India face Singapore in do or die play in Asian Games

Guangzhou : Down in last two matches, but still raring to go, this is the best way to describe Sukhvinder Singh boys, who will be locking their horns with Singapore in their last group league encounter to be played on Thursday at the Haudu Stadium, Guangzhou, .

Though, the qualification in the round of sixteen of the 16th Asian Games looks blurred after suffering two straight defeats, but a win against Singapore will surely put the Indian side into a much respectable position.

But nevertheless, India still hold a slim chance as three points will keep them in contention to qualify as one of the four best third placed teams.

Unfortunate in the last game against defending champions, Qatar, where India after leading till 80th minute, went on to concede two late goals and deprived themselves from a famous win. The Indians gave a better account of themselves in both the matches and have won many hearts present there.

A 2-0 defeat at the hands of Kuwait also saw, India loosening their grip on the match in the dying minutes of the game, which remains a concern for Sukhvinder Singh.

??The team spirit is very high and even after playing two matches in such short span of time, the boys are looking forward to tomorrow?s game,?? Sukhvinder told the-aiff.com ahead of Singapore encounter.

??We will miss the services of Laxmikant Kattimani due to injury, while Robert will not feature in tomorrow?s match due to double booking,?? said Singh.

?? We don?t have any knowledge about our opponent , but they are in a better position than us as they have one point after splitting points with Qatar before going down to Kuwait 2-0. Singapore is equally a good side and it will another good match for us,?? said the turbaned coach.

Lalrozama Fanai is likely to replace Robert in the defence, while Gurpreet Singh Sandhu will get his first start in the absence of Laxmikant Kattimani.

??In the last two matches, the boys showed a great character and took their performance to the next level,?? Singh said before signing off.