Thailand Vs India Preview: Blue Tigers look to learn from lessons of first defeat under Stimac

The Indians will be looking to make amends for their mistakes against Curacao on Wednesday afternoon.

After a bittersweet 3-1 loss to Curacao in the opening fixture of the King's Cup, India meet Thailand on 8th June 2019, in what looks set to be an intense clash, reminiscent of the one in the AFC Asian Cup.

In the recently-concluded continental showpiece, the War Elephants were subjected to a 1-4 trumping by the Blue Tigers. The victory was inspired by none other than Sunil Chhetri, who overtook Lionel Messi after that fixture, in the list of highest active international goalscorers.

However, a lot has changed for the the Indians since then. Stephen Constantine is just a memory now, with new tactician Igor Stimac having kick-started a new era. Also, the Blue Tigers' talisman, Chhetri, goes into the upcoming encounter, as his side's most capped player at international level. The 34-year-old's next  appearance will be his 109th one for his country, while former skipper Bhaichung Bhutia has 107.

Watch: Final training session for Indian players before leaving for Thailand

About The Teams

Thailand

Currently ranked 114th in the FIFA World Rankings, the Sirisak Yodyardthai-managed side will be hoping to exact revenge from an opposition, who drubbed them recently. The five-time AFF Suzuki Cup champions need to overcome their recent criticism, for falling away too easily in front of opponents from outside their region.

Being the hosts of this tournament, it should be quite disappointing for a promising team to have to settle for third place, when looking at the calibre of the team. Their style of play and names, promise better performances, but alas, football is a funny sport at times!

The side are in dire straits right now after their former head coach Milovan Rajevac was sacked during the Asian Cup, after the loss to their upcoming opponents. The team is currently managed by their caretaker head coach. In this campaign, they lost to Vietnam in the opening clash, 0-1.

In their last five fixtures, the outfit have scored three goals and conceded eight. Also, in those matches, the side spearheaded by Teerasil Dangda, have just won one match, lost three and drawn one. Meanwhile, Thailand are also without their star midfielder in the guise of Chanathip Songkrasin for this tournament. 

After losing to China in the Round of 16 of the Asian Cup, the Thais walked into the China Cup in March 2019, beat The Dragons, but lost to Uruguay in the final.

India

Let us get this straight, India's loss against Curacao wasn't disappointing at all, even though a considerable section of fans have begun to troll and criticize the former Croatia head coach. It is obvious for a country like India, will take time to adapt to a completely new philosophy.

The SAFF nation is not like Spain or England, that the players will automatically adapt to a new head coach's style and win matches with ease; which is an illusion and leads to unfair and wrong criticism.

Watch: Sunil Chhetri's media interaction ahead of King's Cup

In their previous clash against Thailand, a Chhetri brace and goals from Anirudh Thapa and Jeje Lalpekhlua were enough to crush their opponents. But, this time around, it will be tougher (also the War Elephants will have home support).

As expected, the Blue Tigers look shaky under their new head coach, which was  evident in the first half against Curacao. The team needs time and so does Stimac, to choose his perfect starting XI. Expecting a Balkan head coach to select a perfect Indian starting XI in his first match in-charge, is like expecting a genie to come out from a lamp.

In their last five fixtures, India have won one match, lost three and drawn another. Also, the Blue Tigers have scored five goals and conceded seven.

Formations

Thailand

Thailand's probable lineup against India in King's Cup 2019

Kawin Thamsatchanan is the obvious choice to start as the goalkeeper for the hosts, protected by Adisorn Promrak, Suphan Thongsong, and Pansa Hemviboon. 

Yodyardthai is expected to start with Sumanya Purisai, as a more advanced creative midfielder, partnered by defensive stalwart Tanaboon Kesarat. 32-year-old Purisai will have his side's main creative duties and will need to have a high work-rate against India. Kesarat will need to cover for his partner and play the role of a destroyer. He will need to reduce the influence of Stimac's new star Sahal Abdul Samad.

The duo will have Tristan Do and Theerathon Bunmathan on either flank. Both of them will need to get the better of Pritam Kotal and Subhasish Bose.

Upfront, it is highly probable that Dangda will be the lone striker, supported by Thitipan Puangchan and Supachok Sarachat. It must be noted that Dangda didn't have any role to play in the loss to Vietnam, so the veteran will be hungry to prove his mettle. It will be a big test for him, up against the likes of Sandesh Jhingan.

