FIFA U-17 World Cup: India’s NRI players return ‘home’ to study

The Indian Under-17 players assembled in Delhi after a three-day break. They will take part in the U-19 Asian Championship qualifiers in Saudi Arabia next month.

Namit Deshpande and Sunny Dhaliwal, the two Indian-origin foreign players in the Under-17 World Cup squad, have returned to their respective countries due to academic reasons. The NRI duo was selected by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) at the last minute to strengthen the Indian defence for the World Cup.

They will not be a part of the Asian Under-19 Championship qualifiers, which will be held in Saudi Arabia next month. Seventeen players from the Under-17 World Cup squad have been promoted to the older age category while retaining 11 from the under-19 team that played the South-Asian Championships last month. The team will be coached by Portugal’s Luis Norton de Matos with his compatriot Hugo Martins and previous under-19 head coach Floyd Pinto as his assistants.

The 28 players had their first training session at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi on Wednesday, with the under-17 players getting a three-day break after their last match of the World Cup against Ghana. India, who showed flashes of promise, finished at the bottom of their group, losing all three matches.

Deshpande and Dhaliwal were products of an online scouting system, wherein they submitted videos before being monitored in person by the coaching staff. Deshpande, who holds an Indian passport but lives in the US, featured in India’s 2-1 defeat to Colombia in the second group match. He and fellow centre-back Anwar Ali were picked out by Colombian coach Orlandro Restrepo as the best Indian performers in that match.

Dhaliwal, on the other hand, was barely used by Matos. Dhaliwal gave up his Canadian citizenship and got an Indian passport to be a part of the squad. However, he was not used in any of the matches. It could not be ascertained if the two players will return to the side after fulfilling their academic commitments.

The Indian youth team will leave for Qatar next week and play their national team in a friendly on October 28, the day the Under-17 World Cup final will be played in Kolkata. Goalkeeper Dheeraj Moirangthem and defender Anwar Ali will resume training on Thursday while skipper Amarjit Singh and forward Aniket Jadhav did not practise as they are recovering from injuries picked up during the World Cup.

Matos said India’s mediocre performance at last month’s under-18 South Asian Championships could be the reason why the AIFF chose to elevate the under-17s to a higher age-group. India finished third in the regional tournament behind Nepal and Bangladesh after suffering embarrassing defeats against them. “The AIFF thinks it is important that these players continue at a high intensity. Perhaps, the results of the previous under-19 team put doubt in minds of some people and now we go with mixed to play this qualification tournament,” Matos said.

The Portuguese said the team was motivated enough despite a short break after the World Cup, which he said was mentally and physically exhausting for the players. “The World Cup is gone. It was a fantastic experience for all of us. There was a lot of pressure and a lot of concentration was required,” Matos said. “But it is important for the players to play at this level. Results are important but in the future, they must be together. This kind of intensity is very important for them.”

After they return from the qualifiers, the AIFF wants the team to play in the I-League. While Matos said it is possible he will continue to coach the team in the I-League, speculation is rife over the availability of key players, who have been offered hefty contracts by Indian Super League franchises.