KARACHI, Dec 16: Defending champions Bangladesh and three-time winners India will be battling for supremacy when the two South Asian soccer powerhouses face off in the SAFF championship final at People’s Sports Complex on Saturday.

The final of the eight-nation competition, which is to kick off at 6.00pm, will be somewhat more significant for the Indians as they will be looking for a revenge of 2-1 loss to Bangladesh in the semifinal in 2003 edition in Dhaka.

However, both sides are cautious and not willing to take each other as pushovers, saying they will go all out to win the game.

Indian coach Syed Naeemuddin says he is looking for a win against the title-holders and his side is ready to fight against all odds. “We will be going into the field for a win. We have reached the final and now it’s time to raise the level of performance. We definitely want to regain the title by winning tomorrow,” Nayeemuddin told Dawn.

The Indian coach said he would like to see performance by his team and not from few individual players, adding that Mehtab Hossain’s absence would not make much of a difference. Midfielder Hossain was suspended for one match after receiving a second yellow card during semifinal against Maldives on Wednesday.

Naeemuddin said Baichung Bhutia might be a good striker, but he too would have to play along with the team and give star performance.

“Be it Bhutia or any other player, I want performance. We will not be bothered by Mehtab’s absence. We have other players available.”

The coach said there were some minor physical fitness problems but not any major threat.

The coach, however, refrained from offering comments on grey areas of his side and strong points of the Bangladeshis, saying “these are secret things which cannot be divulged before the match.”

India won the inaugural event in Lahore in 1993 before winning the gold in 1997 in Kathmandu and in Goa in 1999.

Pakistan and India may be arch-rivals in any sport including soccer, but Bangladesh and India are somewhat traditional rivals of the SAFF contest. India won the 1999 edition after 2-0 triumph over Bangladesh in the final. But in 2003, the Bangladeshis took sweet revenge after a 2-1 semifinal victory over Stephen Constantine’s Indian side.

For Bangladesh coach Diego Andres Cruciani, there will be no pressure of being the defending champions as he says the team which will rise to the occasion will be the winner.

“There will be no pressure of being the defending champions. This will be the new match and a new event. Rest is the past. The team which will make less number of mistakes will emerge winner. But final is unpredictable. It’s hard to predict anything,” he said.

Hossain’s absence would not be an advantage for his side, the Argentine said, adding that Indians had a string of talented players.

“His (Hossain’s) absence cannot be a plus point for us. Indians have 20 players and their No 15 (Bhutia) is also a very good player. We can’t consider previous performances by the Indians in this tournament. Final will be a different ball game altogether. It will be a tough game,” remarked Cruciani.