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Indian football showcased its future plans under Igor Stimac with a fighting defeat against Curacao in the opener of King's Cup in Thailand. The Blue Tigers bowed their head to a 3-1 scoreline at the end of 90 minutes.
Luis Bonevacia opened the scoring for Curacao in the 15th minute with a cool shot from inside the box. In less than three minutes, Quincy Hooi made the best use of a weak offside trap to increase the tally. However, India showed glimpses of a comeback through a penalty goal in the 30th minute. The reward for Sahal Abdul Samad being fouled in the penalty area was converted well by skipper Sunil Chhetri. Curacao didn't wait to respond as Leandro Bacuna slashed in the third goal into Gurpreet Singh's post, in the 33rd minute.
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Even after a disappointing performance in the first half, Stimac regrouped his boys well to improve the second 45 minutes.
India will now face the loser of the second game between Thailand and Vietnam on 8 June, for the third position in the King's Cup.
Despite the defeat, the team does have plenty of positives to take out from the manager's debut. Here, we look at 5 talking points from India's valuable encounter against Curacao.
#5 Six players making their international debut for India
Igor Stimac started off his stint with India on a very confident note. He had called-up the best performers in recent times to his squad flying to Thailand. The 23-man-squad had a total of 6 new faces in the national camp. Surprisingly, Stimac opted to grant three of them a start for the game and the other three were introduced in the second half.
The first XI had Rahul Bheke, Sahal Abdul Samad and Brandon Fernandes making their international debuts. While Bheke joined Sandesh Jhingan as a center-back, Sahal was slotted in the attack behind Sunil Chhetri. Brandon Fernandes started as a central midfielder alongside Pronay Halder.
Stimac extended this list by adding Amarjit Singh and Raynier Fernandes at the beginning of the second half. Both became handful for the Indian attack in the remaining time. The final debutant in the squad, Michael Soosairaj wore the Indian jersey in the 67th minute, replacing Brandon Fernandes.
The Croatian manager has encouraged the new faces in the international arena. This looks like a positive factor for Indian football, who have been accustomed to 'manager favourites'. The lineup was surely a ray of hope for many Indian players still waiting for a call-up to the national team.
#4 A better second-half for India
India had a very dull start to the game with very little developed attacks. They kept dealing with the danger on the face of the goal. Three goals in the first 45 minutes indicated the coming of more.
However, Igor Stimac was accurate in his half-time talks. The new coach worked the magic to inspire the players. India began the second half with much more enthusiasm and an attacking strategy. More white jerseys were seen in the opponent half and midfielders worked hard to create space.
The two substitutions which were made at the half-time proved critical. Amarjit Singh and Raynier Fernandes added depth into the midfield and dared to take a shot or two at the goal when offered the space. The wings too became more lively in the second half. Udanta Singh put in a better work-rate on the right flank. Michael Soosairaj's inclusion too was a turning point.
Stimac was good in altering strategies in the midst of the half. The coach's contribution made the wingers work better. As a result, a number of crosses were put into the box, none of which were unluckily converted.
#3 Sahal Abdul might be the next big thing
The name Sahal Abdul Samad rose to fame with his performances for Kerala Blasters in the ISL. Even with only one goal to his name, the Kerala lad managed to impress the critics and won the Emerging Player Award of this ISL season. His national duty call-up too was reviewed as a fair opportunity.
Now, making his debut in the Indian colours, he has proven himself not to be over-rated. Sahal started the game in an attacking role, behind the lone striker Sunil Chhetri. As he does for Blasters, the midfielder was seen chasing the balls in the opponent's half. The 22-year-old player was part of most of India's attacks in the game. He was daring to be involved in the midfield battle, turning and cutting off the Blue shirts. He seemed to have a decent combination working with Chhetri in front. In the second half, Samad was behind few good balls that reached Udanta Singh. But he had inexperience as an obstacle before him leading to errors.
With his accurate passing and sensible positioning, Sahal Abdul Samad might be a valuable asset for Indian football. If the youngster stays on the ground and continues what he does the best, the judgments of legends like Chhetri might prove true.
#2 A poor defensive display
India could have easily put on a tougher fight if they had developed a better defensive line. The defense lacked confidence and was shaky for most of the time. The center back combination of Sandesh Jhingan and Rahul Bheke was nowhere close to perfect in the first half. Though they rejuvenated well in the second half, it was too late.
All three goals had defensive lapses along with it. The defenders had very little to do to stop the first goal tapped in from the face of the post. The second goal came off a failed offside attempt. Sandesh Jhingan was the only Indian player who chased the striker but couldn't stop Hooi from scoring into an open net. Curacao scored the final one beating Rahul Bheke off a simple flick and finding huge space between the defenders.
Rahul Bheke never managed to compensate the space left in by Anas Edathodika. Subhasish Bose too took time to find the rhythm on the field. Pritam Kotal was a silent presence and was not as effective as he usually was.
Altogether, the Indian defense lacked compactness and was caught out-of-position and on numerous occasions. Stimac's attempts of holding Pronay Halder deep and taking the wing backs forward too didn't get any reward.
Igor Stimac has issues to resort in the defense before going any further.
#1 Curacao's class
Even after India's hard-fight, the scores didn't take a turn only because of Curacao's class on the field. The team was good in its plans, analyzing the opponents early on. With the superiority in hand, Curacao did not blindly attack right from the start. They kept hold of possession in the initial stages and made clinical passes.
The goals they scored were chances created out of faults. While the first half for them was all about attacking and troubling the Indian defense, they stayed sensible in not losing out the lead in the second half. Curacao was on caution, but India's poor finishing too acted as an aid.
The game was a good example and experience for the Indian side. Curacao had a number of players with experience in European leagues, which increased their quality. Under Remko Bicentini, the team put up a good performance and was fair enough to earn a place in the cup final.
