‘How we want to play’

India’s win against Bangladesh helped them climb to third place in the group with six points after seven games. Already out of World Cup contention, the result is a boost to their chances of earning a direct spot in the third round of the Asian Cup qualifiers. “That’s the way we always want to play,” India coach Igor Stimac said. “The players did everything they could to get the win. So all the credit to them for executing the game plan perfectly,” added the 53-year-old. “The best defence against lower-ranked teams is attacking — keeping them away from the ball. If we didn’t keep doing what we were doing throughout the game, we wouldn’t have scored the second and allowed Bangladesh to come at us,” he added.

Captain Sunil Chhetri focused on the many lessons his team will take home from Monday’s game. “We were guilty of missing a lot of chances,” Chhetri said. “It has been a topsy-turvy qualifying campaign. …but I am happy that we got three points,” he added.