Asian Cup 2019: India (Preview)

Boasting the second largest population on earth, India’s perceived lack of footballing heritage hardly waters down the pressure the national team faces upon travelling to the Asian Cup this January. A roller coaster of a World Cup cycle, from finishing dead last behind Guam and Turkmenistan in early qualification, to finish within touching distance of their best world ranking in their history, makes it difficult to accurately plot the mood against the lofty ambitions of the nation’s supporter base. Amongst it all, stands an Englishman weathering a heavy storm.

Stephen Constantine, a managerial cult figure at 52, who’s coached in several remote locations across the world, from Nepal to Malawi, from Rwanda to now his second stint as Indian head coach, has rarely been a man out of the spotlight. Ever willing to talk to the press, divulge wider opinions on the game, even straight talking on his relationships with individual players, his manner may be a breath of fresh air to the media, yet his relationship with players and the fans continues to sway in a gale.

The outgoing qualification cycle epitomised Constantine’s regularly oscillating reputation; starting poorly, before regaining hope, ahead of yet more turmoil. Considering the way modern football quickly disregards patience for those in the managerial hot seat, it’s astounding that the Londoner has stayed in his job throughout the last four years. It illustrates, if nothing else the trust in his ability from the hierarchy of Indian football.

Having had to navigate the early playoff rounds of qualification, beating Constantine’s former employers Nepal, to enter the main round of the draw, India collapsed in their bid to remain within World Cup consideration, a feat that remains the long-term goal of all involved in the country, but demonstrably a good generation or two behind reality. Losing 7 out of 8, including home and away reversals to Turkmenistan, India were left humiliated, having to run through the mill of an extra playoff round to keep their ship steady upon an Asian Cup pursuit.

Level going into extra time of the second leg, at home to Laos came arguably the biggest moment in their qualification. India hit six in 47 minutes, to emphatically cruise through, all despite 130+ minutes of uncertainty against a true minnow of Asian football. This reignited India’s run to the Asian Cup, blazing through a modest qualifying group that included Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Macau to secure their place in the Asian Cup. It wasn’t a pretty campaign, by any means, but the objective, stopping short of the primary goal of competing for the World Cup, was accomplished.

The last year, instead of simmering positively ahead of only their second Asian Cup campaign in 25 years, has proved anything but easy. Swipes in the media; at the standard of the I-League, the conduct of the Indian Super League, and at his employers for not sending a squad to the Asian Games in August, Constantine didn’t help his cause when he took an under 23 squad to the regional SAFF Championships, only to be left embarrassed in the final against Maldives, a tournament they should’ve comfortably won.

It’s becoming a trend in India’s recent history, concerning their perceived place in the world game. Thoughts ahead of qualification, weren’t merely at competing at the Asian Cup, but to qualify for the latter stages of World Cup qualification, and now again, a muted attempt at retaining their regional title was dismissed as an afterthought.

The progress of Indian football is gradually moving up through the gears; with the mess surrounding two simultaneous national leagues, looking to be coming to an adequate solution, yet the standard of play remains low. There continues to be no Indian national playing abroad, let alone in Europe, and their reliance continues to this day on the shoulders of outgoing legend Sunil Chhetri, with little in the way of replacements to step in if required, is concerning going forward.

Chhetri’s place in Indian football is close to being untouchable. The highest capped and leading marksman by a clear margin in the nation’s history, the influential striker has also had a large role to play off the pitch, instigating efforts to improve fan interaction and marketing of a sport that continues to play second fiddle to cricket. A bust up with his national coach however, that led to his captaincy being revoked in October, and a lack of fitness in November, leaves the side in limbo, fearing the worst for their prospects in the Emirates.

It all leaves a team divided; “Camp Constantine” vs. “Camp Chhetri”, leaving the legendary striker as the clear leader the most public of popularity contests. Calls for the removal of the coach had largely subsided going into the November international window, but come the end of the Asian Cup, no one will be surprised if Constantine exits stage left. An admission from the coach that India are left in a difficult place, if Chhetri were to miss out due to injury, was an honest take on the options he must work wonders with.

A positive that can be taken into the Asian Cup, is the raft of young players coming through, one area Constantine has been regularly praised for. Headlining the bill, midfield duo Anirudh Thapa and Vinit Rai, both under 21, are already adding bolster to the starting line-up despite their fledgling years. Already boasting 13 caps, since making his national debut last year, Thapa is an extraordinary talent that is worth keeping an eye on. Calmness in possession, impressive vision, with an improving attacking game, Constantine was even forced to field him as a false 9 against Jordan in Chhetri’s absence.

