AFC Asian Cup - Australia 2015: Venues and Match schedule unveiled

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015 - Local Organising Committee (LOC) have unveiled the match schedule and host venues for the 2015 competition.

The competition will kick off in Melbourne on January 9, 2015 with an opening ceremony and a Socceroos match at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium and will culminate in the Final at Sydney's Stadium Australia on January 31, 2015.

The other three competition venues are Brisbane Stadium at Milton, Canberra Stadium in the ACT and Newcastle Stadium in NSW.

LOC Chief Executive Officer Michael Brown said the announcements marked a significant milestone in the planning of AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015.

"The Asian Cup in Australia will be a three week, 32 match festival of football culminating in the Final at Stadium Australia on January 31," Brown said.

"We are pleased to have now locked in five top class venues for the competition and finalised the match schedule."

"This will allow the detailed planning for the event to progress on schedule to ensure Asian Cup Australia 2015 is a world-class event and maintains Australia's international reputation as a great host for the world's best sporting contests."

Brown said the Socceroos group games would be played in Melbourne on January 9, 2015; Sydney on January 13, 2015; and Brisbane on January 17, 2015.

"The four Quarterfinals will be played on January 22 and 23, 2015 and we are very excited that on Australia Day 2015 the first Semifinal will be played at Stadium Australia."

"The second Semifinal will be played in Newcastle on January 27, 2015 and the city will also host the 3rd v 4th play-off on January 30, 2015."

AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015 is being jointly-funded by the Australian Government and the local governments of Queensland, NSW, ACT and Victoria.

Federal Minister for Sport Kate Lundy said the Gillard Government was working in partnership with the Local Organising Committee as Australia prepares to host the Asian Cup – the region's premier sporting event.

"The Asian Cup offers a unique opportunity to showcase Australia as a world-class host for major sporting events and as an attractive tourist destination," Lundy said.

"The spin-off from the Cup will be enormous for Australia with a global TV audience of more than 2.5 billion people expected and an estimated 45,000 international visitors set to visit our shores."

NSW Minister for Sport Graham Annesley welcomed the announcement that Sydney and Newcastle would host a key Semifinal and Final match.

"The staging of the 2015 AFC Asian Cup in Australia is just reward for the growth of football in this country," Annesley said.

"Successive FIFA World Cup campaigns have positioned Australia on the world football stage, and I'm confident both Stadium Australia and Newcastle Stadium will ensure fans experience and enjoy these world class facilities during the Asian Cup."

Victorian Minister for Sport Hugh Delahunty said, "I am delighted the event's Opening Ceremony and Opening Match featuring the Socceroos will be held at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium in Melbourne on 9 January 2015."

"Melbourne Rectangular Stadium is a world class, award winning, purpose-built stadium with fantastic turf that the players will love and where the fans can get up close to the action."

"I look forward to welcoming visitors to Melbourne and Victoria for this highly anticipated event."

Queensland Minister for Tourism and Major Events, Jann Stuckey, said Queenslanders were looking forward to the benefits and exposure the tournament would bring to the state.

"An event the size of the Asian Cup has a tremendous impact, and I know that Brisbane 2015 will be memorable for spectators and competitors alike," Stuckey said.

"The number of Asian tourists visiting Queensland has increased markedly during recent years, and the event will provide an opportunity to build on that by showcasing what our wonderful state has to offer."

ACT Minister for Sport Andrew Barr said the ACT Government was proud to be working with Victoria, Queensland, NSW, the Federal Government and the AFC Asian Cup 2015 Local Organising Committee to host this exciting event and showcase Australia to Asia and the world.

"I'm delighted that football fans in Canberra and the capital region will have the chance to see some of the world's best players and international teams in action."

"Canberra Stadium has a proven track record of hosting high-quality fixtures, including Olympic football, Rugby World Cup and Rugby League World Cup matches. Likewise Canberra will be a great venue for travelling fans, who will have the chance to see the unique attractions of the nation's capital."

AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015™ Logo launched!

The Organisers earlier in the day revealed the logo for the AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015™ in Melbourne at the draw of the qualifiers. Designed by a Sydney agency, WiteKite, the logo depicts a stylised player, kicking a football from the east coast towards Asia. The ball also represents the Australian summer sun arcing west from Australia to Asia. The four golden bands forming the map of Australia represent the four host cities. The design is completed by the Australia 2015 script, in a relaxed personal hand-written style.

Michael Brown, CEO of the Local Organising Committee said that the logo reflects an event that will be a festival of football.

"It will be celebrated in January, the height of the Australian summer holiday season, so the colour palette is warm, festive and embracing of all participants from across Asia," he said.

"The logo needed to embody the values of the competition, represent the host nation and most importantly excite and connect fans, teams and stakeholders. We believe the designers have done a great job in achieving all three aims," Michael Brown ended.

2015 AFC Asian Cup: Draw for Qualifiers are out!

The road to AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015™ became clearer on Tuesday as the Preliminary Draw for Asia's biggest football event was conducted in Melbourne. Twenty teams were drawn into five groups of four teams each. Teams will play home and away against each of their group opponents between February 2013 and March 2014.

