Australia will hold no surprises for India when the two sides face off in their opening AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 tie on Saturday.
The two met at the same stage in the 2011 edition with India suffering a 4-0 defeat but captain Sunil Chhetri is confident history will not repeat itself in their Group B clash at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan.
“We did not have much knowledge of the Australian team back then. Not when compared to the minute details we have now. We have watched their friendlies against Palestine and Bahrain, we know which leagues their players are in, and individual clips on them,” said Chhetri to the the-AIFF.com
“With this familiarity, the fear factor goes out. I must admit, of course, that they are extremely good. They are a couple of levels above than what we play in the ISL (Indian Super League), but at least we know what we are up against.”
Chhetri made his AFC Asian Cup debut at Qatar 2011 and the evergreeen striker said he is looking forward to the action getting underway.
“It is a massive tournament for us, purely because we get to rub shoulders with the best in Asia. Teams like Australia and Uzbekistan are probably of the World Cup level, so you can test yourself against them,” he said.
“What is sure is that we have improved in the last seven to eight years. but then you play them and you see how far you are, and how the tempo of the game is. It is just important to play your best, and generally, it is a good marker for the nation to test where we are.”
After Australia, India meet Uzbekistan on January 18 and Syria five days later as the South Asian side look to advance to Round of 16 after having missed out in the 2019 edition.
“So far, we have worked pretty hard over the last week, a lot of us got better in terms of fitness, and some have recovered from the little niggles they were carrying. Everyone seems focused, which has to be a given at this stage. But one thing is that the camaraderie between the boys is absolutely amazing. “We will take it one game at a time and try to give a good account of ourselves. We will prepare as much as possible, gather as much knowledge as we possibly can, and then act according to that,” he said.
India will look to their talisman to lead their charge in a tough group, with Chhetri having scored four goals in his previous six AFC Asian Cup matches.
The 39-year-old continues to be prolific, having netted nine goals in the past calendar year - a feat which makes him the third-highest active men’s international goalscorer, behind only Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Sunil Chhetri
