India players train ahead of the match against Uzbekistan.
Doha, Qatar: India have never won against higher-ranked Uzbekistan in their previous matches but head coach Igor Stimac believes the Blue Tigers have the capability to pull off a victory when the two sides meet at the AFC Asian Cup for the first time today.
Stimac is also banking on a massive support in Qatar as his team looks to bounce back after a 2-0 defeat to Australia in their first Group B match on Saturday.
The 45000-capacity Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium will host the match, which is also crucial for Uzbekistan who are seeking their first victory after being held by Syria in the opener.
Stimac is counting much on his team’s fans after receiving overwhelming support at the venue as a crowd of over 36000 mostly Indian supporters turned up in their game against the Socceroos. India have lost four and drew two of their games they played against Uzbekistan before but the Croatian coach looked confident ahead of the match.
“Our mindset is geared towards winning, always maintaining a winning mentality. Our boys are ready, and I hope we create more opportunities than what we experienced in the first game,” Stimac said yesterday, hoping the team will come up with an improved performance.
“The match against Australia was fantastic, and I believe the lessons learned from that encounter will significantly benefit our future performances.”
The 56-year-old, however, was aware of the challenge his team faces in the clash.
“Uzbekistan are a formidable side, they are a highly technical side with tough opponents. Their players, particularly those in Eastern Europe, bring both experience and youthful energy,” he said.
“We are anticipating early pressure from them, and it’s crucial for us to be compact, vocal, and have a clear strategy for advancing into the final third and being effective there. We need to find a way to navigate through their strengths and capitalise on opportunities.”
Regarding the fans, he said: “They might be the crucial point for us in this game, and once again, a huge, huge thanks to all of them.”
Australia are leading the group with three points while Uzbekistan are placed third behind Syria with India positioned at the bottom.
Uzbekistan coach Srecko Katanec told his team to go all-out for a victory against India, ranked 34 places lower than his side in the FIFA rankings.
“We will try to do something on the field but the game will be completely different. They (India) are strong and aggressive and we have to find spaces and do our best,” he told a pre-match press conference yesterday.
“I have to prepare my team well and we have to be patient during the 90 minutes and we shall see how it goes. I’m taking it game by game and I know we have to win tomorrow to advance into the next stage and this is the main target for us. We must try our best to win the game, I’m confident we can achieve that,” he added.
The match will kick off at 5:30pm after Australia and Syria will battle for points at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium at 2:30pm.
Group B - India vs Uzbekistan
Inaugural meeting: This will be the first time that India and Uzbekistan are facing off at the AFC Asian Cup; though, Uzbekistan are unbeaten from their six previous men’s internationals against India (W4 D2) including a 2-1 win in their most recent encounter (June 2001).
Tough stat: India have lost nine of their last 11 games at the AFC Asian Cup (W1 D1) including their last three in a row; though, their 69% pass accuracy against Australia in their opening game of the current tournament was their highest in any of their last five AFC Asian Cup matches.
Resolute defending: India blocked 12 shots on Matchday One, twice as many as the remaining three teams in Group B combined (6), with India duo Rahul Bheke and Sandesh Jhingan each making four blocks.
Almost perfect: Uzbekistan's Umarbek Eshmurodov had an accuracy of 98% from his 57 passes on Matchday One, the highest of any player from Group B, while teammate Otabek Shukurov (98) made the third-most pass attempts overall.
