Whoever is in the best situation can play in the final, says Igor Stimac

India head coach Igor Stimac said whoever is in the best situation can play in the final of the Intercontinental Cup. India won their opening game of the ongoing Hero Intercontinental Cup against Mongolia by 2-0 after Sahal Abdul Samad and Chhangte scored for them.

Subsequently, the Blue Tigers registered a 1-0 win against Vanuatu after Sunil Chhetri scored in the 80th minute of the game. Thus, India booked their place in the final of the tournament but played a goalless draw against Lebanon on Thursday at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhuvneshwar.

The Croatian coach was happy with the performance of his team despite the draw against Lebanon.

“It was a good game. Lots of action with both sides giving their all to create a good football game. We knew that we were facing a good opposition today that would test our opportunities, as is what happened. We defended well and congratulations to my boys. They stuck to the plan, they created more than enough chances to win the game, I’m sorry for them that they didn’t score very clear opportunities. We had much better chances than Lebanon and we deserved to win this game. That didn’t happen, but we’ll ensure to win it in three days time.”

Meanwhile, when asked if he was frustrated by Lebanon’s physicality, the head coach added that’s how football is played. The 55-year-old feels all the teams in the AFC Asian Cup will play in a similar fashion.

“That’s how football is played. All teams in the Asian Cup will play like that. We had a different approach to them today, we had many aggressive players up front. We had many players impressing in the technical part. We were the better side overall. I feel sorry for the fans who showed up in big numbers. I invite them to show up in bigger numbers for the final.”

Stimac revealed he is not thinking about rotating the players for the upcoming matches and the SAFF Championship. The Croatian added that the players need to be disciplined and deliver the goods for the team.

“I’m not thinking about that. I’m only concentrating on what to do to win the match. I’m trying to help them to rise up in the game and have faith in what they do. I need them to be clear about where they need to be and know about their positions and responsibilities in each second of the game.

“We have a very organized, disciplined, and compact side with clear ideas on what needs to be done and many different players to be used. That is richness, not weakness. That is what we call football, richness. You are rich when you have so many players to choose from. People are thinking about experimenting and not finding the same level, but I can’t give lectures. We are rich with players and need to keep using them. They’re wonderful,” he added.

India will play the Hero Intercontinental Cup final against Lebanon on Sunday at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.