Siliguri (West Bengal) [India], January 17 (ANI): Former Indian footballer Bhaichung Bhutia expressed hope that this year will be a fine one for the Indian football and said that the team needs a consistent striker to replace the retired legend and former captain Sunil Chhetri.

Bhutia was talking to ANI in Siliguri and said, "After a disastrous 2024, I hope 2025 will be a good year for the team. We have the Asia Cup qualifier which I believe we will be able to qualify. We have got a couple of good matches coming, some friendlies. The team also looks good."Talking about replacing Chhetri, Bhutia said that the team needs someone who can score goals as consistently as the 40-year-old icon.

"There are some good players coming up. Hopefully this year, we can get our next Sunil Chhetri. There is a gap within the team and there is still a search for it. There are not many strikers consistent in goal-scoring. But there are some good players like Liston Colaco and Manvir Singh (from Mohun Bagan Super Giant) who are playing well," he added.

Bhutia said that the team needs to start winning as they did not register even a single win last year and they need to boost up their ranking for the sake of qualification for future competitions and the team's confidence.

"The team needs more time in terms of training and preparations for the Asia Cup. The Coach is new (Manolo Marquez). Although he knows most of the players from ISL (Indian Super League), knowing players more will help him coordinate," he added.

India was drawn against Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangladesh in Group C of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers Final Round. The draw, which saw 24 teams divided into six groups of four, was held at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on December 9, 2024.

Only the six group winners will qualify and join the 18 teams who have already punched their tickets to the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 after the second round of qualifying. The Qualifiers Final Round will be contested over six match days in a home-and-away format between March 25, 2025 and March 31, 2026. India, aiming to qualify for three successive Asian Cups for the first time in their history, will begin their campaign at home against Bangladesh.

India has faced all three opponents in the recent past. The Blue Tigers last faced Bangladesh in the 2021 SAFF Championship, Hong Kong in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers in Kolkata in June 2022, and Singapore in the Hung Thinh Friendly Tournament in Vietnam in September 2022.

As of now, India is ranked at 126th in the FIFA Men's Football Team Rankings. (ANI)