The winner and runners-up from each group will qualify for the AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015™ Finals along with the best third-placed team from among all the groups. These 11 teams will join automatic qualifiers hosts Australia, defending champions Japan, South Korea, North Korea (2012 AFC Challenge Cup winner) along with the winner of the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup.

The Asian Football Confederation has decided to simply the qualifiers and only accommodate 20 teams in the 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers instead of all nations like in the past. This also means that India won't be playing in the qualifiers.

"The preliminary draw has thrown up some great contests, and we are sure to see some exciting matches over the next 18 months," said AFC Acting President Zhang Jilong. "We're thrilled that AFC's newest member, Australia, will be hosting Asia's flagship national team competition for the first time."

Frank Lowy, Chairman of Football Federation Australia and the Local Organising Committee said that Australia was determined to deliver the best Asian Cup yet and promised a festival of football!

"This will be the largest football competition ever staged in our country. It will be a feast of international football, and we"re confident that Australians will get behind all the 16 teams, as we have shown for other major events."

Mr. Lowy also thanked State and Commonwealth Governments for their support of the event. "We are working with five Governments to deliver AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015. Their support and expertise has been invaluable," he said.

Premier of Victoria, Ted Baillieu, said that Melbourne would be a festival of sport in January 2015. "Melbourne will once again be the centre of world sport in hosting both AFC Asian Cup 2015 matches and the Australian Open at the same time. The AFC Asian Cup is another jewel in Melbourne's major events crown."

Matches for the competition proper will take place in Victoria, New South Wales, ACT and Queensland, with venues to be confirmed in early 2013. It is expected that tickets will go on sale in early 2014.

AFC Asian Cup Organising Committee Chairman His Royal Highness Tengku Abdullah Ibni Sultan Ahmad Shah praised Australia and the Local Organising Committee for preparations to date. "The AFC was impressed with the progress update provided by Michael Brown and his team. While there is much work still to be done, we are confident that Australia will deliver a very special competition, one that will leave a lasting legacy for the game both in Australia and across Asia."


The AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015™ Qualifiers Groups are

Group A: Jordan, Syria, Oman, Singapore

Group B: Iran, Kuwait, Thailand, Lebanon

Group C: Iraq, China, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia

Group D: Qatar, Bahrain, Yemen, Malaysia

Group E: Uzbekistan, United Arab Emirates, Vietnam, Hong Kong

Arthur Papas named as Head Coach of AIFF Regional Academy - Navi Mumbai

Australian Arthur Papas has been appointed by the All India Football Federation as the Head Coach of the first AIFF Regional Academy in Maharashtra, which opened on May 1 at the at the Father Agnel School premises in Vashi, Navi Mumbai.

At 32 Papas is a young, aspiring coach and in this interview he speaks at length about his priorities, challenges, coaching philosophy and perception about Indian football.


What brings you to India?

It's a huge challenge for me – the challenge of developing a 'sleeping giant' into a powerful force. I'll be following Rob Baan's philosophy and this gives me an opportunity to work for an elite level.


Where have your earlier assignments been?

I have worked at the Australian Institute of Sports and have had the fortune of working under Dutch Coach Jan Versleijen for two years. From there, I moved on to take charge as the Head Coach of Oakleigh Cannons FC (Victorian Premier League) at the age of 30 where I was adjudged the 'Coach of the Year'. My last assignment was with the A-League Newcastle Jets where I was working as the Assistant Coach as well as the Youth Team Coach.


What would be your priority in India?

My first priority is to bring my Coaching Philosophy in line with those of Rob Baan and Scott O'Donell to take Indian football to a higher level.

My 'Coaching Philosophy' is about the development of players by not looking at their size and physical attributes and instead stressing on the technical aspects. It’s important to understand and mould them playing within a system – the 4-3-3 formation which is now widely prevalent in all leading Academies all over the World.


Did you have any knowledge about Indian football prior to taking up this assignment?

I had gathered some basic knowledge about the I-League as there are some Australian Players who have been playing in it. Also, I have watched Indian teams playing in various AFC Tournaments.


You attended a Workshop for Coaches in New Delhi last month. What has your general perception been so far?

I feel the structure needs to improve along with the standard of Coaching in the country which will allow the athletes to develop to their full potential.

Brisbane Roar win A-League title amid controversy

The 2012 A-League Grand Final at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on Sunday night was the seventh edition of the A-League Grand Final. Defending champions Brisbane Roar took on Perth Glory with the aim of being the first team to defend their A-League title. The Roars did in the end achieve their title defence but amid controversy.

The Brisbane Roars won the match in injury-time due to a penalty given for their Albanian striker Besart Berisha, who is seen to go down after firing an airhole with no contact from any Perth Glory defender. Berisha himself took the penalty to seal the victory.

Earlier in the game an Ivan Franjic own goal had given Perth Glory a surprise lead, but the Roar would hit back with a Besart Berisha header off a cross from German Thomas Broich before Berisha would win it for Brisbane late in injury-time with his second of the night.

