THE BLOG BY CPD FOOTBALL | The World of Indian football and beyond by Chris Punnakkattu Daniel

Koevermans: Victory is our primary objective

Wim Koevermans

India coach Wim Koevermans visited Guwahati on Monday to inspect the facilities at the Indira Gandhi Athletics Stadium ahead of the international friendly match against Yemen on November 14.

The Dutchman is looking forward to the match and he expressed his satisfaction on the preparations during a press conference at the sidelines of his visit in the Assamese capital.

The Indian national team coach is hoping for a win against the strong West Asian side and to gain some valuable points to improve India’s position in the FIFA World Ranking.

“We will go for goal. A victory is our primary objective,” said Koevermans. “It should be a good match.”

“Rankings improve that way and we should play more such matches and not just the Nehru Cup,” the 1988 UEFA EURO winner continued. “That will also help Indian football.”

Meanwhile, Koevermans is groping in the dark on the availability of star skipper Sunil Chhetri for the friendly match. “Sunil’s participation is not sure but it should not be a problem even if he joins at the last minute as he plays for a pretty big club like Sporting Lisbon. I am in touch with him,” the Dutchman told.

The Indian team is expected to arrive in Guwahati on November 11 [+ read more], while the India v Yemen match on November 14 is scheduled to kick-off at 17.30 IST (13.00 CET / 12.00 GMT).

Please LIKE www.facebook.com/cpd81 to get all the latest and exclusive (Indian) football news as they happen and more details on the INDIA v YEMEN match!