Three games, over 270 minutes of football, six goals conceded, none scored and no points earned – India’s campaign at the 2023 AFC Asian Cup came to an underwhelming end on Tuesday with the team succumbing to a 1-0 loss to Syria at the Al Bayt Stadium in Doha.

The final 10 minutes of the game were a sight to behold – eerily similar to how the curtain came crashing down for the men’s football team at the Asian Games. It was a group of 11 chasing, harrying and finally winning the ball, only to have every good idea come to naught with no final ball and an end product. The lack of options when presented with the ball and helplessness at the continental level has been a resounding theme around the two teams Igor Stimac has taken to the two big assignments at the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024.

Against Syria on Tuesday, the Indian team played to the script. They fought to the best of their abilities. They created a couple of moments that may have become chances. They even pressed hard in midfield, fighting an obvious physical disadvantage that translated into slower, smaller players who simply couldn’t match up, except for a better level of stamina, against the Syrians. Eventually the overwhelming odds that follow this Indian team, at even the Asian level, made all the difference.

India managed a grand total of five shots on target through three games of Asian football. They were only able to win the possession battle against Uzbekistan, a team who were more than willing to let India pass the ball in their defensive third after scoring three past them in the first 45 minutes. In a season of tournament football when Japan were shocked by Iraq in Asia and Ghana were dumped out of the African Cup of Nations, India were stoic in their continental mediocrity.

Handed a tough group with all of Australia, Uzbekistan and Syria ranked higher than them, Stimac’s team were already looking at an uphill task. But it was the lack of quality upfront – in contrast to what India hinted at in three tournaments at home – that proved to be the bugbear against better opposition. On Tuesday, India were way off the pace when trying to move forward. The combination plays that they had shown against Kuwait and Lebanon simply did not show up against Syria in Doha.

Looking ahead

Stimac said after the game that lack of club experience held the team back in this regard. “It was a good learning experience for us. In three games, we could see we can compete at this level. This was a good lesson, and we can say in the next edition of the Asian Cup, we will be much stronger. The team created enough chances but couldn’t finish because of their lack of club level experience,” reasoned the Croat.

The assessment that the team created any chances is hard to back up considering the only real opportunity India had all tournament was a Rahul KP half-volley that careened off the crossbar against Uzbekistan. Barring that chance (one that came their way when India were already 0-3 down), there was no instance when they showed that they were capable of scoring.

Even on Tuesday, when Lallianzuala Chhangte pressed hard, and won possession from the Syrian goalkeeper, his first instinct was to pass the ball to the nearest Indian player rather than shoot at an open goal. To consider a poor choice as a chance doesn’t give the full picture of what happened.

Instead, Stimac took the chance to snipe at individuals who have at best been role players at the national team level. “We had a clear plan to take the game to 60 minutes and then bring in fresh legs, but that didn’t happen. Only Udanta (Singh) tried to make it. My simple philosophy is to give chances to players whose progress I see in training every single day. That’s why Udanta got his chance. I don’t want casual players. I feel sorry for Liston (Colaco), who was feverish and didn’t want to expose himself. You get what you give,” Stimac said at the post-match press conference.

India next play Afghanistan in two games home and away in the World Cup qualifiers in March. They are placed well in a group with Qatar and Kuwait and could possibly make the third round of the World Cup Qualifiers for the first time in the country’s history.