Here the video on the controversial penalty which won Brisbane Roar the A-League title

Australia's Colosimo to attend FPAI Awards 2012 in Goa

Melbourne Heart defender Simon Colosimo will be present at the FPAI organised Indian Football Awards 2012 on May 12 at the Marriott Resort & Spa Hotel in Panjim, Goa. He will be representing the Australian Professional Footballers Association as its president at the FIFPro Asia Conference on May 10/11.

Simon Colosimo has played 26 times for Australia and knows Indian defender Gouramangi Singh, who had been on trial at Melbourne Hearts a couple of seasons back.

Simon Colosimo will be able to give feedback on how the League is structured in Australia and what all is done for the players there. The A-League is a franchise based league so it will be interesting for players from India to learn from him and exchange ideas

Simon is looking forward to playing either a beach soccer match and/or attending some junior training at one of the Football Clubs in Goa.

VIDEO: Most bizarre Handball ever in Football...

We have seen handballs in football over the years, mostly they are given by the referee's but sometimes the men and women with the whistle just simply judge the situation wrong or miss a handball.

Yesterday afternoon at the 2011 FIFA Women's World in Germany one could see the most bizarre cases of handball in the match Australia vs Equatorial Guinea at the Ruhrstadion in Bochum.

An attempt by Australia striker Leena Khamis hit the post, then Equatorial Guinea defender Bruna picked up the ball on the rebound and held it in both hands for several seconds before dropping it for the keeper to pick up. Surprisingly neither Hungarian referee Gyoengyi Gaal or her assistants apparently witnessed the incident and Australia's pleas for a penalty were rejected.

Here a video clip of the incidence:

Germany names squad for qualifier & friendly

German national team coach Joachim Loew has called on a squad of 23 players to face Kazakhstan in a 2012 European Championship qualifier on March 26 in Kaiserslautern and the friendly against 2011 AFC Asian Cup runners-up Australia on March 29 in Moenchengladbach.

These two matches come days after Joachim Loew extended his contract until the end of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

Loew has made some changes to his squad recalling goalkeeper Tim Wiese, midfielders André Schuerrle and Toni Kroos plus striker Mario Gomez into the team; while defender Heiko Westermann and midfielder Kevin Großkreutz didn't find a place in the squad. Dortmund's Sven Bender is the only uncapped player.


GERMANY

Goalkeepers
Manuel Neuer (FC Schalke 04), Rene Adler (Bayer 04 Leverkusen), Tim Wiese (SV Werder Bremen)

Defenders
Arne Friedrich (VfL Wolfsburg), Dennis Aogo (Hamburger SV), Holger Badstuber (FC Bayern Munich), Philipp Lahm (FC Bayern Munich), Jerome Boateng (Manchester City), Mats Hummels (Borussia Dortmund), Per Mertesacker (SV Werder Bremen), Marcel Schmelzer (Borussia Dortmund)

Midfielders
Mario Goetze (Borussia Dortmund), Sven Bender (Borussia Dortmund), Mesut Oezil (Real Madrid), Sami Khedira (Real Madrid), Bastian Schweinsteiger (FC Bayern Munich), Christian Traesch (VfB Stuttgart), Toni Kroos (FC Bayern Munich), André Schuerrle (FSV Mainz 05), Lukas Podolski (1.FC Cologne)

Forwards
Mario Gomez (FC Bayern Munich), Miroslav Klose (FC Bayern Munich), Thomas Mueller (FC Bayern Munich)

Officials
Joachim Loew (Coach), Hansi Flick (Assistant Coach), Andreas Koepke (Goalkeeping Coach), Oliver Bierhoff (Manager)

India's lessons from the Asian Cup

The 2011 AFC Asian Cup is history, but for India the tournament marked the return to the continental stage after 27 long years. And there are important lessons for Indian football to take from it, work on them and try to qualify again for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup in Australia to show Asia that our football is developing and progressing.


Tournament matches isn't preparatory games

Many had worried that after the bad results in the run-up to the Asian Cup that India could get trashed by continental heavyweights such as Australia, Bahrain and South Korea. Surely we did get beaten by clear margins, but in none of the matches were we totally outplayed as in some of the preparatory matches. Plus the boys always gave their opponents a real fight and the sign of this are the three goals which we scored.


Continue to play international friendlies

Finally India played a number of international friendlies. From September to November 2010 we played more international friendly matches then in the last decade. Surely the results weren't the best, but what can you expect from a team which normally faces south Asian rivals, some better sides in the Nehru Cup every two years or local club sides wherever they train. We need to play five/six friendlies over the year 2011 to maintain that momentum and the level of exposure. And maybe even think about having a marquee match once a year against tougher opposition from Asia or even from Europe and South America.


International experience

The Asian Cup was international exposure for Team India at a new, much higher then their usual level. It showed that we lacked that international experience, e.g. in the game against Bahrain where we got the equaliser and went all out to get the second goal, but somewhat forgot to defend. This is all part of the learning process, which will help the team progress in the future.


