Tehran: Jeje Lalpekhlua has been named the captain of the Indian team that will take on Iran in Russia 2018 World Cup Preliminary Joint Qualification Round 2. The dynamic Mohun Bagan striker will be wearing the captain’s armband for the first time in the absence of regular captain Sunil Chetri who has not travelled with the team due to injury.
Ever since the Indian team landed in Tehran the conditions have been chilly with rain all over. Rain greeted Team India onto the training ground in their first of the two evening sessions on Tuesday (March 22) evening. It drizzled in between with the continuous threat of lightning hovering above almost all throughout.
At the end, there was rain again with hail which forced all the footballers to desperately huddle in the two dugouts for safety. In the absence of any changing rooms, eventually the boys, all wet, travelled back in the Team Bus to the Team hotel, a drive for almost 45 minutes.
The two halves of 45 minutes each on the Azadi Stadium will be tougher.
“Playing Iran in Iran is as tough as it can get,” feels National coach Stephen Constantine. “It’s like David vs Goliath on the field. Iran are the Giants of Asia.”
“We have huge respect for Iran. We understand that we will be without the Ball for most part of the match. We will try to stop them. We will fight and try to get something out from the match,” he utters at the Official Pre-match Media Interaction. “We have four key Players missing. We are a young side.
On paper, we have nothing to lose. We will give everything which we have. If we can take anything out of this game it will be a bonus.”
Jeje Lalpekhlua, named Captain for the match agreed. “Tomorrow will be a difficult game for us. But we are here to fight and aim to take something out of the game,” he pronounced at the Media Interaction.
At 44 on FIFA Rankings, Tem Melli stay the highest ranked Team in Asia and have consistently qualified for the World Cup. Several of their established players either are, or have played in Europe and some of the new ones are regularly in the news with Premier European Clubs expressing interest.
“We always look forward to being involved playing with Big Teams. Big Games against Big Teams in front of big crowds — that’s why we play the Game.” said Constantine.
“We always look forward to compete against the best and Iran is one of the best teams in Asia. The Azadi Stadium is an unbelievable stadium and presents one of the best atmospheres that I have witnessed as a Coach,” added Constantine.
For India though, the trip down memory lane isn’t that encouraging. Despite all the golden past India last beat Iran in 1959. After that it has all been one-way traffic.
Constantine goes back to the roar of the Azadi Stadium. “The decibel levels are high. When they are in full voice it’s simply fantastic. Iranians are very passionate about their Football and it can be intimidating. But that’s the beauty of Football,” he quips. “But when we step onto the field, we will carry with us our confidence and full respect for Team Melli but we won’t fear them.”
For the 22-member squad whose average age is around 24, there are four players who haven’t made their International debut as yet. And there is a 18-year old in the squad as well. The match is slated to take place at the Azadi Stadium on March 24 and the kick-off is at 7pm (Iran Time).