Bengaluru: India would aim for a berth in the AFC Asian Cup finals when they take the field against Macau at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
India, who last played the championship way back in 2011 would go all out for a win which would ensure them of a place in the 2019 Asian Cup, scheduled to be held in the United Arab Emirates.
Stephen Constantine’s men have been very dominant in the qualifiers so far and are sitting at the top of the group after going past Myanmar 1-0, Kyrgyz Republic 1-0, and Macau 2-0. Moreso, they are yet to concede a goal in the competition. Also, if they win against Macau, then Constantine would have an opportunity to test his bench strength and give them an exposure ahead of the tournament.
The Indians would like to play quick passes and never let Macau settle down- exactly the same they did they last met them in an away fixture.
Said Constantine, “We need to open them up. I think we were a bit static in the first half of our away game in Macau and it helped them. We cannot afford to repeat the same mistake.”
Macau provided very little space for the Indian attackers to make inroads and names like Jeje Lalpekhlua, Sunil Chhetri and Udanta Singh would look forward to breaking through their defence more easily this time around.
It would also be interesting to see as to whether Constantine decides to go for in-form striker Balwant Singh or Eugeneson Lyngdoh.
An early goal for any team would do wonders for them in the match as Constantine called for more patience this time around against Macau.
He said, “We need to be patient which we were not in the first half when we played away against Macau.”
Macau has had a tough time in the qualifiers so far with them losing to Kyrgyzstan 1-0 in their first match which was followed by a 4-0 drubbing at the hands of Myanmar in an away fixture.
Paulo Cheang Long, the most capped player for Macau would look forward to controlling the midfield in the presence of Edgar Teixerira.
The 182nd ranked team put up a brave show against the 107th ranked Indians the last time they played each other and would hope to carry on with the same form this time.