We can be optimistic and yet have realistic expectations based on the realities of our team. If the Jordan team had a few of their reserve players in the playing 11 that day then even India fielded an almost reserve team and was without our best striker - Chetri. Plus we were severely exhausted, having been stuck at qatar airport for 2 days and had absolutely no time to practice. In fact if I am not wrong the Indian team did not have a single practice session together. Yet we fought well and even scored against them. Even the Oman team we drew with had defeated UAE in tge final of tge Gulf Cup last year. So we are not bad. We just need to play to our strength and not be too adventurous. High pressing, quickly closing down opponents and short passes to each other without unnecessarily losing the ball will help us win.
@Chelseafan not few. Just 2 players who played against India, there goalkeeper and one defender played against Australia so it was a B team but I agree we played our C team that day.
UAE has been a low scoring team under this coach...UAE will look only for a win from this game as they have only 1 points now..This is an ideal game to play counter attacking style for India.. If executed well, we can definitely win this game
AFC Asian Cup 2019: 5 key facts ahead of India vs UAE
Hosts United Arab Emirates (UAE) take on a high-spirited India in Group A of the AFC Asian Cup 2019 at the Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.
India, who thrashed Thailand 4-1 in their opener, will be looking to build on their good start while UAE will be determined to get a result after being held to a 1-1 draw by Bahrain in the tournament’s opening match.
So, we take a look at the five key facts as we await this exciting encounter..
1) India looking for an Asian Cup record
India will be looking to win their first back-to-back games in the AFC Asian Cup when they face UAE in the late kickoff on Thursday.
They thrashed the War Elephants 4-1 in their opener, but will have their work cut out against UAE in their second game.
2) The hosts are on an unbeaten streak
UAE will be looking to extend their unbeaten run to three games in the AFC Asian Cup when they face India at the sprawling Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi.
They last went on a longer run without defeat in the competition between the 1992 and 1996 tournament that covered seven games where they won four and played out three draws.
3) India have seven goals in last three matches in Asian Cup!
Surprising as it may sound, India have scored seven goals in their last three matches in the Asian Cup.
They netted four against Thailand few days ago as they got their campaign off to a winning start.
The Blue Tigers also found the back of the net against Korea Republic in their final group game of AFC Asian Cup 2011 in Qatar as well as scored two against Bahrain in the game before that.
Rather unsurprisingly, India’s legendary striker Sunil Chhetri has scored four of those seven goals!
4) UAE emerged victorious in their last meeting
UAE defeated India 2-0 in their only previous meeting at the Asian Cup.
It was in the group stages of the 1984 tournament. India finished bottom of a group that featured Singapore, UAE, Iran and China PR back then.
5) The Emiratis have defensive concerns
UAE have surprisingly kept just one clean sheet across their last 13 Asian Cup games!
They have won four, drawn three and lost six of those games conceding in all nine!
The only clean sheet they managed to keep was a 0-0 draw with DPR Korea during the Asian Cup 2011 group stages.
Comments
Being optimistic and getting a neutral score makes one feel dejected
AFC Asian Cup 2019: 5 key facts ahead of India vs UAE
Hosts United Arab Emirates (UAE) take on a high-spirited India in Group A of the AFC Asian Cup 2019 at the Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.
India, who thrashed Thailand 4-1 in their opener, will be looking to build on their good start while UAE will be determined to get a result after being held to a 1-1 draw by Bahrain in the tournament’s opening match.
So, we take a look at the five key facts as we await this exciting encounter..
1) India looking for an Asian Cup record
India will be looking to win their first back-to-back games in the AFC Asian Cup when they face UAE in the late kickoff on Thursday.
They thrashed the War Elephants 4-1 in their opener, but will have their work cut out against UAE in their second game.
2) The hosts are on an unbeaten streak
UAE will be looking to extend their unbeaten run to three games in the AFC Asian Cup when they face India at the sprawling Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi.
They last went on a longer run without defeat in the competition between the 1992 and 1996 tournament that covered seven games where they won four and played out three draws.
3) India have seven goals in last three matches in Asian Cup!
Surprising as it may sound, India have scored seven goals in their last three matches in the Asian Cup.
They netted four against Thailand few days ago as they got their campaign off to a winning start.
The Blue Tigers also found the back of the net against Korea Republic in their final group game of AFC Asian Cup 2011 in Qatar as well as scored two against Bahrain in the game before that.
Rather unsurprisingly, India’s legendary striker Sunil Chhetri has scored four of those seven goals!
4) UAE emerged victorious in their last meeting
UAE defeated India 2-0 in their only previous meeting at the Asian Cup.
It was in the group stages of the 1984 tournament. India finished bottom of a group that featured Singapore, UAE, Iran and China PR back then.
5) The Emiratis have defensive concerns
UAE have surprisingly kept just one clean sheet across their last 13 Asian Cup games!
They have won four, drawn three and lost six of those games conceding in all nine!
The only clean sheet they managed to keep was a 0-0 draw with DPR Korea during the Asian Cup 2011 group stages.
India vs UAE: