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India lost 2-1 to Oman narrowly at a noisy Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru in their opening World Cup Asian group stage qualifier. Sunil Chhetri’s brilliant curler cancelled out Qasim Said’s first-minute opener, but Imad Al Hosni converted a 40th-minute penalty to restore Oman’s advantage. The second half ended goalless with both teams having a goal disallowed and India being denied a stoppage-time penalty.
We will improve: Constantine
After the match, manager Stephen Constantine gave his views on the encounter. Constantine pointed out the scoreline as a marker indicating India’s progress and said that the team will improve the more they play together.
“Oman have quality, we lack that little bit, and need time to understand how to make that up. 4-5 days doesn't give you a lot of time. We don't have time, but we will try to correct our mistakes and improve,” he said.
“These boys need games and that is what is most important. We are learning on the job, and hopefully we do it quickly. We need more time to become better, and we need more friendly games.
“It was not Oman vs Subrata Pal, we only lost 2-1, we need experience, and that is how we will improve. The loss hurts because if the decisions had gone our way, it could have been 3-2,” the 52-year old said.
On being asked about the heavy presence of Bengaluru FC (BFC) players, Constantine denied any preference saying he was just looking for the best combination.
The manager said, “No particular emphasis on having BFC players, just looked for the best combination. They did have a great season, so that worked for us.
“[We] Haven't had much time, of course, there were problems with communication, we have just had 3 games so far. We are going to be a good side, we are going to get better. Today’s performance was better than against Nepal, which we won.”
He also shed light on the disallowed goal, which came courtesy of a beautifully crafted move.
“The corner routine was a training ground exercise, and it was a goal, a definite goal. To my horror, I saw the flag raised,” admitted Constantine.
Under Constantine, nobody is scared: Chhetri
India’s goalscorer Sunil Chhetri thanked the fans for their support, but refused to talk about his spectacular goal.
“It [the goal] was alright. If you lose 2-1, it doesn't matter. You lost and you lost with the team,” said Chhetri.
“We just 4 days of training. Rino [Anto], Dhana [Dhanachandra Singh], Chonte [Lalcchuammawia Fanai], Sehnaj [Singh] made their debuts. It is not easy when you have players coming in. You have to be happy for all the 4 boys and the whole team. We need to have the same team that plays together for 5 years and we'll be much, much better.
“Special mention to the whole crowd, it was amazing. Every time, I think this is a great day, they outdo themselves in terms of numbers, in terms of the way they support us. I can't thank them enough.
Asked if things are different under Constantine, Chhetri said, “One thing which is different is nobody is scared. Not a lot of players have played a team like Oman, so we didn't know what to expect. I think in the first 20 minutes, we gave them much more respect than they deserved.
“But, later on when the boys started feeling that they have a chance, especially in the second half, in the first 15 minutes, we were good, we had 3 corners, a couple of shots on target and if that goal was in, it would have been different. Especially, when you play against Oman, you won't get much chances.”
We gave them too much respect: Chhetri
Chhetri was asked what the coach said at halftime that resulted in the turnaround in performance.
“Same thing. He said that we were giving too much respect to them. No. 12 and No. 8 were free and I was the one who was marking both of them, the whole midfield came a little bit behind only because we thought it was Oman and we conceded the first goal and [because of] the euphoria of the whole situation.
“Then the gaffer was like, you've got to come up and come man to man, especially [with] No. 8 and No. 12 who were dictating the ball in the first half. So, I had to go [mark] No. 8 or vice versa and in the next half had to go on [to mark] No. 12. And then the first 15 minutes [of the second half] was the best spell we had in the game. And again to be repetitive, if the penalty or if that goal was allowed, the game would have been different.”
Chhetri was distraught at the way India conceded the opening goal blaming the entire team and said that against higher ranked teams, the emphasis should be on stopping the opponent and then playing their game.
“The early goal was really sad. Nobody else but, the whole 11 have to be blamed. When you're playing Oman and want to qualify for the World Cup, that's the last thing you want. If you're playing teams like Oman and Iran, that's how you play mentally, you stop them and no matter how sad it sounds, you stop them and then you go,” admitted Chhetri.
“That's when the fans come in. You could see the reaction and that's what brought us back in the game. If we were in Oman, we were in for a hiding, definitely.”
If the referee thinks it’s not a penalty, it isn’t: Robin Singh
Striker Robin Singh was substituted late in the game and was asked about the penalty in the stoppage time.
He said, “I was icing my leg to be really honest. so I didn't really say it. But, yes I did see them scream so yeah, definitely. But, if the referee thinks it's a penalty it is, if he doesn't think it is, then it's not.”
When asked about the innovative corner routine that saw India being denied their equaliser, Robin said, “Good question, next question (laughs). Don't want to reveal my tactics.”
Jackichand Singh, who made his first start for the national team, said that the team will perform better next time. He said, “We'll try to perform better next time. We didn't implement everything that the coach taught us.”
India now travel to Guam for the second match of the group stage on 16th June.
