Vietnam national team is going to play a friendly game with the home side in the Indian city of Pune tomorrow. I suppose it's will be better if we know a thing or two about Vietnam's next opponent.
Despite having a population of more than 1 billion alongside with great potential, India is not a powerhouse in Asian football. Their national team is now ranked at 160th position in FIFA ranking and has recently suffered some poor results during their preparation for AFC Asian Cup 2011 held in Qatar. Unlike most other participants who advanced to Asian Cup 2011 through qualification, India got its ticket to Qatar by winning AFC Challenge Cup 2008, a competition for emerging nations only.
Yet, don't underestimate India. They still have the quality to beat any average side in Asia on a fine day. The national team, led by English coach Bob Houghton, is making steady progress with big support from their federation. Honestly, I don't know much about Indian football as well as their players. The only name I can recall is East Bengal striker Baichung Bhutia, who is now 33 but still a very important player of India national team. Another worth-watching player is striker Sunnil Chhetri, who is based in United States.
In history, senior sides from Vietnam and India met each other for the only time in 2004, when Vietnam defeated India 2-1 in Ho Chi Minh City.
India's recent results:
India 0-1 Hong Kong
India 2-0 Namibia
India 1-2 Thailand
Thailand 1-0 India
Highlights: INDIA 1:2 THAILAND
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