak Tangri, who marked his debut for India.
“Deepak Tangri was brilliant in the training sessions and the most confident midfielder we have at the moment in passing, taking action, responsibility, and attitude. Everything was spot on, and that’s why he earned his position in the first 11," Stimac said.
“We started the game with one number six and two number eights instead of one number ten. That was the only way we could handle Craig Goodwin and MeConnor Metcalfe getting into the gaps and trying to receive the balls in these dangerous positions," he explained while sharing his thoughts of using Apuia, Suresh and Tangri together.
Speaking about the absence of key players like Anwar Ali, Jeakson Singh, and Ashique Kuruniyan, Stimac said,
“They are technically good. They would help us in holding on to the ball, passing, keeping possession, and providing key passes, especially with Sahal Abdul Samad."
“But it’s a great experience for our boys. And prior to the game, in the dressing room, all that was mentioned was that we needed to play for our supporters. We needed to hold on to Australia for as long as possible. Our game plan was to hold on until 60 minutes and then go for it," he signed off.