Importance of AFC Challenge Cup

Only due to the fact that India won the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup we were able to qualify for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup. If we had to qualify through the qualifiers we would have never made it to these continental championships. So the focus of the AIFF and Team India needs to be on the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup, if we don't win it next year then we have another chance in 2014 to get to Australia.


Great fan support

India had great fan support in Doha! I would go on to say that we had the best fans in the Asian Cup with over 10,000 Indian fans coming to the three games on average. Especially delightful was to see our fans turn up in numbers for the last game against South Korea after the team was out and it was also raining heavily. This fan base which is there to support and watch Team India needs to be nurtured around the world.


International media exposure

Whatever Indian football does over the year it gets little to no international media coverage. At the Asian Cup we were one of the most covered national sides simply for the exotic factor and India developing so rapidly as an economic power. The global media genuinely wanted to know more about our football, which is a good sign even though the problems were touched on by Bob Houghton and the players. If it had been different then surely we would have been regularly playing Asian Cup.

2011 Asian Cup - My personal Review

I was in Doha for the whole duration of the 2011 AFC Asian Cup - Qatar and made my personal observations during course of the tournament. Asia's premier football tournament, which was held from January 7 to 29, showed that football in this part of the world is developing but there is still a long way to go before Asian football can challenge the best in the beautiful game though some nations are much closer then others.

The tournament also reaffirmed the fact that the Asian heavyweights from the East - Japan, South Korea, Australia - are moving fast ahead of their rivals from the rest of the continent. The best matches in this edition of the tournament where those, when these three sides faced each other.

Japan became fitting champions in the end after a 120 minute final battle royale against Australia on Saturday, January 29, through a great strike by substitute Tadanari Lee after the Samurai Blue had overcome archrivals South Korea in a penalty shootout in the semifinals.

While Australia came to Qatar under German coach Holger Osieck with an experienced squad with many of their key players above the age of 30, both Japan and South Korea came into the tournament with rather young and inexperienced squads. The coaches Alberto Zaccheroni (Japan) and Kwang Rae Cho (South Korea) both said before the start of the championship that their teams should gain valuable international experience and if possible bring home the title.

Japan continued their domination of Asian football with their fourth Asian Cup title in the last six editions, while South Korea failed once more as they remain without an Asian Cup title since 1960. And the Taeguk Warriors will have to wait until the 2015 Asian Cup in Australia to try and bring the title back to the Korean peninsula.

With the Asian Cup taking place in Qatar a lot of expectations had build in the Gulf that an Arabian side could be the surprise element in the tournament like Iraq had been in the 2007 edition. But the sides from West Asia did not really set the tournament on fire. There were the upset wins by Jordan and Syria against Saudi Arabia, but that had more to do with the Saudis, who aren't as strong as they used to be as a national team and Jordan holding Japan in their opening game, where the young Japanese hadn't settled as a team. By the quarterfinals all teams from the region where out of the tournament.

And then there are the most populous countries on the planet - China and India - who came into the tournament with contrasting expectations. China came to Qatar as the highest ranked team in Group A and with hopes of at least progressing to the knockout stages, but after an opening win against Kuwait, a loss to the hosts Qatar was followed by a draw against Uzbekistan to finish third in their group, which meant elimination.

India meanwhile were drawn in the toughest of all groups, in Group C. Little was expected from the Bhangra Boys, who suffered a 0-4 loss to Australia, a 2-5 defeat against Bahrain and lost 1-4 against South Korea. It was the expected last place finish for India, but acceptable defeats for a nation who returned to the top of Asian football after 27 long years. Still India's fans need to be complemented as they came out in numbers and supported the team in a very positive way.

Overall Asian football didn't take the leap which many had hoped for to show that Asian football has really arrived, but as the tournament progressed the quality of football got better. Overall an interesting tournament, but very few fans attending continues to be a problem for the Asian Cup and the Asian Football Confederation. And it is unlikely to be solved in the next edition as Australia is so far away from the rest of the continent.

To end on a personal note. I enjoyed being in Qatar for the whole duration of the Asian Cup. It has given me a much better insight of Asian football and also the strength and weaknesses of football across the continent plus one could watch nearly all games as the five venues across Doha where easily accessable. And I hope to be back for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup in Australia...

The Asian Cup Final: Australia vs. Japan

The 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar comes to an end today with the final between Australia and Japan at the Khalifa Stadium. The final between the three time former champions Japan and first timers Australia marks the end of the three week tournament.

The two sides had different paths to the final. While Australia waltzed past Uzbekistan in a 6-0 semifinal trashing, the Japanese needed a classy performance from goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima in the penalty shootout to get past archrivals South Korea.

But the final will be a new game altogether and it starts at 0-0 with both sides eyeing the title. What Australia has in experience, the young Japanese side make up in enthusiasm; but going into the game both sides lack the big match experience.

Australia are match fit with no injury worries with coach Holger Osieck likely to send out the same starting eleven as against Uzbekistan. That won't be to the liking of Blackburn Rovers star Brett Emerton, but Osieck will go with the line of "never change a winning team".

