ABU DHABI: Stressing on continuity, chief coach Stephen Constantine has announced a 23-member Indian football team, to be spearheaded by the seasoned Sunil Chhetri, for the upcoming AFC Asian Cup.
The Asian Cup is scheduled to be held in the UAE from January 5 to February 1. India play their first match against Thailand on January 6, with matches against hosts UAE and Bahrain slotted for January 10 and January 14, respectively.
The Blue Tigers were the first among 23 visiting teams to arrive in Abu Dhabi on December 20. A 28-member squad had travelled to Abu Dhabi and have been practicing in an effort to acclimatize themselves to the conditions.
Meanwhile, national teams director Abhishek Yadav said the continental showpiece is a “significant platform” for the side to enter top 8 in Asia.
“We are aiming for top-8 status in Asia for men’s and top-3 status in Asia for women’s national teams by 2026. All our programmes are designed to achieve this end, and the Asian Cup will massively help in our quest,” said Yadav, a former India striker. India Squad: GOALKEEPERS: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Vishal Kaith, Amrinder Singh DEFEDERS: Pritam Kotal, Sarthak Golui, Sandesh Jhingan, Anas Edathodika, Salam Ranjan Singh, Subhashish Bose, Narayan Das MIDFIELDERS: Udanta Singh, Jackiechand Singh, Germanpreet Singh, Pronay Halder, Anirudh Thapa, Vinit Rai, Rowllin Borges, Ashique Kuruniyan, Halicharan Narzary FORWARDS: Sumeet Passi, Balwant Singh, Sunil Chhteri, Jeje Lalpekhlua. (PTI)
