Spanish team wary of India threat in FIH Pro League
An India vs Spain contest after three years is all set to enthrall hockey fans. The two teams will meet at the Kalinga Stadium on February 26 and 27 in the FIH Pro League.
The Indian hockey team started its FIH Pro League campaign on a high, winning three out of four matches against South Africa and France.
Spain, on the other hand, have played two games against England, losing both.
Given the aggressive attitude shown by both teams, the India vs Spain contest over the weekend looks to be a promising affair.
Read: India all set to take on Spain in FIH Pro League
India are a great side: Spain captain
Ahead of the match, Spain head coach Max Caldas said in a virtual media interaction on Friday that they are looking to put up improved performances over the weekend.
"Our expectations are to improve and try to be better each day," Caldas said. "We are in the process of getting to know each other and are starting to develop our game plan. In this process, every team has a few ups and downs. What we have to learn is when we do have a bad period, it does not cost us the game."
Read: Nilakanta Sharma recollects his journey with Indian team
Caldas also spoke highly of their opponents and said they hoped to pose a challenge to the hosts.
"India are a great side," he said. "They have a good mixture of experienced players and young kids coming through. They are very well-coached and managed by Graham Reid and his staff. We hope to pose a challenge to the higher-ranked Indian team."
Spain captain Marc Miralles, meanwhile, said he is looking forward to the clash and spoke on the team's preparedness. He also praised the ground staff at the Kalinga Stadium for offering a warm welcome.
"The weather is a bit hot here," the Spanish captain said. "But our team has been preparing well. We are quite happy in Bhubaneswar. People are really nice, which is really important for us because when you are away from home for so many weeks, you need to feel welcome. Everyone has treated us really well. So, we have been able to focus solely on our hard training sessions and, hopefully, we can win the upcoming games against India."
When and where to watch India vs Spain
The India vs Spain matches will be played at the Kalinga Stadium on February 26 and 27. The matches commence at 7.30 pm IST.
The FIH Pro League matches are being telecast live on Star Sports Select 2 and Star Sports Select 2 HD. The matches are available on the Hotstar app as well.
Read: Men's hockey team coach Graham Reid meets Narinder Batra, explains team's performance