At the pre-match press conference Osieck was very relaxed and the German looked forward to meet Japanese players like Hasebe and Hosagai who played under him while he was club coach in Japan.

Japan meanwhile paid a heavy price for their semifinal win against South Korea. Young sensation Shinji Kagawa is out of the final breaking his fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot. Kagawa has flown back to Germany and his club Borussia Dortmund isn't amused either as the 21 year old midfielder is likely to be out for the rest of the Bundesliga season.

In Doha meanwhile Japan coach Alberto Zaccheroni didn't want to disclose whom he is set to field in place of Kagawa. He only said, "I have made up my mind on who I will play for Kagawa, but I won't announce it just yet. You will see tomorrow."


Australia's passage to the final

The Australians topped the group of death, Group C. They opened with an easy 4-0 against minnows India, where lucky to hold South Korea to a one-all draw before winning their crucial final group game 1-0 against Bahrain. Then they won in the quarterfinal 1-0 in extra-time against defending champions Iraq. This was followed by the 6-0 demolition of Uzbekistan.


How Japan made it to the final

Japan made a slow start into the tournament. They starred at defeat in their opening Group B game against Jordan but were able to get a late equaliser. In their second match they came out 2-1 winners against Syria though some controversial referee decisions went against them. And then they trashed a pathetic Saudi Arabia 5-0 in their final group game. This set-up a quarterfinal clash with hosts Qatar and Japan prevailed 3-2 in an entertaining, but often close contest. In their semifinal game Japan won 3-0 on penalties after the match had ended one-all in regulation time and two-all after extra-time at the Al Gharafa Stadium.

India lose 0-4 against Aussies, but not disgraced

Australia comfortably beat India 4-0 in their 2011 AFC Asian Cup Group C opener at the Al Sadd Stadium in Qatar. The favourites never allowed their less-famed rivals to get into the game as the gulf in standards between the two sides was evident from the start.

India had to play without captain Baichung Bhutia, who couldn't take the field as he hasn't recovered from his calf muscle injury; while Bob played last minute replacement Mohammed Rafi upfront for Sushil Kumar Singh due to his two match suspension was taken out of the squad.

Most of the action was centred in the Indian half with goalkeeper Subrata Pal having a good game, which was needed off him as otherwise the defeat could have been heavier. All the players fought as hard as they could as they had to cover a distance on the field which is unusual to them. I-League players normally cover 2,5 to 3,5 kilometres in a match while some Indians yesterday did cover close to 11 kilometres, which is European league level.

The Australians took the lead through a Tim Cahill tap-in, Harry Kewell doubled the score with a beautiful curling long ranger before Brett Holman headed in Australia's third just before halftime. The Socceroos would add a fourth in the second session through a Tim Cahill header before in the end Sunil Chhetri just about missed the chance to score a consolation goal as he went past Lucas Neill, but Lucas recovered to deny Chhetri a shot.

Coach Bob Houghton said after the game, "We played a very good team. It's not by fortune that Australia are the number one team in Asia. They're very good and a team with enormous experience."

Talking about his boys, "They were playing against a team that is emerging at this level so it was a difficult game for us but I thought our boys stuck to their task very well. We kept our shape, we kept our discipline, we kept going and I thought we were a little bit unlucky. I'm pleased with our boys and I think they'll improve from it and learn from it."

VIDEO: India vs. Australia highlights

Here are the highlights of the India vs. Australia match at the Al Sadd Stadium in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup:

India the big unknown for the Socceroos

After yesterday's results where Jordan held Japan to a draw and Syria upset Saudi Arabia the tournament has its first surprises and the Australians will know that only a win would be aceeptable against India.

Australia start off their 2011 AFC Asian Cup campaign against an unknown India later today at the Al Sadd Stadium and the Socceroos will have to prove if they are the number one team in Asia as their ranking says.

Some will ask why are Australia in the Asian Football Confederation? It is surely a justified question and the reason is simply the fact that competition in Oceania wasn't tough enough for Australia and they joined Asian football in 2006.

The Asian Football Confederation president Mohammed bin Hammam had then said, "As well as being a developed football nation, Australia brings a developed economy and this is actually what we want in football. Besides Japan, Korea, China and Saudi Arabia if Australia joins the benefits are huge, this is what we're after."

And it has worked for both Asian and Australian football, but in the 2007 Asian Cup the much-hyped Australians failed and this time they will want to avoid such a situation with India a tricky opening opponent. Coach Holger Osieck said at the pre-match press conference that his team is fit and ready to do go, while they will not underestimate the Indians.

And the players surely respect India for being at the Asian Cup, former Liverpool midfielder Harry Kewell said, "They have qualified for the tournament, so surely they have something in them. I know little about them, but look forward in playing them,"

And Fulham FC goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer would add, "Any team we face in the tournament we have to take seriously. And we take it game by game, so need to get past the Indians first and then see what happens in the coming matches."

But the statistics happen to speak a different language. Post Indian independence the two national sides have only met twice in 1956 with India winning 4-2 at the Melbourne Olympics and then 7-1 in a friendly a few days later. But such a result in India's favour is more then unlikely as the Australians look to start a successful campaign in Qatar.