While this squad boasts interesting youth talent, some big game players, who have won club continental titles, expectations are starting to hit home that this is likely to be Constantine’s swan song. The whole Chhetri saga looks to have rocked the foundations enough, to see past failures come home to roost, a corner that this side looks incapable of escaping. With an even group, that consists of the hosts, India will look to their talismanic former skipper to drag them out of the deep one last time.

Key Men

Head Coach - Stephen Constantine (ENG)

Highly experienced English coach, who has managed in a range of locations, from Greece to Rwanda. Into his second stint as India head coach, has often picked up critics despite moderate successes, given his outspoken tendencies. His recent war of words with legendary striker Chhetri has divided the nation’s football.

Star Player - Sandesh Jhingen

Imperious central defender who has demonstrated experience above his years. can already boast of a blossoming career in India which has fed calls for him to move to Europe. Was the logical choice to succeed Chhetri in the captaincy debate, given his influence and impact on the team as a whole.

Under Pressure - Sunil Chhetri

Legendary striker, who remains one of few, that has been able to project football onto mainstream Indian culture. By far and away the nation’s highest scorer, the Asian Cup was set to be the 34-year-old’s defining moment, yet his feud with Constantine has provided doubts that the striker can wield the same influence.

Young Talent - Anirudh Thapa

A highly impressive young central midfielder, who makes up for his lack of height with a calm head and artistry in possession and from dead ball positions. Came to the fore upon conclusion of India’s qualification for the Asian Cup, but has quickly become a staple in Constandine’s side, and is likely to relish being in the spotlight of the world’s scouts come January.

AFC International Week Focus (June)

It’s been more than 14 months since Asia’s elite nations last had the chance to test their metal with the World’s best in international friendlies, in that time of course we’ve raced through Round 2 of World Cup/Asian Cup qualification, finding out the final 12 in the race for Russia 2018. Alongside this window which saw the very best compete against some of Europe’s finest, of course preparing for their very own continental tournament, we also saw some inter-regional clashes in friendly tournaments and some competitive action for Asia’s minnows facing off in the first round of Asian Cup qualification playoffs.

Asia's Top 10 Friendlies

2014's World Cup was the clearest reminder of how Asia has fallen behind the rest of the world. From now on, if a major Asian nation with World Cup qualification aspirations isn't organising friendlies with Europe's elite during international windows, it's broadly seen as a missed opportunity. Australia have been at the forefront of this, after successfully drawing with Germany last year. This time it was less successful in terms of the results, but again Ange Postecoglou's side came out of their three fixtures with plenty of credit and admiring glances, suggesting a real improvement from 2015's Asian Cup victory.

A narrow defeat to England (1-2) was followed up with a win (1-0) and a defeat (1-2) at home to Greece. Every match had it's positives and negatives, while Postecoglou rolled out both 433/442-diamond formations that have become expected to followers of the Socceroos, while there were numerous debutants with varying levels of success. The next stage as the coach stated himself is to ensure more of his players are moving, and playing regularly in Europe, primed directly at midfielder Aaron Mooy who's likely to leave Melbourne City this summer.

Elsewhere the greatest success story of the week came through Iran, who recorded back to back victories against Macedonia (3-1) and Kyrgyzstan (6-0). Hardly the kind of tests they'd desired, given their Croatia friendly fell through late on, but it was another decent opportunity to illustrate their attacking capabilities, Sardar Azmoun in particular impressing with four goals over the week.

It was a very up and down week for Korea Republic followers, initially getting smashed 6-1 to European champions Spain, before redeeming themselves somewhat with a 2-1 win over Czech Republic. The first result will however linger long in the memory, as this match was promoted as Korea's chance to illustrate how far they'd come under Uli Stielike, having not lost since their Asian Cup final appearance last January. The loss was greeted with disdain, some comparing it to the country's most embarrassing defeat in their history, something that needs to evaporate quickly ahead of their World Cup qualification return.

Also this week, China PR predictably opted to stay at home, as they've been known to for year's of international windows, mainly due to their lack of European based talent. Hence their opposition was at a weaker level, with established nations warming up for their respective continental tournaments. A 4-2 victory over Trinidad & Tabago followed by a shock loss to Kazakhstan does little in inspiring the nation however, especially given their limp progression to WCQ Round 3 in March. Amidst the disappointment strikers Jiang Ning and Zhang Yuning helped their causes with promising displays against T&T. The former notched his fourth in three starts since his return from three years away from the national team setup, while the latter scored a brace and laid on another for Jiang on his debut.

