Suresh stated that Colombia’s high pace can be blunted if the Matos-coached team stay at the right place at the right moment. "I believe, their speed can be cancelled out if we focus more on our positioning. If we stay well organised, we can contain them,” Suresh explained.
"They are a very physical side. We played them in Mexico and expect a physically taxing game. They've to win also against us to stay alive in the World Cup. It won't be anything less than a tough 90 minutes for us,” Suresh stated.
“A small mistake can cost a lot at the world level and it's the biggest lesson for us. We have learnt many a thing from our first match. A tournament like this is enormous. At one moment we hit the bar and some ten second later, we concede off the same counter. It’s such a huge lesson learnt.”
The Indian national team put in a decent shift against USMNT however, the difference is size was apparent…
Size does not matter in football is a statement quite overused. You would see coaches give example of an Andres Iniesta or Lionel Messi or Xavi. They will tell you if you have the talent and technique, your size does not matter.
Agreed but in those cases the players have undergone training and played competitive fixtures from Under-8 level. They take to the game of football from the age of five or six. People often ignore this and believe that if a boy takes up the game around the age of 15, he can certainly learn those skills.
Most of the skills, which will last until the lifetime, are learnt between the age of five and 10, according to most experts. Rafa Benitez opines that best age for football initiation is 10 years were a kid should be taught technical skills such as trapping the ball, half-trapping with the sole and inside of the foot, cushioning of the ball with the inside and outside of the foot, dribbling with the inside and outside of the foot, kicking with the inside and the instep of the foot and heading.
In India, this kind of work at grassroots level is conducted only in certain catchments. You could probably say Mizoram or a Manipur or a few academies or soccer schools. Such work isn’t done on a district or state level.
When India played USMNT in their first game of the Under-17 World Cup, the difference in technique and size was apparent. Except for Anwar Ali, Dheeraj Singh and to an extent, Amarjit Singh and Aniket Jadhav, most players would be easily brushed aside when put under pressure.
Under pressure means when the opposition player closes in. On most occasions, they didn’t have to tackle either. Komal Thatal, who showcased some dribbling skills, except for one occasion when he actually managed to go beyond his marker and send a ball across the face of the goal, was too lightweight. The passes were overhit or the ball was simply taken away from him.
On another occasion, Ninthoiganba Meetei, who was one of the impressive players, made a dashing run into the opposition half after turning a defender. However, all it took for a US defender was five long strides to close in and win the ball easily.
Mind you, this isn’t a critical piece on players.
The point here is that not every player in the Under-17 team started playing football at an early age. And unless you do not have exceptional skills on the ball, on the international stage, you will be brushed aside.
As much as we ignore, physicality is very much a need. As Luis Norton de Matos said, “You cannot be a good gymnast if you are very tall or you cannot be an excellent basketball player if you are of 160 metres. For certain positions, height and size does matter.”
After schoolchildren brought to watch India’s first ever FIFA World Cup match suffered due to a scarcity of drinking water at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the local organising committee was forced into damage-control mode. The thousands of kids, who were at the venue almost five hours before the host nation’s clash against the United States, were visibly distressed and even offered to pay exorbitant sums to vendors for a bottle of water. The local organising committee on Saturday admitted there were lapses in distributing water, most probably due to the heightened security arrangement in light of Prime Minister Narendra Modi attending the match. In fact, water was available during the first match of the day – between Ghana and Colombia – at Rs 10 per paper cup in the Category 1 stands. However, these same sections saw bottles being sold at Rs 80 during India’s match, when the crowd got substantially bigger. It points to either mismanagement or artificial scarcity. “We know that there were issues with the distribution of water for the first match day of the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 in New Delhi. There was a provision made by the stadium, as providing drinking water is the responsibility of the facility owner, but there was a lapse on the distribution, the LOC said in a statement. “We will be working as hard as possible with all facility owners to ensure that drinking water is readily available for all spectators from here on.” With Delhi hosting two matches on Monday, including one between India and Colombia, it would be interesting to see if the organisers have learnt any lessons.
