India – ranked 124th in the world – began a new chapter under coach Manolo Marquez with a draw as they failed to breach the citadel of 179th-ranked Mauritius.Ranked 93rd in the world, Syria are likely to pose a tougher challenge.
Like India, Syria are in a transition phase with a new coach. But they will be upbeat about their chances after their convincing 2-0 victory over Mauritius in the previous outing. A draw will be enough for them to win the title.
After the first match, Marquez had five days of training time with the team and he is confident of a better performance. “It will be a difficult game for both sides. We expect to play a good game and win the tournament,” said the Indian coach on the eve of the clash.
“I prefer to play a good game than to win the tournament. I want the team to understand our ideas and play better because we need to arrive at a style of play and that’s what we are focusing on,” added Marquez.
Syria were in India in 2007 and 2009 for the Nehru Cup finals, but lost on both occasions. They also finished fourth in 2012.
Syria’s coach Jose Lana, who took charge in their previous match, said: “I think India are a great team. I like the way they play with this coach. They try to move the ball fast. I think it will be a difficult match for us. And our only objective for tomorrow is to be better than our previous match,” said Lana.
“They are well organised. They know how to play when they don’t have the ball. They try to press high. And when they have the ball, they try to play faster and move the ball from side to side,” he added.
