Intercontinental Cup stepping stone to World Cup Qualifiers, feel coaches from Tajikistan, Syria & DPR Korea

The trio stressed that they were looking at the event as a build-up to the crucial games ahead.

The second edition of the Hero Intercontinental Cup begins Sunday, July 7th, and is being hosted by the All India Football Federation at the EKA Arena by TransStadia in Gujarat. Alongside the hosts, Asian powerhouse Syria, central Asian country Tajikistan and DPR Korea will participate in the event. All teams have reached the venue and prior to the beginning of the tournament, a press conference involving all visiting teams was held on Saturday.

DPR Korea coach Yun Jong-su showed massive respect for West Asian opponents Syria at the onset of the briefing and rightly so. Jong-su said, “This is our first time that we’re playing in this competition. We prepared for this tournament for two months and we face Syria, one of the stronger teams from West Asia, in the opening encounter. We are prepared for them and expect to gain a lot of experience here.”

Talking about the current state of his players the 57-year-old continued, “All players are ready and have trained well after joining from their respective clubs. They have to perform to get the results we expect, starting from the first game.”

Inside View: EKA Arena by TransStadia

Discussing the importance of the tournament and his side the former U-23 coach added, “It’s a very important tournament as it is just before the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. We have brought most of our players that we wanted, but some have been left out due to their European commitments. We hope to achieve our realistic targets.”

The former national team captain kept his cards close to his chest when discussing the opposition. “We cannot read the opposition, because, in football, anything can happen on the pitch,” he concluded.

The press conference moved on and Syrian coach Fajr Ebrahim started fielding questions next. Talking about the tournament Ebrahim said, “This isn’t my first time in India. I have participated in the Nehru Cup thrice. The level is good and we can give chances to players at the international level to test themselves. Most of the Syrian players are playing outside and this is a chance for the local and national boys to prove their mettle.”

Calling the tournament a chance for new players and brushing aside the rankings’ claim, the former national team defender from Damascus said, “It will be a good opportunity for this new team. I think they can prove their quality if they perform well and being the best-ranked team in the tournament means nothing really with this new, young squad.”

He said that the 14 debutants in his squad are waiting for their opportunity. “It means a lot to them and it’s a great chance to represent the country as well in a tournament like this. These youngsters have quality and most of them play in the local league. So, this team can play together for a long time. Also, picking them was important because most Syrian professionals are playing outside the country at the moment.”

Usmon Toshev was next. The Tajikistan team face India first up on Sunday and the coach looked upbeat. He started, “It’s a good chance for us to continue the hard work for the qualification stage. The facilities have been great and we want to use them well. This tournament will help us in our preparations.”

Watch: Indian football team's final training session ahead of the Hero Intercontinental Cup

Tajik player Nazarov Akhtam, when asked about the players and their motivation to participate in the tournament answered, “We want to keep up the hard work and play well against India in the first match.”

Talking about their first opponents, India, the coach said, “We are in a preparatory stage and we know that India is playing good football at the moment. It is a good side. It is going to be an interesting match tomorrow.”

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Commenting on the 11 players out of the 21 from his squad that come from FC Istiklol, the coach said it was a fair advantage. “The club is the best in the country and getting many players that play together is an advantage, certainly. Financially and footballing-wise, Istiklol is the best in the country and most players want to play for the club. Thus, it is an advantage.”

India take on Tajikistan on Sunday and Syria will face DPR Korea on Monday (8th July) in the tournament openers.