Syria coach's comments helped India win Nehru Cup, says midfielder Dias

Midfielder Steven Dias tells MiD DAY how Syrian coach's 'joke' Motivated Indiau00a0tou00a0winu00a0the Nehru Cup

Syrian coach Fajer Ibrahim was quoted as saying on match eve that Syria could win the Nehru Cup final against India with seven regular players.

Yesterday after his side lost, he clarified that it was only a joke.

But Ibrahim's pre-match claim was no joke to the Indian team.

Steven Dias, who played his part in India's victory, revealed to MiD DAY yesterday that the Syrian coach's comments were discussed in their team meeting on Sunday.

"Their coach had said before the final that they could beat us with only seven of their regulars.

"This comment didn't go down well with us. All of us had the same agenda 'we have to beat them anyhow'. We even discussed this at the team meeting. In that sense, it feels special to be part of the winning side," Dias said.

Doubtless, the Syrian coach made India more determined. This is not the first time that a member of the opposition team has spurred on a side.

In 1976, England cricket captain Tony Greig said that his team would make the West Indians 'grovel.' This enraged Clive Lloyd's team, who won the Test series convincingly.

Greig is always reminded of that comment even today.

During India's 2006-07 tour to the West Indies, then India coach Greg Chappell said that the West Indies have forgotten to win.

Brian Lara's team apparently did not take this well and responded with an ODI series-winning performance against Rahul Dravid's Indians.

As an inspired India got past Syria yesterday, it not only witnessed a crazy response from the invasive crowd but the entire football fraternity was tickled too as hosts retained the trophy after a penalty shootout followed by sudden death. India won 6-5 after being tied 1-1 after extra-time.

Dias' contribution towards the win also meant a lot for him since he was a bit off-colour coming into the tournament.

"People kept telling me that I was not doing enough. I was very low on confidence after that constant badgering. Normally, I don't get affected by what people say, but this time I felt otherwise. Our coach (Bob Houghton) is a magician. I met him as soon as we hit the preparatory camp. I told him about my problem and he took care of it. He boosted my confidence a great deal and the rest fell in place automatically."