Top five players in India's AFC Asian Cup group

India’s AFC Asian Cup group is a tough one as most teams have star and better quality players!

Indian men’s national football team embarks on its 2023 AFC Asian Cup journey with a fixture against Australia on 13 January 2024. Following an iconic fixture against the Socceroos, the Blue Tigers will face Uzbekistan and Syria on 18 January and 23 January, respectively.

Group B is one of the harder groups to predict in the upcoming 2023 AFC Asian Cup. While Australia is heralded as the favourite to secure the top spot, there will be an intense battle for the second available spot that ensures knockout stage qualification. The respective nations in the group will be relying on their star players to make the key difference in the matches.

India is the underdog heading into the AFC Asian Cup and least favourites to secure qualification. However, Igor Stimac will hope that his players can cause a few upsets and stand tall against the tough opposition. Some players in Group B will cause a lot of problems to the Indian football team in particular. 

On that note, here is a glance at the top five players from India’s AFC Asian Cup group that may prove to be tough nuts to crack:

5. Oston Urunov – Uzbekistan

Oston Urunov’s quality can be assessed by his finishing second in voting for the 2023 Uzbekistan Footballer of the Year, losing the crown by merely three points. The 23-year-old is an integral part of the squad which relies on players like him who have pace and strength. He scored three goals and provided two assists for Navbahor in the AFC Champions League, including one assist against Indian Super League outfit Mumbai City FC.  

4. Abbosbek Fayzullaev – Uzbekistan

Abbosbek Fayzullaev is the 2023 Uzbekistan Footballer of the Year and one of the star players in the Uzbekistan football team for the AFC Asian Cup. He plays for Russian club CSKA Moscow. The 20-year-old attacking midfielder is a huge prospect and an upcoming superstar from Uzbek football. He is a creative machine who has already recorded nine assists in 18 appearances at club level this season.

3. Harry Souttar – Australia

Harry Souttar is one of the most valuable players in transfer value from the Australian football team. The defender plays for Leicester City in the EFL Championship. He is only 25 years old and a central figure in the team. Despite being a defender, Souttar has scored 10 goals in 21 caps for the Socceroos. All eyes will be on the former Stoke City player, especially during the clash against India which will see him compete against Sunil Chhetri and co.

2. Mathew Ryan – Australia

Mathew Ryan brings a lot of experience to the Australian football team. The former Arsenal FC player currently plays for AZ Alkmaar in the Dutch Eredivisie. With 81 caps, he is one of the senior figures in the Australian squad. The custodian was also part of the Australian team that won the AFC Asian Cup in 2015. 

He has represented the Socceroos in the last three World Cup editions including the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar where, as captain, he kept clean-sheets against Tunisia and Denmark in Group D. However unfortunately, he could not stop Australia from losing the RO16 clash to the eventual World champions Argentina.

1. Omar Khribin – Syria

Omar Khribin is the most dangerous player in the Syrian football team’s forward line. The 29-year-old plays for Al-Wahda in the UAE Pro League. He has 12 goals and two assists in 15 overall appearances in club football in the 2023-24 season heading into the AFC Asian Cup. He will hope to add to the 21 goals he has scored for the national team.

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