Five things India should learn from Syria's rout of DPR Korea

There were several takeaways from the game that should help the Blue Tigers in their second and third fixtures.

Syria and DPR Korea clashed against each other in the second match of the Hero Intercontinental Cup 2019, which saw Fajr Ibrahim’s men trounce their opponents with a 5-2 scoreline. Now, India will be facing DPR Korea in their second fixture of the tournament which becomes a must-win outing for the host nation.

Indian contingent must have had their eyes glued on this match-up as there were several learning points that could potentially put the Blue Tigers in advantage. The tie gave Igor Stimac an opportunity to closely analyse their next two opponents and plan the tactics accordingly ahead of two crucial games.

Here are the five things that India should learn from Syria vs DPR Korea fixture.

5. India must exploit spaces in the Korean defence

DPR Korea is a side that is leaking goals of late and such was also the case against Syria where they conceded five goals due to poor defensive shape and lack of closing down gaps. DPR Korea is a team that does not get narrow when on the backfoot, something that the Indain forwards must capitalise on.

Players like Anirudh Thapa and Sahal Abdul Samad (if fit) must flourish in such a situation and play in accurate penetrating through balls to feed the attackers. Syrian forwards, Shadi Hamawi and Ahmed Almarmour frequently found spaces behind the backline and each scored a brace, and India must similarly exploit the gaps in DPR Korea’s defence.

4. India need to win the midfield battle

The biggest error Indian players made in their defeat against Tajikistan was to let the visitors dominate the midfield, which allowed them to control the ball and create one opportunity after another, which puts a lot of pressure on the defenders and led to individual errors which in turn led to the goals. This must not be repeated against a Korean side which plays with two central midfielders in a traditional 4-4-2 setup.

India must overload the midfield and must play around the opposition with the close knit one-two touch passing game which is becoming a staple in Igor Stimac’s philosophy. In case, Sahal is unfit for the game, the gaffer must look towards someone like Vinit Rai or Brandon Fernandes who are more than capable of playing an intricate passing game and will put in a shift to win those second balls and aerial duels.

3. India must be patient on the ball

A very worrying trend in the game against Tajikistan saw the Indian defenders in Adil Khan or Narender Gehlot trying to unnecessarily hoop the ball upfield, which gave away possession cheaply on various occasions and must not be repeated. DPR Korea likes to sit deep and hit teams on the counter attack, which may see India enjoy more possession as compared to their previous match.

It is of paramount importance that Indian defenders stay more calm and composed on the ball and build from the back. Moreover, India must play to their strengths and break down the Korean defensive lines by linking up with Sunil Chhetri and not let him cut an isolated figure like the last game. Igor Stimac should opt to start Subhashish Bose instead of Gahlot as the former has more composure and is a better ball playing defender.

2. Must capitalise on their pacy wingers

India has blistering pace down the flanks with players like Udanta Singh and Lallianzuala Chhangte. However, both of the wingers proved to be extremely wasteful in their opening tie and could not trouble the Tajikistan defenders. They need to pull up their socks and must put in an improved performance against DPR Korea.

The wings can be an ideal attacking outlet for the Blue Tigers as it was pretty evident that Korean full backs lacked the awareness and positional sense while defending, and were time and again exposed by the Syrian wingers, who found acres of space behind them. In a similar fashion, India wingers must look to expand the play and use the length of the field to create spaces and deliver quality crosses into the box.

1. Must utilise Amarjit Singh Kiyam properly

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The match against Tajikistan was a game of two halves as India put in contrasting displays. Substitution of Amarjit Singh Kiyam was probably a misstep tactics-wise by the gaffer. The defensive midfielder barely put a foot wrong and was a solid cover in front of the defensive backline. After he left the field, India’s midfield was exposed and so was the defence.

DPR Korea likes to shoot from the distance as was evident from their performance against Syria. In order to close down any room to shoot, Amarjit will play a significant role. Moreover, he will also help by combining with the stoppers to overload the area and deny any space to the two strikers the Koreans deploy upfront. In any case, Amarjit must play the whole duration of the game.