In Kirin Cup action, the first edition of the tournament that included more than two teams taking part in it for 5 years, hosts Japan broadly met current expectations. Facing European sides free from Euro 2016 commitments. Japan waltzed past Bulgaria 7-2, underlining their ability to fly past teams who they dominate possession against, before losing to Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-1 in the final, illustrating some of the same shortfalls that have been present for a while. One being the lack of fighting spirit or physical grit needed to compete against other continents, highlighted by coach Vahid Halilhodzic. It remains the same old story sadly.

Finally, considering the one off friendlies of Asia's elite, Uzbekistan who had their friendly against Equatorial Guinea cancelled earlier in the week went on to taste defeat against Canada in their encounter in Austria, while Qatar, who also traveled to central Europe, despite a promising opening went on to lose 3-1 against Euro 2016 qualified but considerable outsiders Albania.

King’s Cup

Thailand's King's Cup, a regular friendly tournament usually a place for Youth team experimentation felt a much more worthwhile venture this year with fellow WCQ Round 3 qualified nations UAE and Syria alongside a continental Top 10 side Jordan. For one it allowed an interesting look at those outsiders for World Cup qualification, but for another it pitted the West of Asia against Thailand in the East Asians back yard. 

The Thais became eventual victors first avoiding a scare against Syria in the semis, initially losing a 2-0 lead before progressing on penalties, while in the final they eased past Jordan 2-0 for their first title in the event since 2007. Jordan themselves will be happy with their efforts given their devastating exit in World Cup qualification in March, while rebuilding under a home coach such as current caretaker Abdullah Abu Zema, already illustrates the benefits of not extending Harry Redknapp's brief spell in the national team hot seat.

Syria bounced back from defeat on penalties to Thailand by clinching third over UAE. National pride was at stake, if nothing else given both nations were missing key players, however results such as these do offer hope that Syrian expectations in WCQ don't necessarily need to be so low.

AYA Bank Cup

Elsewhere in the region, Myanmar hosted the inaugural AYA Bank Cup in Yangon. Vietnam who made it through to the final with a penalty shoot out win over Hong Kong, clinched the title with style easing past Singapore 3-0 in the final. For the losers it was another disappointing week of football. They did clinch a debut victory for incoming boss Varadaraju Sundramoorthy, however they did do it against the run of play against the hosts in the semi-finals.

Overall it was a case of what could have been for Myanmar, often regarded as a minnow of South East Asian football, they more than competed once again. After cruelly being beaten by Singapore in the semis they eased past Hong Kong 3-0 to clinch third. All four East Asian nations will take part in Asian Cup Qualification Round 3 when the group state returns in March. 

Asian Cup Qualification Playoffs

Speaking of ACQ Round 3, there were still 8 places to be decided, to be determined over two rounds of home/away playoffs, the first of which took place this week. Cambodia, India, Malaysia, Tajikistan and Yemen all clinched their place in March's group stage, while the losers will be given another chance to redeem themselves when they join Bhutan in September/October's second batch of playoffs.

The first tie between Cambodia and Chinese Taipei was broadly seen as a match up of two of the worst sides from WCQ Round 2, however provided one the most entertaining ties of the week. Cambodia's successful 4-2 on aggregate victory after initially clinching a 2-2 draw away in Taiwan can be attributed to a fantastic home support in excess of 50,000 in Phnom Penh. Keo Sokpheng stood out in particular over both matches as a talented wide midfielder, in what was a heated battle on and off the ball.

India went someway to proving their doubters wrong with a comprehensive 7-1 aggregate win over Laos, including a 6-1 thrashing upon their return home. There was much needed hope in the goal scoring department, something they've relied upon for so long from ageing central striker Sunil Chhetri. A possible successor is within their midst, Jeje Lalpekhlua scored the decisive goal in Vientiane before opening the scoring back in Guwahati.

Effective back-to-back home legs for Malaysia produced the same result, two 3-0 wins over Timor-Leste that assured their progression. While Malaysia looked a side back in full confidence, the state of East Timorese football continues to fall to a new low. Another example of putting their faith in either ageing Brazilian born nationalised players or local teenagers continues to falter. It often looks like a financial situation that contradicts its self, assuming they are paying considerable amounts to fly in Brazilian talent from their club bases across Asia, however they continue to lack the relevant resources, again turning up in fake knockoff Adidas kits for the matches.

On a more pleasing note, Tajikistan look a side that are moving quickly up the gears at the bottom of Asia's international game. A 6-0 aggregate win over Bangladesh was conquered in relatively comfortable fashion, almost branding the return leg in Dhaka as a dead rubber, and so it was played like. They'll go into March's next round of qualification in high hopes, in practice they shouldn't have got themselves in such a state that they needed to go through the playoffs, however the fact they witnessed competitive football during this window will only aid their preparation going forward.

