With India yet to open their account in the World Cup qualifiers having lost all five of their previous ties, defender Arnab Mondal feels Thursday’s match against Guam can be the turning point for the team.
“It’s really disappointing. When you look at our away games against Oman and Turkmenistan, we didn’t get much time to practice as a team and I think that was one of the reasons for our poor show. I believe, if this team is given some time, we can be a better side than what we have been so far in the campaign,” said Mondal here on Monday.
“We know that Guam are a good side and they can hurt us if we do not bring our ‘A’ game. They play as a aunit and have the edge. There are no exceptional players in their side but everyone does their job. It’s a known fact that they’re a better side than us today. But we are positive and will go into the tie to win it,” he added.
Asked about the campaign so far and where it all went wrong, the hard-tackling defender admitted that conceding early goals, lack of command in the middle and bad conversion up front was a disappointment.
“If you see the game against Oman and Turkmenistan, we conceded very early and that affected our game.
“So the first target will be to contain the oppositions’ attacks and not concede. Then we can find ways to get behind their defence,” said the 26-year-old.
“In international games, the chances you get are very little and if you don’t take those, the team ends up suffering. We know the problem and we are working on it.
“The guys we have are really good. Yes, they lack experience, as they are new to the national setup, but unless you make them play they won’t gain any experience. So this is the only way to get the experience we need in the midfield.”
The seasoned defender stayed away from controversy that has surrounded the Indian Super League over the refusal to release players for international duty as early as the head coach Stephan Constantine wanted.
“I don’t want to get into this controversy. I think the calendar is so tight at that we don’t have much breathing space. They were helpless and so were the national side,” he opined.
He did, nevertheless, concede that the travel and grind of the ISL did take a toll, although he refused to use it as an excuse.