India back amongst Asia's best

India start their campaign in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup today against the mighty Australians. And the match will mark India's return to the continental stage after 27 long years.

India trained like never before in its history with the squad kept together for over six months, the federation paying the players their salaries and taking them out of the club system with training of two months each in Portugal and Dubai plus international friendlies to prepare them for the Asian Cup.

But with the tournament set to kickoff India continues to face injury problems. The biggest worry remains captain Baichung Bhutia's calf muscle and he is not only the captain of the team, but their talisman and him being out would have been a big blow for India. Now due to the suspension of Sushil Kumar Singh for the first couple of matches it forced Bob Houghton to rethink his plans and include Mohammed Rafi in the squad to have a third striker in the team with Baichung likely only an option against South Korea in match three for 15 to 20 minutes. India is already missing Anthony Pereira, Samir Naik and Arindam Bhattacharya due to injuries and now the surprise information of the suspension of striker Sushil Kumar Singh, who received a red card in last years AFC Challenge Cup against North Korea.

The task on hand is massive for India in facing Australia, Bahrain and South Korea in Group C. All India Football Federation Vice-President and the teams Chef de Mission Subrata Dutta said, "We are sure to put up a good quality performance. And I am sure all the spectators, all the lovers of the game, would appreciate our quality of the game."

India's only footballer playing abroad is striker Sunil Chhetri in the MLS and taking about his fitness Sunil said, "I was off for about one and a half months with an ankle injury, but I am fine now as I've been training for the last two weeks. The whole team is looking good and whoever is playing tomorrow will give his best."

And coming to talk about India's potential star performers a lot of attention is on goalkeeper Subrata Pal and his defence. About his namesake Subrata Dutta said, "Since our opponents are really strong there will be a lot of pressure on our goalkeeper – Subrata Pal, who is our first goalkeeper. And I am sure he is going to put up a very good show and he will come under the limelight. He is really a very good goalkeeper for us."

It is only hours to go for the match and hopefully the players will have had a good nights sleep before the game starts tomorrow at 16.15 local time at the Al Sadd Stadium.

Houghton; Sushil out, Rafi in

We are just over a day away from the India vs Australia match and there was a pre-match press conference at the tournaments Media Centre were an new problem for Team India was discussed.

The media were informed by the AFC in the morning: "Please be informed that India's Sushil Kumar Singh has been suspended for two matches by the AFC Disciplinary Committee for elbowing an opponent during their 2010 AFC Challenge Cup match against DPR Korea.

Sushil Kumar Singh will miss India's first two games in the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011™ against Australia and Bahrain."

When I asked Bob at the press conference about this he said that due to Sushil's suspension Mohammed Rafi would be drafted into the squad while Sushil is left out as Bob cannot go into the tournament with only two strikers in Sunil Chhetri and Abhishek Yadav with Baichung only an opportunity for the South Korea match.

More later as I am now off to the India pre-match training session...

India train in Doha, Baichung remains doubtful

India arrived on Thursday morning in Doha from Dubai on a Qatar Airways flight and yesterday morning had their first training session at the Al Wakra Club's Stadium, while their first opponents Australia trained on the outside training pitch.

The weather in Doha isn't much different then in Dubai, so acclimatization shouldn't be an issue for the 'Bhangra Boys'. But with the tournament having now started and being on its way, one can feel the tension and happiness within the team that the first match is only hours away. It is a big stage for India and the players realise that and want to give their best.

The main topic of discussion has been around the in- or exclusion of captain Baichung Bhutia in the 23 player squad. Baichung is surely not fully fit, actually far from it but him not being in the squad would be a big mental blow to the team and could demoralise them with Baichung being a good motivator inside the team. If Baichung does not make it then now Churchill Brothers striker Mohammed Rafi would take his place, while Baichung would be made an official to be allowed to stay with the team.

And this issue has caused a lot of confusion over the day here in Doha with some already reporting that Baichung Bhutia is no longer part of the playing squad and has been made a team official to stay around the team. The issue was simple as no one can be registered as a player and official. If registered as both then the person concerned would be a team official and taken off the players list. This is something which hasn't happened as Baichung's registration as an official has been withdrawn and he is still a player.

But with Baichung's calf muscle injury not going away, he could only be used as a substitute, the injury could reappear and take him out for some more time. So a tough final call would have to be taken on this issue by Sunday evening.

Asian Cup: India's opponents name their squad

India's opponents in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup - Australia, South Korea and Bahrain - have all named their 23 players squad for the tournament set to kick off on January 7 in Qatar. India face Australia in their opening match on January 10, while taking on Bahrain on January 14 before their final group game against South Korea on January 18.

The tougher opponents will be Australia and South Korea, who both will be missing their key strikers. The Aussies will be missing tall Joshua Kennedy, who plays for Nagoya Grampus Eight in Japan; while the South Korean will miss AS Monaco's Chu-Young Park, one of their star performers in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.