Finally, Yemen lived up to what I've been hoping of them over the last few years, recording dual 2-0 victories "home" and away against Maldives. Their island nation opponents were still getting to grips with losing Ali Ashfaq to impending retirement, while injury would've ruled him out anyway here, while Yemen finally replicated their proficiency in defence in clinical style in front of goal. Their victory ensured that only East Asian sides are left at the wrong end of Asian pyramid, as the next round of playoffs approach. 

The Indian Super League: Will it be a success?

As International football comes into focus this week, a noteworthy sideshow of the Indian Super League (ISL) kicks off this weekend sparking interest the world over. Big spending, familiar names and glitzy player drafts aside, the coming two months will truly show if such a venture can have a positive effect on football in the region.

The league is run with a similar objective as that of its cricketing elder brother that came before it, the Indian Premier league. Its success was built on the back of a short-length league structure with international star names alongside the cream of the crop from the domestic Indian game. The key difference when it comes to football, is the quality of the Indian talent and the standard of their domestic league; the I-League which is considerably poorer.

The ISL will run through until Christmas, with the I-League taking off immediately after in a usual league calendar going forward. Domestic players, whose usual contracts lie with I-League clubs were shared out between the incoming ISL clubs in the summer with the inaugural “Domestic Player Draft”. While this proposes to be a rather incentive and career-enhancing pre-season change for those players involved, the likelihood of these players actually having a notable contribution to their new clubs’ success is slim.

India are currently ranked 158^th in the world, and 30^th in Asia and haven’t shown any real signs of progress in the last World Cup cycle. For those concerned about purely the state of domestic talent in the region, the ISL has its plus sides and its negatives. Unfortunately, the ISL organisers seem to have little concerns with the improvement of these players but playing them alongside previously top quality internationals for a few months can’t do too much damage to the quality of the I-League in the future.

Of course, eyes will be firmly fixed on the ISL. Once the inaugural tournament crown has been clinched, it’s still to be seen whether the crowds will stay around for the domestic league season kick off, the key may be if further money is pumped into the I-League. After a general dismissal of the new ISL project from the majority of I-League club sides, this is unlikely, as the two remain at odds with their two opposing plans for the future of Indian football.

The ISL sides themselves will be packed full of international players of varying quality which may squeeze the numbers of domestic players actually starting matches come the season kick off. Strangely in opposition to many other leagues in the region, the number of overseas players has a minimum barrier opposed to a maximum cap, an initial ruling that illustrates the organisers’ dream of playing to the capabilities of their imports ahead of the progression of Indian players.

It’s not just Indian players that have threatened to be shunned by the league, but also Asian players on a whole. Outside the “Marquee” players (highly paid star names, at least one attributed to each club), the ISL ran an “International Player Draft” to allocate a further 7 overseas players to each club. From this cohort of 56 only two were from Asia, and a further 3 were from Africa. The bulk were from Europe (7 Czech, 7 Spanish, 6 French) and South America (5 Brazil).

 

Despite its possible disregard to the production of national talent, the league has some very interesting aspects that set it aside of alternative league formats. The draft process has led to a harmonic dynamic being formed by each side, with greater individuality being garnered from the selection process. For example Kerala Blasters has a broadly “British” feel, managed by an Englishman (former England international goalkeeper David James), with a number of British and Irish players being brought in during the draft process.

 

Other clubs with significant ideology include Atletico de Kolkata, which as the name suggests has clear links to Spain due to their joint ownership with Spanish champions Atletico Madrid. They’ve brought in 6 Spaniards alongside their coach Antonio Lopez Habas, including former Liverpool players Luis Garcia and Josemi. Fiorentina are another European club who have bought into the league with Pune City, coached by Italian Franco Colomba and spearheaded by Juventus legend David Trezaguet.

 

From a purely aesthetic stand point, the build-up is interesting, former World Cup winner Marco Materazzi has been appointed player coach of Chennaiyin FC, while Alessandro Del Piero, Robert Pires, and Nicolas Anelka have all curtailed retirement for another season to kick off the league. Alongside the arguably “past-it” star names, the likes of Greek goalkeeper Alexandros Tzorvas and Brazilian’s Elano and Andre Santos proves that the ISL can attract some European based names that should be hitting their prime.

 

The true effect on the national landscape is yet to be felt; will India embrace football and go on to support the domestic I-League? Will the Indian domestic players improve playing alongside some of world football’s greatest names taking it on to the national stage? Will it ultimately be a flash in the pan, or a realistic off-season escape for star name footballers? All is yet to be answered, but as one Indian punter suggested recently, the standard of Indian football can’t get any worse.