India 2-0 Macau, 5 Talking Points: AFC Asian Cup 2019 Qualifiers

#2 Full backs Kotal and Das impress

Kotal and Das are growing into an impressive full-back pair

India were totally dominant in terms of territory and possession but failed to present much of a threat to start with. With Macau sitting deep and dropping deeper with every passing minute, space in central areas was at a premium for Constantine's men. That resulted in the Indian full-backs, Pritam Kotal and Narayan Das, enjoying a fair amount of liberty on their respective flanks.

Both the Indian full-backs bombarded cross after cross throughout the game, but it was only after the introduction of Balwant in the second half that those balls made more sense. It was Narayan's cross in the 57th minute which broke the deadlock after Balwant nodded it home. Against deep defences, having quality full-backs to attack from wide areas is a big advantage and India are at least blessed with two reliable wide defenders.