India could be transformed into a regional power over the next three years after their AFC Challenge Cup victory earlier this month qualified them for the 2011 Asian Cup, according to the side's captain Baichung Bhutia. "It was a massive victory because we have qualified to play in the Asian Cup... the biggest tournament in Asian football," Bhutia told Reuters in an interview.
"It changes things for us because now you get to play with the biggest teams," the 32-year-old striker said. India, with a world ranking of 153 and 24th in Asia, claimed a berth in the elite 16-team competition offered by the Asian body to encourage lower-ranked teams in the continent.
The former Asian Games champions, who are taking steps to revive the national team, beat holders Tajikistan 4-1 in the final to avoid having to take the tougher qualifying route to Qatar.
The Asian and world ruling bodies regard India as "sleeping giants" in the game and have prompted them to cash in on the opportunities provided by their booming economy. The national team has improved markedly since experienced British coach Bob Houghton took charge in 2006, persuading clubs eyeing success in a nascent I-League to provide more support to the national team.
Bhutia, a national team regular for over a decade and seen as the face of Indian soccer, called for full support to help the Briton build a strong side. "It has been fantastic," he said. "I've worked with so many coaches but he is a complete manager, from technical training to managing players.
"We know for sure we got a good manager," he added. "It is up to us (the system) to give good players." The federation has promised to extend Houghton's contract until the Asian Cup when it comes up for renewal next year. Bhutia, named the most valuable player of the AFC Challenge Cup, urged young strikers to seek playing opportunities rather than money while signing up with clubs that would in turn help the national team to widen their talent base.
He was echoing Houghton's past comments that clubs signed up too many foreign strikers, which affected domestic talent. "Players have to be absolutely intelligent and not look at the finance alone as they sometimes do," he said, urging the national federation to offer them proper guidance.
India slipped alarmingly when professionalism took root in Asia in the early 1990s but Houghton first built player confidence by arranging matches against modest rivals, a move that bore fruit when the side won their own Nehru Cup tournament last year.
Indian fans, whose first love is cricket, have also warmed to the soccer team and Bhutia said the attitude of the players was improving. "Our players are becoming very ambitious," he said. "You name any player, he wants to play abroad. "Given the right opportunity, everybody would take it," added Bhutia, who played for English club Bury FC eight years ago. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) secretary Alberto Colaco said the aim was to do well in the Asian Cup and achieve the goal of reaching the top 16 in Asia by 2014. "We have got three years to go," he said. "We don't want to go and just be also-rans."