JOIN USIndian coach Igor Stimac admitted that Oman and Qatar are outright favourites to advance from Group E to the third round of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers on Wednesday.
“Oman and Qatar are of course realistically favourites,” claimed Stimac, who took charge of the team in May. “In football, you need to grow gradually, step by step, we are trying to do the same.”
The Croatian also revealed that he would have preferred more time with the team on the training field than on the two tournaments (Kings Cup and Intercontinental Cup) that India featured in before the upcoming match.
“For me, training sessions were more important than the games we played,” said Stimac. “To be honest, I was not happy to play the games, because I was losing the days that we could have used in practice and implementing the new style of play for our players. So, when you miss 20 days in playing games you miss practice and then there is a setback.”
Stimac has stressed on the need to change the style of play since taking over from Stephen Constantine. He is convinced that his method will speed up the success of Indian football.
“They are working hard, improving on each segment of their game and obviously coming to a such a point where we have a game which we can decide and speed up the future and success of Indian football. If we win tomorrow then we are on the right path,” he said.