Blue Tigresses begin tuning for Asia with Uzbekistan friendlies
India head coach Crispin Chettri said at the pre-match press conference they are preparing in earnest for the upcoming assignments.
The Blue Tigresses are set to play the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers from June 23 to July 5..
Bengaluru, May 29 (PTI) The Indian women's football team will take on Uzbekistan in the first of the two international friendly matches here on Friday as part of preparations for the upcoming AFC Women's Asian Cup Australia 2026 qualifiers.
'We are moving in the right direction. The team have had almost 25 days of preparation, everything's going as per the expectations,' Chettri said.
Since Chettri took over as the head coach of the Blue Tigresses in February, the senior India women's team have seen a transition to a much younger squad, something that the coach has emphasised.
'It's a mixed bunch that we have. While there are many youngsters, we also have some very good seniors like Panthoi (Chanu Elangbam), Grace (Dangmei), Sweety (Devi Ngangbam), Anju (Tamang), and Ratan (Nongmaithem Ratanbala Devi).
'We are without the likes of Ashalata (Devi Loitongbam), Dalima (Chhibber), Aditi (Chauhan), and Indu (Indumathi Kathiresan).
'What's important for us right now, is to prepare for the next generation. We must develop the younger generation of players for 2031. I think with the mix of experienced players around them, we are heading in the right direction.'.
In the AFC Qualifiers, India are in Group B and will play against Mongolia (June 23), Timor-Leste (June 29), Iraq (July 2), and hosts Thailand (July 5).
Chettri said he is willing to sacrifice results for development.
'The Uzbekistan matches are ones where we want to explore and give opportunities to youngsters. We simply want to play proper football and keep possession whenever we can,' he said..
'Instead of the results, we are looking more at how the players fulfill their roles and responsibilities, and there's no match better to do that than against a quality team like Uzbekistan.'.
Blue Tigresses defender Hemam Shilky Devi stressed the importance of the month-long camp in Bengaluru, as the team prepare with Asian qualification as the primary target.
'We've had an extremely good camp so far. The facilities that we have been using are excellent, and we've been able to just focus on training all month long,' she said.
Uzbekistan hold the upper hand in the head-to-head record against India, having won nine of the 13 matches played between the two teams so far, three matches ending in draws.
India have won only once against Uzbekistan, back in 2003. The last time the two teams played each other was in June 2024, which ended in a stalemate in a friendly in Tashkent. PTI AH AH KHS
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
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