Indian football team’s performance at the AFC Asian Cup has been the talk of the town. The lads have been gaining praises from across the globe after they shook Thailand 4-1 in their opener match.
The recent to hail the team is former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson. India takes on Bahrain in their third and final group A match later on today.
Eriksson, who manages the Philippines, has tipped India to qualify for the knockout stages in the tournament. He said, “The whole world who saw that match [felt] they [India] were physically good, technically good players. Working hard. And maybe Thailand was….I’m sure they were surprised with what’s going on here.
“And if you are not 100 percent, it’s difficult to change to win the game. All merit to India”.
He also spoke of how the world football needs countries like India, China, and the USA to pick up on the sport.
“World Cup…you shouldn’t say this…but unfortunately, it’s like the Euro and you put in Argentina and Brazil. That’s the teams who can win it. And I hope for football that changes. I’m talking about India, China, United States.
“Big countries, but football hasn’t changed. How many Messi’s do you have in India if they had the chance to play?
“It’s not that India, China, and United States need football, but football needs these three countries. Because it will be even bigger. Football needs you,” he added.
