Goa: Myanmar coach Gerd Zeise is hoping to secure at least a point out of his side’s Group A meeting with India in Goa on Tuesday evening as the Southeast Asian team seek to take another step towards qualifying for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup Finals in the United Arab Emirates.
India, who have already booked their berth at the Finals, snatched a late win when the two teams met on Matchday One thanks to a solitary goal from captain Sunil Chhetri but Zeise believes his side can take something from the return meeting between the sides.
"India are really good at defending and we have to absolutely be on our toes to penetrate them,” said the German coach.
“I would like to congratulate them on their success but tomorrow we have to take our chances to go back with a positive result.
“We have come to Goa to play good football and take some points. Our first target is not to lose. We were the better side in the first leg but eventually ended up on the losing side.
"We need to score. Sometimes, you will get only one chance in the entire match and you need to utilise that."
Myanmar are in a two-way fight with Kyrgyz Republic for second place in the group, with the two nations having shared a 2-2 draw in October that leaves them level on four points from three games.
Myanmar have not qualified for the AFC Asian Cup Finals since 1968, when they finished as runners-up in Tehran behind hosts Iran, and Zeise remains wary of the damage Chhetri (pictured above, centre) could do once again to his side’s hopes of breaking that drought.
"The Indian captain is a cool customer and he's the most dangerous player,” he said. “We must take care of the counter-attacks and the defence line must be cautious when it involves him.”
Chhetri, meanwhile, has cautioned India’s fans expecting a fifth straight win in qualifying not to underestimate a Myanmar team that pushed Stephen Constantine’s side all the way when the teams last met.
"The entire country will get to see their technicalities when we meet them,” said the veteran striker.
“There is no shame in admitting that they dominated us when we played in Yangon. But we were resilient. Also don't forget that they came back from 0-2 down to make it 2-2 against Kyrgyz Republic. That speaks of their strength.
"It may sound cliched but we need to prove a point. We can't take the foot off the pedal and need to continue our winning streak."
While Myanmar will set their sights on taking something from their meeting with India, Kyrgyz Republic coach Aleksandr Kristinin is confident his side can secure a vital win when they take on already-eliminated Macau on Tuesday.
Macau, runners-up in last year’s AFC Solidarity Cup, are out of the running for a place at the Finals, but pushed the Central Asian side in the teams’ previous meeting on Matchday One, which Kyrgyz Republic eventually won thanks to a solitary goal from Azamat Baymatov.
“We had good training camp in Malaysia in the preparation process,” said the Russian coach.
“All of the players are ready for the game. We have to give victory to the fans. We know the match’s value and I have put a lot of attention on attacking football in our training.
“We have one problem: there is an injury to Avazbek Otkeev. He can’t play in tomorrow’s match, but we trust we can win and I believe in my players.”
Photos: AFC
Source: the-afc.com