India

India's probable lineup against Thailand in King's Cup 2019

The loss against Curacao was a big learning experience for Stimac's side in terms of adapting to the Croatian's philosophy. The tactician did get his starting XI wrong and sorted it out in the second half, with the introductions of Amarjit Singh Kiyam and Raynier Fernandes.

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu's experience in national colours makes him the obvious choice to start as his side's custodian. The former Stabaek man will be protected by Jhingan, Kotal, Bose and Rahul Bheke. Bheke didn't have a good debut and still has a long way to go to fill the void left by the retirement of Anas Edathodika. The 28-year-old needs to build a good partnership with Jhingan and needs time. 

Kotal and Bose will need to deal with the runs of Do and Bunmathan. The duo will also have to face Puangchan and Sarachat, who will drift wide frequently.

The coaching staff could slot Raynier Fernandes as the destroyer, in place of Pronay Halder. The Mumbai City man has had an impressive ISL season and will be hoping to make the most in the national starting XI after his display against Curacao. He will likely be joined by Amarjit, who is highly-regarded by Stimac. The India head coach had even pointed out that Amarjit's arrival after the interval, turned the fixture against Curacao in India's favour and that he was his team's best player. The 18-year-old is talented and will need to dictate the tempo of the game.

Adored by Chhetri, Abdul Samad will fill in the hole behind the striker, partnered by Udanta Singh and Brandon Fernandes. India's talisman will start as the striker. The Bengaluru FC man will be up against the likes of Promrak, Thongsong and Hemviboon and will need to get the better of them through his work-rate and energy.

#ThrowBack: Thailand 1-4 India - AFC Asian Cup 2019

Probable Lineups

Thailand- Kawin (GK), Adisorn, Suphan, Pansa, Tristan, Tanaboon, Sumanya, Theerathon, Thitipan, Surapchok, Teerasil

India- Sandhu, Kotal, Bheke, Jhingan, Bose, Raynier, Amarjit, Udanta, Samad, Brandon, Chhetri

Coaches' Corner

Sirisak Yodyardthai (Thailand)

"We expect to rotate some players but not much and during the game, we will see how the game goes and I will decide about the substitutions"

Igor Stimac (India)

"World Cup Qualifiers are the most important thing for all the participants here and the thoughts of other coaches are also similar. Everyone wants to win, but no-one wants to have headaches."

Read to know more of what he said here.

Watch Full pre-match conference here 

ALSO READ

• Special: The caps keep ticking as Captain Fantastic notches up 108'

• Sunil Chhetri becomes most capped India international, eclipses Bhaichung Bhutia

• #CUWIND Player Ratings: Sahal Abdul Samad & Sunil Chhetri silver linings as India go down against Curacao

Players' To Watch

Teerasil Dangda (Thailand)

Dangda has been a stalwart for the War Elephants in recent times

The forward will be hitting a century of appearances for his national side and also scored against India, in the 1-4 Asian Cup loss. His experience, strength, and pace will be a huge asset, when up against Jhingan and Bheke.

Expect a goal or two from the Muangthong United man!

Amarjit Singh Kiyam (India)

The youngster wasn't even expecting a call-up to Stimac's roster, as the India U-19s were scheduled to take part in the Granatkin Memorial Cup. His arrival was a surprise to some, but the midfielder has grown a lot and was Indian Arrows' star player during the 2018-19 I-League season, scoring three goals and registering an assist in 20 outings.

His main duty will be to dictate the tempo in the middle of the park. He will also need to add energy and a high work-rate in midfield, something which was missing in the first half against Curacao.

What To Expect

In what promises to be a highly-exciting encounter, and the start of an eternal rivalry, Thailand will be aiming to exact revenge. It could be a fixture with at least four goals, as both sides will be hoping to end their King's Cup campaign on a good note.

We could see well-contested face-offs, with the likes of Chhetri and Dangda trying to grab a goal or two!

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Broadcast

Thailand will host India at Buriram's Chang Arena on 8th June 2019 at 2 PM IST. The match will be broadcast live via Star Sports 3, Star Sports Select 2, Start Sports Select 2 HD and streamed on Hotstar.