Asian Games 2023 Rival Watch - China set to pose serious threat to Indian National Football Team

The Indian National Football Team's squad was finally announced by the AIFF earlier on Friday. Now, all eyes will be on their opener at the Asian Games where they are set to lock horns with the China National Football team.

Ahead of what can prove to be a stern test for the Sunil Chhetri and Sandesh Jhingan-led U23 Blue Tigers side, here is everything you need to know about the hosts, and what we can expect from them.

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Recent Form

The Chinese U23 team recently participated in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers, facing India and the UAE after Maldives withdrew from the tournament.

In their opener against UAE on September 6, the Dragons managed a 0-0 draw. Despite a few clear-cut chances in the first half, China failed to capitalize on them.

India suffered a 2-1 loss at the hands of China in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers.

Their fortunes favoured them better when they came up against India three days later. While both sides failed to create promising chances, China took the lead through a penalty in the 68th minute.

India equalized in the 93rd minute through an own-goal from a set piece before the hosts netted the winner just four minutes later. China will look to play a more confident brand of football when they host the Blue Tigers, Myanmar and Bangladesh.

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Head Coach

The Chinese U23 side will be playing under the tutelage of Dejan Đurđević, the Serbian manager. He works closely with Aleksander Jankovic, fellow Serbian and Head Coach of the Senior team.

As a midfielder, Dejan plied his trade for several clubs across Serbia, Sweden and Greece in his playing days. He began his coaching journey with OFK Beograd's youth side, the club where he spent the majority of his career as a footballer.

He was appointed as the Head Coach of the U17 Serbian team in 2007 and followed it with stints at various clubs in Serbia and Uzbekistan. He was appointed the China U23 Manager on 24th February, 2023.

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Players to watch out for

The 35-year-old Tan Long is quite easily the oldest player in China's Asian Games squad. Debuting for the Chinese Senior team at the ripe age of 30, the forward has since failed to cement his spot with the team. Having played extensively in the USA, and scoring form in the CSL, the veteran will be expected to lead the Chinese attack.

Tao Qianlong was one of the players who impressed the most from the Chinese side at the AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers. The 21-year-old, who was also the captain of the side was a constant menace down the left wing and scored a well-taken penalty against India.

Liu Yang is another one of the senior players on the squad. The 28-year-old left-back has 17 caps for the senior team and was a constant feature under Marcelo Lippi when he was in charge of the Chinese team in the 2019 Asian Cup. After two years out of the fold, the defender made his comeback to the senior setup in 2022.

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Predicted Result

The opener is going to be the toughest game of the group stages for Sunil Chhetri and Co. While they will expect to pick up full points against Myanmar and Bangladesh, China will cause them immense problems.

The task looks even more daunting given the fact that it is in the Dragons' backyard, where India recently succumbed to a 2-1 loss.

However, with the likes of Sunil Chhetri, Sandesh Jhingan, Chinglensana Singh, and a few other National Team regulars, India will try and back themselves to pick up a point at least. The Asian Games are an exciting opportunity to test India's youngsters ahead of the impending AFC Asia Cup in 2024, and the Blue Tigers cannot afford to hold back when they face China on the 19th.

Even then, it will take a mammoth effort to hold the hosts to a stalemate, with a narrow loss looking like the most realistic outcome.