An escape route
For a bunch of Iraqi youth, too young to comprehend the complexities of politics and ghastly acts of terror at home, there’s an escape route – football. In their spare time, they embrace Bollywood. Like any other 17-year-old, Saif Khalid Shayyal’s eyes light up while talking about his favourite stars. He will captain Iraq in the Under-17 World Cup but Shayyal hasn’t yet learnt the art of concealing his emotions. “Saif Ali Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan…” the youngster belts out. He pauses for a moment and then reverentially adds, “Amitabh Bachchan”. Shayyal is delighted to return to India for the Under-17 World Cup not only because he and his team won the AFC Under-16 title here last year. He yearns for a great tournament to make his countrymen happy. “Despite everything, football is the No. 1 sport in our country. Football unifies the Iraqi people and we hope to do that again through our performance in this tournament,” Shayyal says. A creative midfielder, he wants to play like former Iraq international Nashat Akram. And now Xavi has become another role model.
Idle worship Spain’s goalkeeper Alvaro Fernandez adores Manuel Neuer, and like his hero likes to leave his box almost instinctively. Unlike Neuer, who is ruthlessly assured and efficient when he steps out, Fernandez is clumsy and he nearly paid for it twice. The first instance was when he shed his space to intersect a cross, only to realise that he was a little too slow and Lincoln was swooping in. The goalkeeper committed fully to the ball, and just managed a deflection of his body towards the throw line. Then for a freekick, he came dangerously close to the Brazil box, before he was urged by his teammates to retreat. On cue, Brazil made a swift counterattack after the save was made.
Hit the ground running The Indian U-17 players toured 18 countries in the two years leading up to the World Cup, playing 84 matches against various oppositions. The idea was to be best prepared for their first ever appearance at a FIFA tournament, that too on home soil. It is in sharp contrast to New Zealand’s ‘preparation’. The national federation had no money to send them abroad for training and exposure, and the All White colts had to prepare at home, during the rainy season. Apart from denying them quality game time, it also prevented them from getting used to the hot and humid conditions they expected to encounter in India. The conditions in India were a factor most teams came prepared for. Turkey trained in Doha to adjust to the weather, and Mali trained for three weeks in Abu Dhabi. However, their lack of acclimatisation wasn’t such a big factor in New Zealand’s opening match against Turkey in Navi Mumbai, as it started raining an hour before kick-off. “It got a bit cooler and that certainly helped us,” coach Danny Hay would say. As the pitch grew heavy, the physical islanders gained in momentum to hold Turkey to a 1-1 draw. “We were getting better as the match went on.”
‘Chak de Chile’ The pre-match press conference was over, but Chile U-17 coach Hernan Caputto (in pic) wasn’t done yet. A statement for the Indian fans was due, also a tagline for his team’s campaign. “Chak De Chile” sounded spontaneous. “We want Calcutta to support us. Namaste,” Caputto said in English before picking a Bollywood blockbuster, and paraphrasing it, for inspiration. If you want to read between the lines, the ploy to wax eloquent appeared to be well thought out. Chile will play their Group F opener against England at the Salt Lake Stadium on Sunday. Well aware of Kolkata’s affinity to English football, thanks to the Premier League, the Chile coach made a friendly overture to woo the locals. Heat and humidity in Kolkata, no problems! They have now comfortably adjusted to the conditions. “We love to be here in Kolkata.”
Iran feel at home The Guinea team had travelling fans who created quite a din with their chants and gesticulating – and the Indians at the stadium did what neutrals could – they matched decibel getting behind the Iranians. Adjoining stands of the noisy Guineans offered the Iranians some support simply to nullify the Guinean ruckus. Iran has played in Goa and reached the Asian finals here, and knowing the conditions, maxed that familiarity as all action took place in the second half – and they ramped up a peach of a Allahyar Sayyad solo effort to triple that margin – first through a penalty for star Md Sharifi and one from the edge of the box for Karimi, with all their substitutions contributing in one way or another. Guinea completely lost the plot as Cherif Camara launched a kungfu tackle on Sayyad and was rent off with the tournament’s first straight red. Suddenly the Iranians look like the group favourites and coach Chamanian sounded ominous when he said he had better plans for the Germans. The entire German coaching staff lingered till some time in the second match looking pensive, knowing the Indian support will fetch up for the Iranians – conjured out of nowhere but the neutral’s love.
