New Delhi:
Having won the Nehru Cup for the second consecutive time, India coach Bob Houghton on Monday set his sights on playing Asian middle-rung countries as part of the team's preparation for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup.
Houghton said defending the Nehru Cup title by beating Syria would boost his side, which will now look to play countries like China, Uzbekistan, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman.
"We beat Syria today and they are a quality side and among the top 10 Asian countries. Our aim now is to do well in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Doha. We will now plan to play countries like China, Uzbekistan, UAE, Bahrain and Oman as our preparation for the Asian Cup," he said after India beat Syria 6-5 via penalty shootout.
"Japan, Australia and South Korea are in top tier. We are not thinking of playing against them right now," he added.
An elated Houghton was all praise for his boys, saying they deserved the hat-trick of international titles in just over two years.
"It was a dramatic final today. The boys played for two hours without losing focus and they come up with a win, though in the penalty shootout. These are really committed players. They deserve these three title in three years," he said.
Praising custodian Subrata Paul for saving three penalty shots, Houghton said, "I have said earlier he is the best goalkeeper in the country. He had a great tournament. He saved three penalty shots today."
"It is a pity that Renedy Singh scored a great goal but missed the penalty kick. That is football," Houghton said.
Captain Bhaichung Bhutia said if his team improved on the dead-ball situations, other top Asian countries would struggle to beat them.
"We have been working on not conceding goals from set pieces but against Lebanon and then twice against Syria, we conceded goals from dead ball situation. We have to improve upon this.
"If we do that then I think any Asian side will find it difficult to beat us," he added.
On India winning the title for the second consecutive time, Bhutia said: "We won today under dramatic circumstances. We should have finished the game without going to the penalty shootout."
"But conceding a goal in the last minute of extra time and then recovered in the penalty shootout to win it showed a lot of characters," said Bhutia who was declared player of the tournament.
"Our aim is to do well in 2011 AFC Asian Cup and today's will be a big boost to our morale," he added.
Houghton said defending the Nehru Cup title by beating Syria would boost his side, which will now look to play countries like China, Uzbekistan, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman.
"We beat Syria today and they are a quality side and among the top 10 Asian countries. Our aim now is to do well in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Doha. We will now plan to play countries like China, Uzbekistan, UAE, Bahrain and Oman as our preparation for the Asian Cup," he said after India beat Syria 6-5 via penalty shootout.
"Japan, Australia and South Korea are in top tier. We are not thinking of playing against them right now," he added.
An elated Houghton was all praise for his boys, saying they deserved the hat-trick of international titles in just over two years.
"It was a dramatic final today. The boys played for two hours without losing focus and they come up with a win, though in the penalty shootout. These are really committed players. They deserve these three title in three years," he said.
Praising custodian Subrata Paul for saving three penalty shots, Houghton said, "I have said earlier he is the best goalkeeper in the country. He had a great tournament. He saved three penalty shots today."
"It is a pity that Renedy Singh scored a great goal but missed the penalty kick. That is football," Houghton said.
Captain Bhaichung Bhutia said if his team improved on the dead-ball situations, other top Asian countries would struggle to beat them.
"We have been working on not conceding goals from set pieces but against Lebanon and then twice against Syria, we conceded goals from dead ball situation. We have to improve upon this.
"If we do that then I think any Asian side will find it difficult to beat us," he added.
On India winning the title for the second consecutive time, Bhutia said: "We won today under dramatic circumstances. We should have finished the game without going to the penalty shootout."
"But conceding a goal in the last minute of extra time and then recovered in the penalty shootout to win it showed a lot of characters," said Bhutia who was declared player of the tournament.
"Our aim is to do well in 2011 AFC Asian Cup and today's will be a big boost to our morale," he added.
