"Will learn from scouting mistakes made in past," says Bibiano Fernandes before AFC U-17 Asian Cup

A year and a half of hard work, toil, and much anticipation is about to come to an end, as the India U-17 Men’s National Team begin their AFC U-17 Asian Cup campaign at the Thammasat Stadium, in Pathum Thani, where they are set to face off against Vietnam in their opening match of the competition.

Bibiano Fernandes has expressed his desire to become the first coach in India to qualify for the World Cup, but for that learning from mistakes is crucial.

"The mistakes started from the scouting and how we wanted to scout the players, what type of players are needed at this level. We made some mistakes along the way in the first group in 2018 batch and as well as in 2020 also but we are getting better. And we will see this group is much much different from the from the previous groups, nothing wrong with the talent in India it's just the experience we got from the last two batches," he said.

The team has been together from 2022 and the preparations for the Asian cup has been going on from six months, Bibiano assures that the team India is ready for the challenge.

"We had good preparation for last six months or so. In Germany and Spain, we played high level matches which helped us on the field and off the field. We came to Thailand 15 days before which helped us to acclimatize. The training facilities are really good, we were able to use them to our advantage. The boys are looking forward for the match tomorrow."

Winning is equally important as developing players clarified Bibiano.

"Developing and improving players are also the the key, but the most important thing for me is winning. If I want to develop a world class player, we need to play World Cup at the U-17 and U-20 levels. So winning is also important and qualifying for the World Cup is important. So if Winning is important for me, yes of course development also is in our mind, but we we also focus on winning with this boys."

When asked about the Manipur born players in the team and how they are handling the situation back in Manipur, he stressed that the whole team is taking care of their mental well-being.

"We have been constantly in touch with those boys and asking them about of the families and the only thing we can do from here is to show them love, care and support from our side. We show them the support from our side so that they are more comfortable and trying to help them in any way. They will feel comfortable and will be focused for this competition."

India have trained in Spain and Germany for the last month and a half, playing training matches against the youth sides of some of the best clubs in the world, like Real Madrid, Atletico de Madrid, Getafe CF, UD Levante, VfB Stuttgart, FC Augsburg, and many more.

Although the results have been quite positive for the Blue Colts, Fernandes feels that Group D of the AFC U-17 Asian Cup, where they have been clubbed together with Vietnam, Uzbekistan, and Japan, will be an altogether different affair.

“We have some very good practice matches in Europe, where we played some top quality teams. However, we know that a competition is a competition, and the matches will be different,” he said. “We know the level here."

“All three of our opponents in the group stage are regulars in the AFC U-17 Asian Cup, so we’ve had a plan and have prepared likewise for this competition,” said Fernandes.

“Vietnam is a neighboring country, and they will probably have some fans in the stands, so we have also trained the boys to perform under pressure and noise from the stands.”

Vietnam head coach Hoang Ahn Tuan showed a lot of respect to his opponents on the eve of the match and feels confident about his team’s chances.

“The match against India will be important for us. I show my deepest respects to all the teams participating in this group,” said Tuan. “We just want to say that we are placed very well. We respect Uzbekistan, Japan and also India. I also don’t think about who is the strongest team in this group. So we will go on to give our best performance in this competition.”

Vietnam are tipped to have the backing of the crowd against India, and Ahn tuan intends for his side to make full use of that.

“To be honest, I don’t feel the pressure because of the fans coming. In fact, with more fans, we will feel more satisfied and relaxed for the match and I hope that the players will feel the same as myself. But it is not easy to predict the youth level mentality and I hope when the fans come tomorrow, we will hold a good account of ourselves,” he said.

India’s match against Vietnam at the Thammasat Stadium in Pathum Thani, Thailand, will kick off at 5.30 PM IST, and will be streamed live on Jio TV.