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https://khelnow.com//news/article/fifa-u-17-world-cup-2017-suresh-singh-wangjam-post-usa
Another prediction becoming true
Size does not matter in football is a statement quite overused. You would see coaches give example of an Andres Iniesta or Lionel Messi or Xavi. They will tell you if you have the talent and technique, your size does not matter.
Agreed but in those cases the players have undergone training and played competitive fixtures from Under-8 level. They take to the game of football from the age of five or six. People often ignore this and believe that if a boy takes up the game around the age of 15, he can certainly learn those skills.
Most of the skills, which will last until the lifetime, are learnt between the age of five and 10, according to most experts. Rafa Benitez opines that best age for football initiation is 10 years were a kid should be taught technical skills such as trapping the ball, half-trapping with the sole and inside of the foot, cushioning of the ball with the inside and outside of the foot, dribbling with the inside and outside of the foot, kicking with the inside and the instep of the foot and heading.
In India, this kind of work at grassroots level is conducted only in certain catchments. You could probably say Mizoram or a Manipur or a few academies or soccer schools. Such work isn’t done on a district or state level.
When India played USMNT in their first game of the Under-17 World Cup, the difference in technique and size was apparent. Except for Anwar Ali, Dheeraj Singh and to an extent, Amarjit Singh and Aniket Jadhav, most players would be easily brushed aside when put under pressure.
Under pressure means when the opposition player closes in. On most occasions, they didn’t have to tackle either. Komal Thatal, who showcased some dribbling skills, except for one occasion when he actually managed to go beyond his marker and send a ball across the face of the goal, was too lightweight. The passes were overhit or the ball was simply taken away from him.
On another occasion, Ninthoiganba Meetei, who was one of the impressive players, made a dashing run into the opposition half after turning a defender. However, all it took for a US defender was five long strides to close in and win the ball easily.
Mind you, this isn’t a critical piece on players.
The point here is that not every player in the Under-17 team started playing football at an early age. And unless you do not have exceptional skills on the ball, on the international stage, you will be brushed aside.
As much as we ignore, physicality is very much a need. As Luis Norton de Matos said, “You cannot be a good gymnast if you are very tall or you cannot be an excellent basketball player if you are of 160 metres. For certain positions, height and size does matter.”
It’s time the country realizes it.
Organising committee in deep waters
After schoolchildren brought to watch India’s first ever FIFA World Cup match suffered due to a scarcity of drinking water at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the local organising committee was forced into damage-control mode. The thousands of kids, who were at the venue almost five hours before the host nation’s clash against the United States, were visibly distressed and even offered to pay exorbitant sums to vendors for a bottle of water. The local organising committee on Saturday admitted there were lapses in distributing water, most probably due to the heightened security arrangement in light of Prime Minister Narendra Modi attending the match. In fact, water was available during the first match of the day – between Ghana and Colombia – at Rs 10 per paper cup in the Category 1 stands. However, these same sections saw bottles being sold at Rs 80 during India’s match, when the crowd got substantially bigger. It points to either mismanagement or artificial scarcity. “We know that there were issues with the distribution of water for the first match day of the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 in New Delhi. There was a provision made by the stadium, as providing drinking water is the responsibility of the facility owner, but there was a lapse on the distribution, the LOC said in a statement. “We will be working as hard as possible with all facility owners to ensure that drinking water is readily available for all spectators from here on.” With Delhi hosting two matches on Monday, including one between India and Colombia, it would be interesting to see if the organisers have learnt any lessons.
