When it was announced that India would face big names Panama, Brazil and Uruguay in succession, it took goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu by surprise.

“It was unexpected, to be honest. Like everyone else, we wanted to see if this was actually happening,” Gurpreet said on the eve of the India-Panama clash here.

Now that these high-profile matches are a reality, the shotstopper is keen to make the most of them. “We must make sure that we use this opportunity to gain something out of it. On paper, these games look really good because of the opponents we are facing. But every single game is special when you get to play for your country. It does not matter who we face. We want to win,” Sandhu said.

Head coach Khalid Jamil defended the exclusion of senior players Sandesh Jhingan and Lallianzuala Chhangte, stating that he intends to put together a “new team”.

“Yes, I have left some seniors out, but it does not mean that they cannot make a comeback. We are thinking about building a new team. We have young players who need to play more matches,” Jamil said.