Competition: World Cup 2014 Qualifier (AFC) Second Round First Leg
Favourites
The United Arab Emirates will come into this game as clear favourites because of their home advantage and the fact that they are ranked 37 spots above India in the FIFA Rankings. UAE warmed up for this encounter with a convincing display against Lebanon and prior to that, the West Asian nation had a very useful exposure camp in Austria. Srecko Katanec’s side will also have fond memories from their last meeting against India back in November 2010, which finished 5-0 in favour of the Arab nation.
However, coach Katanec has several injury concerns as goalkeeper Majid Nasser, skipper Subait Khater and superstar Ismail Matar are all likely to miss the first leg while left winger Abdulla Mosa is already ruled out. But the absence of those individuals didn’t trouble UAE against Lebanon as their midfield and attack functioned really well with medio Amir Abdul Rahman and hat-trick hero Ahmed Khalil being the two standout performers. However the defence will be aiming to minimize their mistakes as they conceded two soft goals in that match, which did not impress their Slovenian coach.
Ranked 37 Spots Above India
Going by the pre-match comments of coach Katanec, the UAE camp is quite confident of not only winning the first leg but also the tie over two legs. But India’s 2-1 upset win over Qatar in Doha on Sunday should help the UAE squad guard against complacency. UAE, who had a miserable Asian Cup 2011 campaign, will be expected to beat Armando Colaco’s side and thus the onus will be on them to go for the win in the first leg. Katanec has now also signed a one-year contract extension and thus anything less than a comfortable UAE win won’t be good enough for the West Asian nation.
The Real Test
Sunday’s historic win against Qatar has certainly strengthened the belief and confidence of the Indian national team ahead of this World Cup qualifying tie. Armando Colaco’s players produced a fantastic display despite playing different set of outfield players in each half and now would be hoping for much of the same against another higher-ranked West Asian opponent. Team India are not known to be good travelers but a draw and a win from two away friendlies is a decent start to Armando Colaco’s reign. However Saturday’s first leg in Al Ain City is their real test as it’s the first step to Brazil 2014.
With coach Colaco promising to rotate the captaincy among Sunil Chhetri, Subrata Paul and Climax Lawrence, the Goan midfielder is likely to lead the side in this game. The ten players, who started against both Maldives and Qatar, are expected to get a place in the starting lineup once again but some good displays from second half substitutes in Doha will certainly give Colaco a welcome selection headache. Being the visitors in the first leg, India can certainly afford to defend as a unit and play the waiting game but Armando is known to be a positive coach and thus we can expect the Men in Blue to look for that all important away goal.
Can India Cause Another Upset?
A strong team performance will be needed to get the better of UAE and India should also have the right balance in their style of play just like they did against Qatar. Key players like goalkeeper Subrata Paul, center back Gouramangi Moirangthem and star striker Sunil Chhetri must be at their absolute best. The Indian team also has to be strong mentally and not allow UAE to run away with the game just in case they don’t start well. Colaco’side are undoubtedly the underdogs and they should aim to make the most of it by playing without fear. There is plenty of excitement among Indian football followers after the famous win over Qatar and that could get enhanced if Team India can pull off another positive result this Saturday.
UAE – Ahmed Khalil
Khalil Must Perform For UAE
Khalil looked in good touch during the Austria tour as he scored in the 1-1 draw with Romanian giants Dinamo Bucharest and then bagged a hat-trick against Lebanon. The 20-year-old, who won the Asian Young Footballer of the Year in 2008, will certainly be UAE’s biggest goal threat against India.
India – Sunil Chhetri
India's Goal Machine
The Delhi lad is in fine form, having netted in three of his last four international matches and would be eager to shine in this encounter also. The whole of India would be hoping to see Sunil score for the third straight game and thus bag a crucial away goal for Armando Colaco’s side.
The United Arab Emirates will come into this game as clear favourites because of their home advantage and the fact that they are ranked 37 spots above India in the FIFA Rankings. UAE warmed up for this encounter with a convincing display against Lebanon and prior to that, the West Asian nation had a very useful exposure camp in Austria. Srecko Katanec’s side will also have fond memories from their last meeting against India back in November 2010, which finished 5-0 in favour of the Arab nation.
However, coach Katanec has several injury concerns as goalkeeper Majid Nasser, skipper Subait Khater and superstar Ismail Matar are all likely to miss the first leg while left winger Abdulla Mosa is already ruled out. But the absence of those individuals didn’t trouble UAE against Lebanon as their midfield and attack functioned really well with medio Amir Abdul Rahman and hat-trick hero Ahmed Khalil being the two standout performers. However the defence will be aiming to minimize their mistakes as they conceded two soft goals in that match, which did not impress their Slovenian coach.
Ranked 37 Spots Above India
Going by the pre-match comments of coach Katanec, the UAE camp is quite confident of not only winning the first leg but also the tie over two legs. But India’s 2-1 upset win over Qatar in Doha on Sunday should help the UAE squad guard against complacency. UAE, who had a miserable Asian Cup 2011 campaign, will be expected to beat Armando Colaco’s side and thus the onus will be on them to go for the win in the first leg. Katanec has now also signed a one-year contract extension and thus anything less than a comfortable UAE win won’t be good enough for the West Asian nation.
The Real Test
Sunday’s historic win against Qatar has certainly strengthened the belief and confidence of the Indian national team ahead of this World Cup qualifying tie. Armando Colaco’s players produced a fantastic display despite playing different set of outfield players in each half and now would be hoping for much of the same against another higher-ranked West Asian opponent. Team India are not known to be good travelers but a draw and a win from two away friendlies is a decent start to Armando Colaco’s reign. However Saturday’s first leg in Al Ain City is their real test as it’s the first step to Brazil 2014.
With coach Colaco promising to rotate the captaincy among Sunil Chhetri, Subrata Paul and Climax Lawrence, the Goan midfielder is likely to lead the side in this game. The ten players, who started against both Maldives and Qatar, are expected to get a place in the starting lineup once again but some good displays from second half substitutes in Doha will certainly give Colaco a welcome selection headache. Being the visitors in the first leg, India can certainly afford to defend as a unit and play the waiting game but Armando is known to be a positive coach and thus we can expect the Men in Blue to look for that all important away goal.
Can India Cause Another Upset?
A strong team performance will be needed to get the better of UAE and India should also have the right balance in their style of play just like they did against Qatar. Key players like goalkeeper Subrata Paul, center back Gouramangi Moirangthem and star striker Sunil Chhetri must be at their absolute best. The Indian team also has to be strong mentally and not allow UAE to run away with the game just in case they don’t start well. Colaco’side are undoubtedly the underdogs and they should aim to make the most of it by playing without fear. There is plenty of excitement among Indian football followers after the famous win over Qatar and that could get enhanced if Team India can pull off another positive result this Saturday.
UAE – Ahmed Khalil
Khalil Must Perform For UAE
Khalil looked in good touch during the Austria tour as he scored in the 1-1 draw with Romanian giants Dinamo Bucharest and then bagged a hat-trick against Lebanon. The 20-year-old, who won the Asian Young Footballer of the Year in 2008, will certainly be UAE’s biggest goal threat against India.
India – Sunil Chhetri
India's Goal Machine
The Delhi lad is in fine form, having netted in three of his last four international matches and would be eager to shine in this encounter also. The whole of India would be hoping to see Sunil score for the third straight game and thus bag a crucial away goal for Armando Colaco’s side.
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