The Blue Colts landed in Kathmandu, Nepal a day after India celebrated its 77th Independence Day, and have been preparing for the upcoming challenge since. They have had two training sessions in the capital of Nepal so far.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Blue Colts head coach Ranjan Chaudhuri said, \u201cWe have been preparing hard in Goa for the last two months, and the time is almost here for the opening challenge. We are the defending champions of the SAFF U20 Championship; it obviously motivates us a great deal.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThe game against Bhutan will be an important outing for us, the first match of a tournament always is,\u201d he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Midfielder Akash Tirkey believes that the two months spent camping in Goa have helped the team build their fitness and on-pitch chemistry ahead of the Championship.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cWe have practiced hard and seriously during our two-month camp in Goa, and I can just see that all of us are raring to go,\u201d said Tirkey. \u201cThe whole team have learned a lot from our coaches over this period. Now, all that\u2019s left for us to do is to play well, and get the win against Bhutan.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Most of the boys currently in the India U20 squad have played against Bhutan two years back in the SAFF U17 Championship, which they won 3-0 in Sri Lanka.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cWe have nine players who have played this tournament before at the lower age groups, and it will be important to use their experience against our opponents,\u201d said Chaudhuri.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Goalkeeper Sahil, who had kept a clean sheet against Bhutan in the SAFF U17 Championship 2022, highlighted the importance of winning the first game of a tournament.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cBack in 2022, when we played Bhutan, we had just come into the national team, and none of us had the experience of playing international football even at the junior level,\u201d said Sahil.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThey played a lot of short passes and managed their possessional build-up very well, but we fought hard and were able to win the match 3-0 in the end,\u201d he added. \u201cThat victory gave us the confidence that we could produce such results at the international level too. That\u2019s why we must get three points in our first match.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Forward Thanglalsoun Gangte scored a brace against the same team, his maiden strike in an official junior international match. He recalled, \u201cThe scoreline may look like a comfortable win for us, but it was not an easy match by any stretch of the imagination. I scored two goals early in the game, but then we had to constantly protect ourselves against their threat.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Bhutan U20s midfielder and captain Pema Zangpo acknowledged the strength of the Blue Colts, though he felt that his teammates were ready for the challenge.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Forward Thanglalsoun Gangte scored a brace against the same team, his maiden strike in an official junior international match. He recalled, \u201cThe scoreline may look like a comfortable win for us, but it was not an easy match by any stretch of the imagination. I scored two goals early in the game, but then we had to constantly protect ourselves against their threat.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
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