An escape route
For a bunch of Iraqi youth, too young to comprehend the complexities of politics and ghastly acts of terror at home, there’s an escape route – football. In their spare time, they embrace Bollywood. Like any other 17-year-old, Saif Khalid Shayyal’s eyes light up while talking about his favourite stars. He will captain Iraq in the Under-17 World Cup but Shayyal hasn’t yet learnt the art of concealing his emotions. “Saif Ali Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan…” the youngster belts out. He pauses for a moment and then reverentially adds, “Amitabh Bachchan”. Shayyal is delighted to return to India for the Under-17 World Cup not only because he and his team won the AFC Under-16 title here last year. He yearns for a great tournament to make his countrymen happy. “Despite everything, football is the No. 1 sport in our country. Football unifies the Iraqi people and we hope to do that again through our performance in this tournament,” Shayyal says. A creative midfielder, he wants to play like former Iraq international Nashat Akram. And now Xavi has become another role model.
Idle worship
Spain’s goalkeeper Alvaro Fernandez adores Manuel Neuer, and like his hero likes to leave his box almost instinctively. Unlike Neuer, who is ruthlessly assured and efficient when he steps out, Fernandez is clumsy and he nearly paid for it twice. The first instance was when he shed his space to intersect a cross, only to realise that he was a little too slow and Lincoln was swooping in. The goalkeeper committed fully to the ball, and just managed a deflection of his body towards the throw line. Then for a freekick, he came dangerously close to the Brazil box, before he was urged by his teammates to retreat. On cue, Brazil made a swift counterattack after the save was made.
Hit the ground running
The Indian U-17 players toured 18 countries in the two years leading up to the World Cup, playing 84 matches against various oppositions. The idea was to be best prepared for their first ever appearance at a FIFA tournament, that too on home soil. It is in sharp contrast to New Zealand’s ‘preparation’. The national federation had no money to send them abroad for training and exposure, and the All White colts had to prepare at home, during the rainy season. Apart from denying them quality game time, it also prevented them from getting used to the hot and humid conditions they expected to encounter in India. The conditions in India were a factor most teams came prepared for. Turkey trained in Doha to adjust to the weather, and Mali trained for three weeks in Abu Dhabi. However, their lack of acclimatisation wasn’t such a big factor in New Zealand’s opening match against Turkey in Navi Mumbai, as it started raining an hour before kick-off. “It got a bit cooler and that certainly helped us,” coach Danny Hay would say. As the pitch grew heavy, the physical islanders gained in momentum to hold Turkey to a 1-1 draw. “We were getting better as the match went on.”
‘Chak de Chile’
The pre-match press conference was over, but Chile U-17 coach Hernan Caputto (in pic) wasn’t done yet. A statement for the Indian fans was due, also a tagline for his team’s campaign. “Chak De Chile” sounded spontaneous. “We want Calcutta to support us. Namaste,” Caputto said in English before picking a Bollywood blockbuster, and paraphrasing it, for inspiration. If you want to read between the lines, the ploy to wax eloquent appeared to be well thought out. Chile will play their Group F opener against England at the Salt Lake Stadium on Sunday. Well aware of Kolkata’s affinity to English football, thanks to the Premier League, the Chile coach made a friendly overture to woo the locals. Heat and humidity in Kolkata, no problems! They have now comfortably adjusted to the conditions. “We love to be here in Kolkata.”
Iran feel at home
The Guinea team had travelling fans who created quite a din with their chants and gesticulating – and the Indians at the stadium did what neutrals could – they matched decibel getting behind the Iranians. Adjoining stands of the noisy Guineans offered the Iranians some support simply to nullify the Guinean ruckus. Iran has played in Goa and reached the Asian finals here, and knowing the conditions, maxed that familiarity as all action took place in the second half – and they ramped up a peach of a Allahyar Sayyad solo effort to triple that margin – first through a penalty for star Md Sharifi and one from the edge of the box for Karimi, with all their substitutions contributing in one way or another. Guinea completely lost the plot as Cherif Camara launched a kungfu tackle on Sayyad and was rent off with the tournament’s first straight red. Suddenly the Iranians look like the group favourites and coach Chamanian sounded ominous when he said he had better plans for the Germans. The entire German coaching staff lingered till some time in the second match looking pensive, knowing the Indian support will fetch up for the Iranians – conjured out of nowhere but the neutral’s love.