AFC Women's Asian Cup 2022: We Can't Look Back and Think Too Much, Says Coach Dennerby

Indian women’s football team coach Thomas Dennerby said the side will have to work on its finishing and try its best to garner three full points against Chinese Taipei in the next game of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup here.

On Thursday, Dennerby was left frustrated by India’s inability to score goals in the opening match against Iran, saying, “If you are not scoring goals, you are not good enough”. India missed a bagful of chances and were held goalless by a lower-ranked Iran at the DY Patil Stadium

“This game (against Iran) is over. The result is what it is. We can never look back. Now we have to work on our finishing and go at it again in the second match against Chinese Taipei and get the three points,” Dennerby said.

“I think we have a solid defence, and defended well whenever they tried to counter-attack. A few tweaks to our attack, and we will be ready for our next opponents,” the 62-year-old said.

Group A of the AFC women’s Asian Cup is currently led by China, who have three points after defeating Chinese Taipei 4-0 at the Mumbai Football Arena, while India share the second spot with Iran, with both sides having a point apiece.

“It’s always good to come up with points in your first game; you stand a better chance of moving to the next round. We need to follow our plan, and try to get points against Taipei as well,” said Dennerby.

“The only thing we can do is to focus on the next opponents, and not the table,” Dennerby added.

“It’s not time for that (focusing on the table) yet. Chinese Taipei lost to China, but they are a good team, and we need to play well against them.”

Wing-back Dalima Chhibber, who made a number of runs and crosses from the right flank, feels the team “can do much better”.

“We had a good game against Iran, but as a team we could have been better. Now, it’s all about working on those little areas, and coming out with a stronger mindset. We must focus and get those points that will help us advance,” Dalima stated.

“The positive we take away from our first match is that we created a lot of opportunities. That gives us a lot of confidence. Now it’s all about keeping up that fire, and the desire to get the job done in our next game. Football is all about coming back with a strong mindset the next day, and that’s exactly what we aim to do,” she opined.

India will play their next game against Chinese Taipei at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, on January 23.