India rue a good attacking line against S Arabia

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

Kolkata, Aug 16 (UNI) India were gallant losers today against Saudi Arabia. And they will continue to do so without quality strikers.

India lost 3-0 in their AFC Cup qualifiers today against S Arabia.

But the result could well have been 3-2 without overestimating.

National coach Bob Houghton has no doubt invested some plan into the team and had tried to give it a shape and play to a strategy.

But in the post match press meet an unguarded statement said it all.

Asked what did he have to say about the so many near misses, he said, ''Strikers miss their chances. But good strikers despite missing some, score. Baichung and team will hopefully score in the next games.'' The Indian team never looked overawed by the presence of 10 world cuppers in the starting line-up and gave spirited fight-back in the second half. But one could not help feeling miserable about the lack of quality strikers, not taking away a shilling from Baichung Bhutia.

He showed his stuff when he went for a flying header of a Steven Dias low cross, and then tried a side volley of a Rennedy cross. His best moment came towards the end of the game when he side stepped a couple of Arabian defenders and then went past keeper Khouja to inexplicably take a high-voltage volley that ricocheted of the cross piece, when he could have just tapped the ball home.

The Sikkemese Sniper will have to wait for the return leg in Jeddah to break his AFC Cup jinx. However, him apart his partner Manjit Singh hardly looked like one who could score.

Undoubtedly a toiler and a desperado, Manjit lacks one thing, the killer instinct. Or at least he showed he lacked one in this match.

Four chances came his way and went. A header into the ground when all he needed was to bulldoze it home, a weak shot after Venkatesh laid him up with a superb through, a shot into the keeper from a handshaking distance and then a volley well off target of a half-turn when all he needed was the swerve the ball into the far corner were glaring misses one would not forget in a hurry.

Alvitio kept limbering up at the sidelines and was introduced only some twenty minutes from time. He tried, but his lack of fitness showed. ''A fully fit Alvito will be an asset,'' Houghton said.

The fact that coach could not field Sunil Chettri or Freddy Mascerhenus as substitute strikers showed the confidence he had in them. However, the scene could change soon, at the way Houghton is planning his move.

The only light of hope is the fact, Houghton does not believe putting the cart before the horse and will play to our strength rather than trying to defend the weaknesses like his predecessor.

And a few wins on his prescribed path could well make all the difference.

UNI BA PC DH DB2047

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