New Delhi: Bob Houghton was a happy man on Sunday. For him, it was the perfect execution of a meticulously planned conquest.

Ever since the start of the Nehru Cup, the Briton maintained that he won’t be satisfied with anything less than a final berth. On Sunday he achieved his target.

“Syria are a better side and we need to be more careful,” Houghton warned. “Today we played good football. If our strikers were at their devastating best, so were the defenders. Credit goes to the whole team.”

“This tournament has thrown up a few new players,” Houghton felt.

The Indian coach said he was proud of his strikers. “I don’t agree with those who say we have a lack of coordination up front. Bhaichung and Sunil (Chhetri) have scored seven goals between them in this tournament.”

“There is a bigger task at hand,” said captain Bhutia.