Blue Tigresses arrive in Perth early, focus on arduous AFC Asian Cup task
We are counting the days, says coach Amelia Valverde as they open campaign on 4 March
There are almost two weeks to go before India begin their campaign in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup against Vietnam on 4 February, but the Blue Tigresses were among the first teams to reach Down Under after their valuable experience from their Turkey trip. A challenging assignment this – but the air of optimism is hard to miss under their new former Venezuelan head coach Amelia Valverde.
‘’We’re now counting down the days, about 12 to go, until our first match. We’re very happy with how things feel with the players and the group. The team is in a good place, training well, and also waiting for the official activities to begin,’’ the former coach of Venezuela’s World Cup squad said.
From single-digit temperatures in Turkish winter, Amelia and her side have had to adjust to the summer in Perth, but arriving early has made that process a lot smoother. Speaking to AIFF media, she said: ‘’It took a few days to adapt to the time difference and also a bit to the weather. The climate here is very different from Türkiye. It was raining heavily there. Here, the temperatures are significantly hotter, ranging from 30-35 degrees during the day. But that's not a problem. Our matches are at night, so temperatures will be more controlled.
‘’For adapting to the time difference, what you need is time. We’ve had that and will continue to have it, which is positive. We know we must take precautions with hydration, proper nutrition, and everything needed to be ready,’’ she said.
The Blue Tigresses have, in what was a dismal 2025 year for Indian football, been a redeeming feature by qualifying for all three age group AFC Asian Cups (senior, Under-17 and U-20). The job gets significantly tougher from here onwards as the senior team sees this event as a launchpad for a shot at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil next year.
‘’The long camp has many advantages. It gives us time to review a lot of videos and do ‘invisible training’. The team doesn’t only train on the pitch - we train in the gym, in individual meetings, combined meetings and group video sessions. We’ve tried to take advantage of everything. We still have two weeks to keep improving and reach the best possible version of this team,’’ the Costa Rican added.
In Türkiye, India played six friendly games against European clubs, winning three (against Schlieren, Hertha BSC and Zvezda-2005 Perm), drawing one (against Spartak Moscow) and losing two (against Metalist 1925 and Csíkszereda). Amelia extensively rotated his teams in games, sometimes fielding a different line-up in each half to give game time to as many players as possible and assess the squad's quality.
In Perth, India won their first friendly game on Australian soil against Perth RedStar FC 5-0 on Thursday, and will play another against Perth Azzurri on Monday. ‘’Personally, I take it as a great responsibility, as I have said from the beginning. I’m very excited, but I also don’t want to take it only on an emotional level. I’m very much aware of the tournament we are about to play,’’ she said.
Meanwhile, the AIFF has announced a 26-member squad on Friday. Placed in Group C, India will begin their campaign against Vietnam on March 4 at the Perth Rectangular Stadium at 4.30 pm IST, followed by a meeting against Japan on March 7 at the same time and venue. The last group stage match will be against Chinese Taipei on March 10 at the Western Sydney Stadium at 2.30 pm.
The top two sides from each group, along with the two best third-placed teams, will progress to the quarter finals. The four quarter-final winners will qualify for the FIFA Women's World Cup Brazil 2027. The losing quarter-finalists will contest the play-offs for the two remaining direct spots allocated to the AFC for the World Cup. The two play-off losers will have another chance of qualifying for Brazil via the play-off tournament.
India squad
Goalkeepers: Panthoi Chanu Elangbam, Shreya Hooda, Sowmiya Narayanasamy ; Defenders: Astam Oraon, Juli Kishan, Martina Thokchom, Nirmala Devi Phanjoubam, Sanju, Sarita Yumnam, Shilky Devi Hemam, Sushmita Lepcha, Sweety Devi Ngangbam; Midfielders: Anju Tamang, Aveka Singh, Babina Devi Lisham, Jasoda Munda, Sanfida Nongrum, Sangita Basfore. Forwards: Grace Dangmei, Kaviya Pakkirisamy, Lynda Kom Serto, Malavika P, Manisha Kalyan, Pyari Xaxa, Rimpa Haldar, Soumya Guguloth.
Head coach: Amelia Valverde; Assistant coach: Crispin Chettri.