AUSTRALIA

Goalkeepers: Mark Schwarzer (Fulham FC, England); Nathan Coe (Sønderjysk Elitesport, Denmark); Brad Jones (Liverpool FC, England)

Defenders: David Carney, (Blackpool FC, England); Jon McKain (Al Nasr, Saudi Arabia); Lucas Neill (Galatasaray Istanbul, Turkey); Jade North (Wellington Phoenix, New Zealand); Sasa Ognenovski (Seongnam Ilhwa, South Korea); Matthew Spiranovic (Urawa Red Diamonds, Japan); Luke Wilkshire (FK Dinamo Moscow, Russia)

Midfielders: Jason Culina (Gold Cost United, Australia); Brett Emerton (Blackburn Rovers, England); Richard Garcia (Hull City AFC, England); Brett Holman (AZ Alkmaar, Netherlands); Mile Jedinak (Genclerbirligi SK, Turkey); Harry Kewell (Galatasaray Istanbul, Turkey), Neil Kilkenny (Leeds United, England); Matt McKay (Brisbane Roar, Australia); Carl Valeri (US Sassuolo Calcio, Italy)

Forwards: Nathan Burns (AEK Athens, Greece); Tim Cahill (Everton FC, England); Robbie Kruse (Melbourne Victory, Australia); Scott McDonald (Middlesbrough FC, England)

Coach: Hogler Osieck


SOUTH KOREA

Goalkeepers: Sung-Ryong Jung (Seongnam Ilhwa, South Korea), Yong-Dae Kim (FC Seoul, South Korea), Jin-Hyeon Kim (Cerezo Osaka, Japan)

Defenders: Hyo-Jin Choi (Sangju Sangmu, South Korea), Jae-Won Hwang (Suwon Bluewings, South Korea), Yong-Hyung Cho (Al-Rayyan, Qatar), Tae-Hwi Kwak (Kyoto Sanga, Japan), Yong-Rae Lee (Suwon Bluewings, South Korea), Young-Pyo Lee (Al-Hilal, Saudi Arabia), Jung-Soo Lee (Al-Sadd, Qatar), Jeong-Ho Hong (Jeju United, South Korea), Du-Ri Cha (Celtic Glasgow, Scotland)

Midfielders: Ji-Sung Park (Captain; Manchester United, England), Bit-Garam Yoon (Gyeongnam FC, South Korea), Heung-Min Son (Hamburger SV, Germany), Ja-Cheol Koo (Jeju United, South Korea), Sung-Yueng Ki (Celtic Glasgow, Scotland), Chung-Yong Lee (Bolton Wanderers, England), Bo-Kyung Kim (Cerezo Osaka, Japan), Ki-Hun Yeom (Suwon Bluewings, South Korea)

Forwards: Byung-Soo Yoo (Incheon United, South Korea), Dong-Won Ji (Chunnam Dragons, South Korea), Shin-Wook Kim (Ulsan Hyundai, South Korea)

Coach: Kwang-Rae Cho


BAHRAIN

Goalkeepers: 1-Mahmood Mansoor Ali Abdulla, 21-Ahmed Ali Ahmed Ali Mushaima, 22-Abbas Ahmed Ali Khamis

Defenders: 2-Rashed Khalil Ebrahim Talha Khalil Alhooti, 3-Abdulla Abdurrahmn Mohammed Marzooq, 5-Saleh Abdulhameed Saleh Mohamed Mahmeedi, 6-Abbas Saeed Ali Mansoor Ayyad, 16-Dawood Saad Salman Mohamed Saad, 17-Husain Ali Hasan Ali Mohamed, 23-Ebrahim Ali Hasan Meshkhas

Midfielders: 4-Abdulla Bab Fatadi, 7-Hamad Rakea Humood Alanezi, 9-Abdulwahab A Rahman Hedaib Isa Ali Almalood, 10-Mohamed Ahmed Yusuf Salmeen, 12-Faouzi Mubarak Aaish, 13-Mahmood Abdulrahman Mohamed Noor Abdulrahman, 14-Salman Isa Ghuloom Ali, 15-Abdulla Ismaeel Omar, 18-Abdulwahab Ali Abdulwahab Husain Alsafi, 19-Mahmood Merza Mahdi Ahmed Alajmi

Forwards: 8-Jaycee John Okwunwanne, 11-Ismaeel Abdullatif Ismaeel Hasan, 20-Abdulla Adnan Saleh Salman Aldakeel

Coach: Salman Sharida

2010 World Cup: Has Asia arrived on the world stage?

Asian football has been making huge strides over the last decade and a half, but on the world stage our football still isn't taken seriously. Actually often we within Asia do not see our football on par with the game in the rest of the world with many Asians rather fans of European and especially South American football. But this could change after the good account that Asian teams gave of themselves at the ongoing 2010 FIFA World Cup.

The pick of the four Asian participants have to be Japan and South Korea, who impressed on their way into the pre-quarterfinals. And both sides had chances to make it into the last eight, but the lack of experience at this level plus some luck denied both East Asian sides a place in the quarterfinals. And for Asian football one quarterfinalist would have been good news. But the question remains, has Asia arrived on the world stage?

