India draw Laos at the Asian Cup Qualifier Playoffs

INDIA HAVE BEEN pitted against Laos in their AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers Playoff 1 fixture through a draw of lots.

The draw, which took place today at the AFC Headquarters, saw the teams ranked from 29 to 38 from the second round of the World Cup-Asian Cup Joint Qualifiers  sorted into five pairings who will face each other on a home-away basis. The five winners go to the final round of the Asian Cup 2019 qualifiers. The matches will take place on 2nd and 7th June, the first being the away leg for India.

Even losing the Playoffs 1 will not entirely close the door for an Asian Cup qualification. The 5 defeated teams along with Bangladesh (ranked 39 in the Joint Qualifiers Round 2) will participate in the Playoffs 2 for one remaining spot in the Asian Cup Qualifiers final round.

India missed out on a direct qualification for the next round of AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers due to finishing at the bottom of their group in the Joint Qualifiers Round 2. Of the 8 matches they played, one resulted in victory for the Blue Tigers (home to Guam). The rest ended in defeats.

Indian national team coach Stephen Constantine has long held a qualification for the AFC Asian Cup 2019 as a primary goal. The playoffs against Laos is, for the team, a chance to get that campaign back on track, and return to winning ways after the double defeat to Iran and Turkmenistan that they suffered late March.

Although compared to these previous opponents Laos - ranked 178th - is a light-weight challenge for Team India, coach Constantine has cautioned against complacency, saying,

“It is a tricky draw. Laos are never to be underestimated. They have been in a very difficult group in the Joint Qualifiers Round 2 and gave good account of themselves considering the Teams they faced. We will have to be at our best.”