India must play tougher opponents before Asian Cup: Eugeneson

A vital cog in the Indian football team for some time, midfielder Eugeneson Lyngdoh says it must get to play adequate international friendlies against "tougher opponents" if it's to do well in the 2019 Asian Cup.

India secured their passage to the continental tournament after a 4-1 drubbing of Macau in Bengaluru last October.

"The team should play as many friendlies as possible, especially against tough opponents. This will only give us exposures and experience to up our game for the bigger matches and tournaments. This will also help the coach to put in the best team going into the Asia Cup," Eugeneson told PTI.

The 31-year-old central midfielder is currently recovering from a knee injury which he picked up during ATK's match against Jamshedpur FC in the initial phase of the fourth season of the Indian Super League.

Eugeneson, who has had a successful career at Bengaluru FC before moving to ATK, acknowledged that this year is very important for the national team.

"I will not shy away from saying that we are not the best team in Asia but we are improving. Maybe 2011 was not the best Asia Cup we had but the team played really well. It was a really good team , which had put some really good performance."
"2018 will be very important. We need to play as many matches as possible. We have a good team that can challenge any team. Let's hope there are no major injuries to our key players, which is always important. Let's remove every negativity that haunts the national team."
"This is an excellent initiative taken once again by adidas to bring in the Tango League to India. It is an extremely popular concept across the leading football playing nations and is an ideal platform for young footballers to showcase their skills and get recognised."
"If the players do not share a good rapport with each other or the coach, that will reflect in the team performance. However, the team equation is quite evident and the results speak for itself with us qualifying for the Asia Cup after a gap of eight years, with a match in hand."