Forget FIFA rankings, says Stimac on the eve of SAFF Championship Opener
India has been drawn with Pakistan, Nepal and Kuwait in Group A of the tournament. India will open their campaign against Pakistan on Wednesday here at Sree Kanteerava Stadium.
Bangalore, June 20: Indian coach Igor Stimac on Tuesday warned his side not to be misled by the relatively lower FIFA rankings of other teams in Group A going into the 2023 SAFF Championship, urging the Blue Tigers not to lose their intensity.
India has been drawn with Pakistan, Nepal and Kuwait in Group A of the tournament. India will open their campaign against Pakistan on Wednesday here at Sree Kanteerava Stadium.
“Forget the FIFA rankings! All the teams in our group and in the tournament in general are very special. All four teams are quite efficient and can produce different types of football. The crowd will love it because there will be a lot of goals. We have a very serious group and some tough opponents”, said Stimac during the pre-match press conference.
Stimac did not deny that the Indian team is very confident after winning the Intercontinental Cup on Sunday by beating Lebanon 2-0.
“The mood in the camp is good after our victory in the Intercontinental Cup. We can be happy. As coaching staff, we can only show the team how to win the game and once they get on the field, it’s totally up to the players how to do that,” he said.
Despite the thrilling victory in the Intercontinental Cup, Stimac said India cannot take Pakistan lightly as it could be a dangerous opponent.
“They could be the surprise package of the tournament. They have a really good team and it doesn’t matter that they haven’t been happy with the results lately.
“They recently played three games (in the Four-Nation Cup) without much practice and they could be very competitive here. We know the strengths and weaknesses of the teams and we need to work on that,” he said.
Stimac said the team will have to get used to the conditions in Bengaluru very quickly as the experience in Odisha was vastly different.
“We come here from an (Odisha) temperature that rises to more than 40 degrees, sometimes 48 degrees. We don’t have much time, but we have to get used to the cooler conditions in Bengaluru, which is great for football, and we have to train with slow movements on artificial grass,” he added.
The Intercontinental Cup win was India’s first victory over Lebanon in 46 years and having skipper and No. 1 striker Sunil Chhetri etched his name on the scoresheet would boost the team’s morale.
The Indian team would hope that Chhetri will continue on the same footing in the SAFF Championship as well.