We are going with a clear mindset of looking for the points – Igor Stimac

India’s head coach Igor Stimac has said that they are going with a clear mindset of looking for the points for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Preliminary Joint Qualification.

The Croatian picked a 25-man squad for Round 2 matches and he will look to get the best out of his players. The national team will play two matches of the qualifiers against Afghanistan while playing at home and away. The away match will be played on March 22 at 12:30 IST, whereas the home game is scheduled on March 26 at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati.

Meanwhile, the Blue Tigers started their campaign with a 1-0 victory over Kuwait in Kuwait City. But Stimac’s men suffered a 3-0 loss against Qatar. Afghanistan, on the other hand, is yet to get off the mark in the points column and has conceded 12 goals.

Stimac said that they will try to play with a winning mentality to qualify for the next round.

“We will go there to try and win the game. We are not looking at any massive calculations right now. Once we all get there, we will start talking about how to win the game from the very first second,” stated Stimac when speaking to AIFF Media.

India recently participated in the AFC Asian Cup but suffered losses against Australia, Uzbekistan, and Syria, and the gaffer admitted it was a disappointment.

“We are not a club that can work with the players on a daily basis. If you speak about the Asian Cup, it was of course a disappointment, but mostly for those who were not following us regularly. The expectations were high without any base,” he shared.

He added, “That’s behind us, and I’m happy that we have more important things to do now. The focus is on getting from the second phase to the third phase of qualifying.”

India’s squad: Goalkeepers: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Amrinder Singh, Vishal Kaith.

Defenders: Akash Mishra, Mehtab Singh, Rahul Bheke, Nikhil Poojary, Subhasish Bose, Anwar Ali, Amey Ranawade, Jay Gupta.

Midfielders: Anirudh Thapa, Brandon Fernandes, Liston Colaco, Mahesh Singh Naorem, Sahal Abdul Samad, Suresh Singh Wangjam, Jeakson Singh Thounaojam, Deepak Tangri, Lalengmawia Ralte, Imran Khan.

Forwards: Sunil Chhetri, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Manvir Singh, Vikram Partap Singh.