As Qatar gets ready to host the 18th edition of the prestigious AFC Asian Cup from 12 January “ 10 February 2024, the top football playing nations in Asia will be battling it out for the “Supremacy of Asia”.
Defeated in the final by Qatar in 2019, Japan are the clear favourites to lift the Asian Cup for a record fifth time. South Korea, Iran, Australia, Saudi Arabia and hosts Qatar will be the other strong contenders vying for the Asian title.
Currently, Japan is the highest ranked side in Asia with FIFA ranking 17, followed by Iran (ranking “ 21), South Korea (ranking - 23), Australia (ranking“ 25), Saudi Arabia (ranking “ 56) and Qatar (ranking “ 58).
So far, only nine nations have won the AFC Asian Cup. Japan is the most successful team in the tournament, winning it on four occasions. Iran and Saudi Arabia have been Asian champions thrice while South Korea has won the AFC Asian Cup twice. Israel, Kuwait, Iraq, Australia and Qatar have been champions once. Hosts Qatar are the defending Asian champions.
Tough Group for India
India is placed in relatively tough group. Group B consists of Australia, Uzbekistan, Syria and India. All these sides are ranked higher than India. The lowest-ranked side among the three countries is Syria at 91 while Uzbekistan is ranked 68th while Australia is 25th as per FIFA rankings. India is ranked 102, which means winning even a single game won't be easy for the Sunil Chhetri-led side. Progressing beyond the group stage won’t be so simple. Only the top-two sides in each of the six groups along with four third-best placed teams in each group will progress to the next round which will see 16 out of the 24 teams qualify.
India start their campaign with a match against one of the title favourites, Australia on January 13. Then, they play Uzbekistan on January 18 followed by Syria on January 23.
India’s record at AFC Asian Cup
Since the AFC Asian Cup was founded in 1956, India has qualified for five Asian Cups, in 1964, 1984, 2011, 2019 and 2023.
India first participated in the AFC Asian Cup in 1964. It was also the country’s best-ever finish as they ended as runners-up in that tournament behind hosts Israel. It was just a four-team affair that year with several nations pulling out due to political reasons, among the many factors that would eventually result in hosts Israel being expelled from the AFC and eventually relocating to Europe's UEFA.
The ‘Men in Blue’ had to wait for 20 years to qualify for the finals again. But, in the subsequent editions i.e. 1984, 2011 and 2019, India’s performance has been ‘below par’ as they could not even progress beyond the group stage. This edition will mark India’s fifth appearance in the quadrennial tournament.
Decline of Indian Football
India, which was once considered a power-house of Asian football in the 1950’s and 60’s is no longer a force to reckon with even at the continental level. The ‘Men in Blue’ are currently ranked 18th out of 46 Asian countries with FIFA ranking 102. It’s a sad reflection on the sorry state of affairs of Indian football and how drastic the decline has been over the years. The country, which had won two gold at the Asiad in 1951 and 1962 and had finished fourth at the 1956 Olympic Games, is now struggling to be among the best in Asia.
No doubt, the country won three tournaments in 2023 - SAFF Championship, Intercontinental Cup and Tri-Nation Tournament involving Kyrgyz Republic and Myanmar. But, all these were won against not so strong opponents. So, the win does not give a true picture of the progress Indian football has made. AFC Asian Cup 2023 will provide the reality check.
India's squad
Goalkeepers: Amrinder Singh, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Vishal Kaith.
Defenders: Akash Mishra, Lalchungnunga, Mehtab Singh, Nikhil Poojary, Pritam Kotal, Rahul Bheke, Sandesh Jhingan, Subhasish Bose.
Midfielders: Anirudh Thapa, Brandon Fernandes, Deepak Tangri, Lalengmawia Ralte, Liston Colaco, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad, Suresh Singh Wangjam, Udanta Singh.
Forwards: Ishan Pandita, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Manvir Singh, Rahul Kannoly, Praveen, Sunil Chhetri, Vikram Partap Singh.
India's Group B fixtures
January 13, 2024: India vs Australia (17:00 IST, Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar)
January 18, 2024: India vs Uzbekistan (20:00 IST, Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar)
January 23, 2024: India vs Syria (17:00 IST, Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Qatar)
