Poojary excited for maiden Asian Cup appearance

Poojary, a winger turned defender, has grabbed his opportunity when called up for the national team in recent times and is one of trusted men for national team head coach Igor Stimac

Hyderabad: The Indian team will kick off their AFC Asian Cup campaign against Australia at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Qatar on Saturday and Hyderabad FC right-back Nikhil Poojary is excited to play in his maiden Asian Cup, “It’s an absolute honour to represent India in any match and because this will be my first Asian Cup, so that’s special for me,” said Poojary on the eve of the match. Poojary, a winger turned defender, has grabbed his opportunity when called up for the national team in recent times and is one of trusted men for national team head coach Igor Stimac.

Speaking about the team’s preparation ahead of the marquee tournament, the 28-year-old said, “The squad had some good training sessions and one practice game between ourselves. The ones who came with niggles have recovered well and the rest of us have been working on both fitness and on the tactical aspect,” he revealed.

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Since the AFC Asian Cup was founded in 1956, this edition in Qatar is the fifth time India have qualified for the continental competition. India are ranked 102 and are clubbed with Asian heavyweights Australia (25), Uzbekistan (68) and Syria (91) in Group B as there lies a difficult challenge for Stimac’s side to make it to the knockouts. “Australia are among the 20-25 best teams in the world. But what we can do is to play at our maximum capacity and try to get the best result,” said the right-back.

“Uzbekistan are also one of the best teams in Asia and it will be a tough game, but there will be no lack of effort from our end,” he added. Though the possibilities of India’s chances to knockout looks bleak on paper, Poojary said the players will gain experience as 17 out of the 26 players will be participating in their first Asian Cup.