Football
23-member India squad announced for AFC U-20 Asian Cup qualifiers
India begin their journey to qualify for the 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup on 14th October against Iraq.
India U-20 men's football team. (Source: AIFF Media team)
Head coach Shanmugam Venkatesh names a 23-member squad that will travel to Kuwait in their quest to qualify for the 2023 AFC U20 Asian Cup. Last week, Bibiano Fernandes' U-17 team qualified for the U-17 AFC Asian Cup with flying colours, and now it's these boys' turn to achieve the same.
In August, Venkatesh and co. clinched the SAFF U-20 Championship by beating Bangladesh in a thrilling encounter which ended 5-2 in favour of the young Blues. The team will looking to deliver similar performances this time, but against much tougher opponents.
India is placed with hosts Kuwait, Australia, and Iraq in Group H of the qualifying round. So far, the camp has been training in Kolkata in order to prepare for the qualifiers.
"We are the underdogs, and in terms of preparation, the opponents have had more international preparation, while we have had more domestic preparation. But we will go there to fight for our chance to qualify," coach Venkatesh said.
"The boys have got a lot of confidence after the win the the SAFF U-20 Championship, and I am sure they will be able give a very good account of themselves on the pitch," he added.
India squad for the 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup qualifiers
Goalkeepers: Zahid Hussain Bukhari, Som Kumar, Dipesh Chauhan.
Defenders: Leewan Castanha, Amandeep, Abhishek Singh Tekcham, Sajad Hussain Parray, Halen Nongtdu, Brijesh Giri, Bikash Yumnam, Raj Basfore.
Midfielders: Vibin Mohanan, Taison Singh Loitongbam, Harsh Shailesh Patre, Sibajit Leimapokpam, Vinay Harji, Shreyas Ketkar, Maheson Singh Tongbram, Aphaoba Singh.
Forwards: Macarton Louis Nickson, Himanshu Jangra, Gurkirat Singh, Suhail Ahmad Bhat.
India's matches
India vs Iran- 14th October (7 pm IST)
India vs Australia- 16th October (7 pm IST)
India vs Kuwait- 18th October (7pm IST)
Live Stream
While there is no telecast of the matches, fans can view the fixtures live on Kuwait Football Association's YouTube channel. AIFF has also announced that India's matches will be live streamed on Indian Football Team's Facebook page.
