Kolkata,
Thirteen teams have directly qualified for next year’s 18th Asian Cup football tournament. The 3rd phase qualifying round matches to select the remaining 11 teams were recently completed.
The Indian team defeated Hong Kong 4-0 in their last match to qualify for the final Asian Cup. This is the second time in a row that the Indian team has qualified for the Asian Cup.
Sahal Abdul Samad (25), a young player who played a key role in India’s success in the qualifying round, talks about the future of the Indian football team. Commenting on this, Abdul Samad said:
I’m still young. So I am very much looking forward to be a part of the golden age of Indian football to come. I’m very happy with the way we approach the tournament.
I am very happy to have scored my first goal for the country in this series. It’s a team game and everyone involved will be proud of it.
All of us as players need more playing time. If a series is long, a player can see further improvement in his playing ability. It will make you feel better.
Thus he spoke.