Port of Spain: The Indian football team would look to leave behind the controversies surrounding their Caribbean tour and concentrate on the game when they take on Trinidad & Tobago in an international friendly here on Sunday.
The tour itself was in doubt with the clubs refusing to release their players before they relented and then it was reduced to a two-match affair instead of three after coach Armando Colaco cancelling the first game against Barbados in protest against the cold reception by the local organisers.
With 65 places above India at 88th in FIFA rankings and having qualified in 2006 World Cup, Trinidad & Tobago start as firm favourites at the Hasely Crawford Stadium tomorrow but the visitors will have the advantage of having played more international matches in recent times.
The ‘Socca Warriors’ under German coach Otto Pfister has not played any international match since November last year and tomorrow’s match would be their first big match before the CONCACAF qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup.
India, on the other hand, have played four matches after Colaco took over the reigns — against Maldives, Qatar and two against United Arab Emirates.
India are playing against Trinidad & Tobago for the first time in 27 years after their 1-2 loss in the three-match series under the captaincy of Parminder Singh.
Colaco knew the credentials of Trinidad & Tobago, one of the strongest sides in the CONCACAF, but said he was confident his young team will give a competitive performance against their opponents tomorrow.
“We are a youthful team in the midst of a transition period, so anything that we can take from the game, we will,” Colaco said.
Striker Sunil Chhetri said his side have prepared well for tomorrow’s match and they are ready for the challenge. “We are very excited. It’s a very big match. It’s not every day we play teams higher ranked than us. It’s going to be a good test,” Chhetri said. (PTI)
