India are participating in the tournament with their U17 team as part of their preparations for the AFC U17 Women’s Asian Cup that will be held in China from April 30.
The Young Tigresses lost 0-2 to Bangladesh on Monday and remained in second place with three points from their opening-day victory over Nepal. To book their place in the final, India are faced with a number of permutations and combinations. A victory or a draw against Bhutan will be good enough, should Nepal don’t win against Bangladesh later in the day. In case of a Nepal win, India will have to hope that the hosts defeat Bangladesh by a margin of a minimum of four goals in order to qualify.
Despite the first loss as India U17 head coach, Conti was not disappointed with the performance of the girls, noting that it was better than the game against Nepal in many aspects.
“Actually, we are happy with the performance because we saw many things we have been working on, and the players applying them in the match. Of course, we are sad about the result, and I think we deserved more,” said the Italian.
India-Bangladesh games are always feisty affairs, but it was almost one-way traffic in the first half an hour, with the Young Tigresses creating several clear-cut chances and the opponents mustering none. However, Conti’s side were left to rue their missed chances when Bangladesh struck twice in the latter stages of the first half.
“I especially liked the first 30 minutes,” said the 43-year-old. The team was very compact, close between the lines, and we tried to recover the ball high up the pitch. The opponents hardly crossed the halfway line. However, this intensity cannot last for only half an hour. It has to last 90 minutes. If it drops, the other team gains confidence, and things change. When we return to India, we need very specific work on the physical, technical and tactical aspects.”
It’s been 10 days since Conti took charge of the team, and after the SAFF U19 Women’s Championship, India will have around 12 weeks to prepare for the Asian Cup. The Young Tigresses will know their opponents on February 12 when the group stage draw takes place in Malaysia.
Conti emphasised the need for more physical training ahead of the continental event.
“At this age, development and growth are more important than the result itself. Everyone wants to win. I never want to lose. But we must be realistic. We played against a team that is two years older and physically stronger.
“When we arrived about 10 days ago, the players had done very little physical work. Now we are training twice a day, and if we need to train three times a day when we’re back in India, we will do it. They are young and capable. What matters most is that they understand the sacrifice required to become professionals,” she said.
At the moment, the focus is completely on defeating Bhutan on Wednesday to book their ticket to the final. Bhutan are yet to open their account in the competition, losing 0-12 and 1-2 to Bangladesh and Nepal, respectively.
“If we only look at their result against Bangladesh, we might think it will be easy, but that is not the case at all. We have to keep working, and we have to win, because we want to reach the final.
“In Europe, we always say that football gives you another chance for redemption, and I am already waiting for that. I don’t like losing. Never. But now, it’s time to train and prepare properly for the match against Bhutan,” said Conti.