As a pleasant surprise came the performances of the Asian referee's. Uzbekistan's Ravshan Irmatov and Yuichi Nishimura from Japan were consistent performers amongst match officials from around the world who had numerous blunders to account for over the duration of the World Cup. But we will forget the name of the Saudi referee, who was heavily criticised for his performances.


Here an overview of the four teams performances.

South Korea

The best of the Asian sides on display. The Koreans were known to be physically fit, able to run for 90 minutes and more, but now with more and more South Koreans playing in Europe they have gained in international experience which is helping them as a team. Also the side was ably led by their captain and superstar Ji-Sung Park, but when it mattered against Argentina and Uruguay they couldn't get past the South American opposition. Still South Korea showed promise and hopefully will return stronger in 2014.


Japan

Coach Okada had said before the World Cup that his sides aim would be the semifinals. Many laughed about it, but after their pre-quarterfinal penalty shootout loss against Paraguay many said the Sons from the Land of the Rising Sun could have achieved more. Also Japan have a new star in Keisuke Honda and the CKSA Moscow player was a treat to watch. Normally an attacking midfielder for the national team he played as a striker and scored some crucial goals like the 1-0s against Cameroon and Denmark. As always Japan was well organised, but if they had someone more creative in midfield or a top striker, then they could have worried bigger opponents.


Australia

Their tournament was over before it had even started. Australia were the first victims of the young, talented Germans in a 4-0 defeat. An unlucky draw against Ghana followed where the Aussies played a long time with 10 men and they were the better side after the break, and in the end a 2-1 win against Serbia which wasn't enough to progress from the group. Some stars might retire now and the Socceroos will have to replace them with younger blood, but if the younger generation is ready will have to be seen.


North Korea

They were the surprise qualifiers from Asia and the lowest ranked nation in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. And the players from the communist state where the unknown quantity in the tournament. They held Brazil in their opening game goalless for 55 minutes and then only lost 2-1, which raised many eyebrows. Many hoped for further surprises but the North Koreans would be trashed 7-0 by Portugal and would then lose 0-3 against Ivory Coast. The World Cup was a great experience for the North Koreans, but it was a tournament too big for them.

Group D: Germany & Ghana progress, Aussies stun Serbia

Group D awaited an interesting evening with all sides with chances to qualify for the Round of 16.

(matches to kick off simultaneously)

Ghana 0-1 (0-0) Germany
Goals: 0-1 Mesut Özil (60').

Germany defeated Ghana 1-0 at the Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg to finish their Group D engagements top of the group, while Ghana also join them in the pre-quarterfinals.

As tight and tactical match was expected and it came that way as both sides knew that a lot was at stake tonight. Germany looked the more organised of the two sides, but Ghana standing deep and their first line of defence attacking the Germans, forced the Europeans to often play the ball around at the back rather then going for the move forward. Germany's best chance of the half came in the 25th minute when Mesut Özil was found free, but he couldn't place the ball past keeper Richard Kingson. Only a minute Ghana had their best chance of the half as following a corner Asamoah Gyan's corner was cleared of the line by captain Philipp Lahm.

After the break Germany continued to control the game, but long pass sessions didn't get the desired results as often the last pass was missing or they were intercepted by Ghana. Ghana now often relied on the long ball and one such ball reached Asamoah Gyan, but his shot was blocked by Manuel Neuer in the German goal in the 51st minute. Then came the 60th minute as Thomas Mueller played the ball to Özil who from 20 metres out shot the ball with his left foot into the goal past the outstretched hands of Kingson. After the lead Germany got more surety into their game, while Ghana had to risk more to ensure that they reach the pre-quarterfinals. Germany were now out to seal the game on counter attacks, but they somehow couldn't finish of their attacks, while Ghana just didn't bother the German goal too much as a defender or midfielder was always there to stop their attacks. In the end Germany won 1-0 still both sides made it to the Round of 16.


Australia 2-1 (0-0) Serbia
Goals: 1-0 Tim Cahill (69'), 2-0 Brett Holman (73'), 2-1 Marko Pantelic (84').

Australia overcame Serbia 2-1 at the Mbombela Stadium in Nespruit, but it wasn't enough to qualify for the knockout stages, while Serbia finished bottom of the group. It was a match of two halves with Serbia having more of the game in the first session, while Australia were the better side after the breather.

Serbia had their first chances through Milos Krasic and Zdravko Kuzmanovic with Australian goalkeeper Marc Schwarzer keeping his side in the game. After the break Australia were part of the game, but Serbia could have once more gone ahead through Nikola Zigic in the 53rd minute. Thereafter the Aussies had their chances and then in the 69th minute Tim Cahill headed in a Luke Wilkshire cross to give them the lead. Only four minutes later Brett Holman shocked Serbia with a long-range effort to give the Aussies a 2-0 lead. Serbia hit back when a Zoran Tosic shot couldn't be collected by Mark Schwarzer and Marko Pantelic was there in the 84th minute to reduce the margin. Serbia tried everything to get the equaliser which would have meant moving on, but Australia held on to their 2-1 lead.