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The first match of the AFC Asian Cup 2023 for the Indian men's senior team is just around eight months away and the preparatory matches have already been underway.
The Blue Tigers had an encouraging start to their calendar year with an impressive performance in the Hero Tri-Nation Cup held in Imphal, Manipur.
Now, the Intercontinental Cup, which is less than a week away, will usher in a few crucial months of a jam-packed footballing calendar for the national team. The SAFF Championship will kick off days after the Intercontinental Cup while in September, India will participate in the King's Cup in Thailand.
In both the Intercontinental Cup and the SAFF Championship, India (101 in the FIFA Rankings) are the second-highest-ranked team, behind Lebanon (99).
Asked during a press conference on Saturday, June 3, if he would've preferred to play against a higher-ranked opponent, Igor Stimac replied:
"As every team, we are always trying to find better teams to play against and improve our game. With all the changes in the federation, we didn't have enough time to find better-ranked opponents, but I hope in the future, this will change because, for quicker improvement, you need to play tough teams to challenge your strengths and see where you stand."
"But we are happy with what we have. We have so many tournaments coming up this year starting with the Hero Intercontinental Cup, followed by the SAFF Championship, so possibly nine matches in less than a month. And considering that in the past 12 months, we played eight games, it's a huge achievement. This is the first time we are preparing in such a way, playing so many matches. I'm confident this will give us better a chance to get results," he added.
Igor Stimac says full-back spots in the Indian national team are still wide open for taking
Previously, Igor Stimac had stressed that he had now found a core group of players in the national team. Hence, the upcoming matches, building up to the Asian Cup, are about finding the missing pieces of the puzzle and polishing them.
"We do have a core base of players but we're always looking to strengthen each position in the squad and the competition for them is most welcome," the Croat said during the press conference.
"As of now, I would say that the fullback positions are wide open. We need more physical and mental strength in these positions and a better understanding of how to defend more than how to attack because when we are up against good wingers, our fullbacks face problems in closing down gaps and preventing crosses," Stimac added.
The Intercontinental Cup, along with the successive tournaments, will provide a great opportunity for Stimac to remedy the situation.
India will lock horns with Mongolia in the much-anticipated opening encounter on June 9. The other two opponents are Vanuatu and Lebanon, whom the Blue Tigers will face on June 12 and June 15, respectively.
