India will take on Hong Kong in the 2023 AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers on June 14 at the historic Salt Lake Stadium in West Bengal. Igor Stimac’s men picked up their second straight win to register back-to-back victories in Group D. India defeated Cambodia 2-0 in their opening fixture and edged Afghanistan in the second match to secure a 2-1 victory. The men in blue will be hoping to emerge victorious against a strong Hong Kong side on Tuesday to increase their chances of qualifying for the Asian Cup Finals.
Let’s look at the scenarios for India to qualify for the Asian Cup Finals:
The Indian team is currently in the second position behind Hong Kong with six points with the goal difference distinguishing the two sides. Both the teams have won their previous matches and are in fine form. A win against Hong Kong on Tuesday will mean that the Indian Tigers will qualify for the Asian Cup finals finishing as table toppers from Group D.
If the match ends in a draw, Hong Kong will qualify for the Asian Cup finals finishing as the table toppers of Group D. This is because Hong Kong will have a better goal difference (+4) than India (+3).
However, India will still have a high chance to qualify for the Asian Cup as the best second-placed team in the qualifiers. A total of 24 teams divided into six groups are competing in the 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers. Out of these, 11 teams will qualify for the Asian Cup finals. Six teams will be the group toppers and the rest five would be the best second-placed teams from the six groups. India has performed significantly well in the qualifiers and will go through to the finals if they manage to scalp a draw against Hong Kong.
If India loses against Hong Kong, they will end the qualifiers with a total of six points. Although this would put India in a difficult scenario, they can still qualify for the Asian Cup finals as the best second team. Among the second-placed teams only Thailand, India, and the Kyrgyz Republic have six points in their bags. The Philippines have four while Malaysia and Indonesia have three points each. If India manages to avoid a big defeat then they have a high chance of going through to the finals as they possess a better goal difference ratio than some of the other second-placed teams in the qualifiers.
India will play in the Asian Cup finals for the fifth time if they manage to qualify. Sunil Chhetri and the men in blue will be putting their best efforts on Tuesday to secure a place in the prestigious Asian Cup finals.
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