JOIN USCoach Luis Norton De Matos said India will give Colombia a run for their money in their second Group A fixture at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Monday.
Colombia lost 1-0 to Ghana in the opening match of Group A while Indian went down to United States of America 3-0.
Matos acknowledged Colombia will give them a tough physical fight. “The team will fight to the last minute and play with confidence, giving Colombia a run for their money,” Matos said on Sunday.
“Colombia are tough opponents and they possess the necessary elements to hurt us. We have to be on our toes all throughout and have to focus on the task at hand. They (Colombia) will also give us a tough physical fight but we are ready for it.
Matos said they would fight to win against Colombia to progress in the tournament.
“We will play to win. There is no other alternative for us. Every match we play is to win and if we win against Colombia we will be creating history,” he said.
“The eventual target is to secure progression to the next stage whilst taking one game at a time. The strength of the Indian team is their collective ability to play football as a combined unit and we bank on that factor to help us win against Colombia.”
Suresh Singh, the Indian midfielder, admitted they need to work on their mistake and said they were raring to play against Colombia. “We are all set for the Colombia game and we’ll give it everything. We won’t disappoint you, we won’t disappoint India. We need to rectify our mistakes and move on. Winning and losing are part and parcel of the game. We are all set for the next game and we’re raring to give it a shot,” he said.