Margao (Goa), June 2 (IANS) India will look to take another step towards reclaiming the SAFF Women’s Football Championship crown when they face Bhutan in the second semifinal at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Margao, Goa, on Wednesday.

Five-time champions India enter the knockout clash in a confident mood after finishing top of Group B with maximum points. India began their campaign with an emphatic 11-0 victory over Maldives before convincingly blanking defending champions Bangladesh 3-0.

The hosts also receive a timely boost ahead of the semi-final with the arrival of forward Manisha Kalyan. The 24-year-old joined the squad on Tuesday afternoon after being released by her Peruvian club Alianza Lima for the June FIFA International Match Window that started on June 1.

Defender Shilky Devi Hemam welcomed the arrival of the experienced forward. “It will be really helpful for us. She is very experienced, and that will come to our aid for the rest of the matches. She also plays for a very good side, and that will also help,” said Shilky.

India head into the contest as favourites. Ranked 69th in the FIFA rankings, they are nearly 100 places above Bhutan, which occupies the 164th position. History is also firmly on India’s side. The two nations have met only twice before, with India winning both encounters by an aggregate score of 29-0.

But the most recent meeting came way back in the 2012 SAFF Women’s Championship when India registered an 11-0 victory in Colombo. Two years earlier, the Blue Tigresses had recorded an astonishing 18-0 win over Bhutan in Cox’s Bazar, which remains India’s biggest victory in an official international.

However, Crispin Chettri’s side is taking nothing for granted. Bhutan have shown significant progress in recent years and booked their place in the semi-finals after finishing second in Group A. After suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat to Nepal in their opening match, Bhutan bounced back impressively with a 4-0 win over Sri Lanka.

Much of that success was built around the form of forward Pema Tshering, who struck a hat-trick against Sri Lanka and will be the player India must keep under close watch.

India head coach Crispin Chettri has acknowledged Bhutan’s growth and believes his side must remain fully focused. “We have to approach the match with a winning mentality and give our best. Bhutan have improved with every match. They play as a unit, they attack and defend as a team, so for us to do well, we need to have quick transitions,” said Chettri.

The coach also feels his team is gradually developing stronger chemistry. “I think slowly we are playing as a team, as one unit, which was visible against Bangladesh, but only in patches. So we can improve more in that area. Our finishing has been good, and the number of chances we created speaks well about our attacking intensity.”

Shilky echoed her coach’s views on the team’s progress. “We are playing as a unit and as a team. That’s the reason behind our good performances. We have adjusted to the ground conditions and handled them well. Bhutan are a good side and improving year by year. They have been together for a while, and that’s why they know each other and play as a unit.”

Nepal and Bangladesh will meet in the other semifinal that will kick off earlier on the same day.

–IANS

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