Bangalore: Sunil Chetri has grown in stature since making his debut for the national team ten years ago. Currently the highest paid Indian footballer and national captain, Chetri is the top scorer for the Indian team in history.

Yet, the diminutive striker, by his own admission, hardly has had an opportunity to play against top Asian nations during his career. On Tuesday, when India play Iran in the World Cup qualifiers, Chetri would be eager to test himself against tougher opponents.

"This is only the second time in my 10 years of international career that I would play against Iran. In the 2006 Asian Games, I played against them, the only time as an under-23 footballer. Since we don't get to play these teams often, we want to do our best. Yes, this is going to be one of the toughest matches in my career for the national team," Chetri said.

The Indian captain, however, made no secret of the fact that playing Iran would be no easy task. "We all know who we are playing tomorrow... they are 40th in the world.... the best in Asia."We need to be extremely fit and play at our best against Iran," added Sunil.

On Indian football, Queiroz said: "We have respect for India. It is not the name that counts for us... it is the 11 players on the field. They play with the same desire as us.

"India have fans and families watching, so I know it will be a really tough game. They will also want to win. India have improved a lot lately. When I was the coach of Portugal, I was associated briefly with Indian football because of Bhaichung Bhutia's academy. There has been a lot of improvement since then, which is good to see."