The foundation of India’s advancement towards the AIFF aim of being one of the top 10 men’s teams in Asia by 2026 will be laid throughout these upcoming months. In contrast to 2019, when they were in Pot 3 owing to finishing 15th on the continent, they are presently ranked 18th in Asia (100th in the world), which is why they were placed in Pot 4 for the Asian Cup draw.
They get more points the more victories they have. In AFC competition draws clubs with higher FIFA rankings have a better chance of being placed in higher pots, which theoretically means they will face more teams who are rated lower than them, increasing their chances to win more games and rack up more points.
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The opponent’s quality is an important factor in the current FIFA rankings system, with more points awarded for defeating a team with a better rating, like India did in their March friendly match against the Kyrgyz Republic.
In all of the competitions India will compete in over the upcoming several months, victories will be worth less than they would in a World Cup qualifying game or an Asian Cup encounter.
On July 27, the first two rounds of the FIFA World Cup qualifying matches will be drawn. India will participate in the November-starting second round. The FIFA rankings that will be used to set the draw’s pots have not yet been verified by the AFC.
The Intercontinental Cup and SAFF Cup would then become even more significant for India, as they would need to move up one ranking slot in Asia to be in Pot 2 for that draw. It’s possible that it will be the updated one in July.
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Lebanon, which is now ranked just one position higher in Asia than India, will be in all four of the events that India is slated to participate in the upcoming four months. India’s matches against Lebanon will be a double whammy for both teams since they have the chance to not only gain ranking points for themselves but also guarantee a loss of points for close rivals. India cannot afford to lose any of their upcoming matches against Lebanon.
At the SAFF Cup, India competed against Kuwait, Nepal, and Pakistan. A defeat will again impede their prospects because all of the teams are now ranked far lower than India. One of the guest teams competing in the SAFF Cup is Lebanon, and if India advances to the championship game, they would likely meet Lebanon in what will be another must-win encounter between the two West Asian nations.
India cannot afford to lose any of their home games over the course of the next month since they are the ones that will probably have the biggest bearing on the World Cup qualifying draw, where they cannot afford to be placed in Pot 3.
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