India’s second game of the 2016 edition of the U-17 BRICS Football Cup against South Africa finished in predictable fashion as the Indian colts lost 1-0. What was disappointing was that India dominated much of the game, but had to make do with a narrow loss after spurning a whole host of chances.
Radzilani gave the South Africans the lead midway through the first half, scoring against the run of play in the 23rd minute. India applied pressure right until the end, but committed defending from the visitors gave them the win.
Here are five talking points from the game.
#1 India need a Plan B
For regular watchers of Indian football, this particular batch of U-17 talents has been a breath of fresh air. It’s a far cry from the days when we used to lump the ball forward to our talismanic striker up front, and hope and pray that he manages to do something with the ball. Oddly enough, there are plenty of fans on Twitter who found our Indian Colts style of play much more pleasant to the eyes than even some Indian Super League teams.
Yet, the problem with a style of play based on swift, short passes is that when the players are even slightly off, it results in the whole system falling apart. Make no mistake, India dominated the attacking phase of play for much of the game, but the ‘flow’ that we have come to expect from this side was missing, with hurried passes in the final third resulting in many promising moves breaking down.
There was a lack of a bonafide creator, a #10 who could provide the final ball. Nicolai Adam will have to work upon an alternate plan soon, if India are not to become a predictable one-dimensional team – precisely the point of tournaments like this, leading up to the 2017 U-17 FIFA World Cup.
#2 South Africa did not look jetlagged at all
“We are not the favourites to win the match as South Africa are physically and offensively better and stronger than us and possess the quality to score at any moment.” This was how Nicolai Adam described his opponents prior to the game, which was a clue to the quality of the ‘Amajimbos’.
However, Adam was generous to his opponents prior to the game, allowing the 4pm kickoff to be rescheduled to 8pm, to allow the South Africans more time for recovery, as they had only landed 24 hours ago due to a mix up with their Indian visas.
Yet, as the game progressed past the hour mark, South Africa went from strength to strength, with Lyle Foster, in particular, bullying the Indian centre-backs with his power – there were no signs of jetlag at all. With the U-23 side shining in the 2016 Olympics, and this South African U-17 side looking strong as well, the future of the Bafana Bafana looks very bright.
#3 Nicolai Adam has to focus on results soon
Nicolai Adam and his backroom staff deserve plenty of plaudits for the manner in which they have overseen the development of one of the most promising sides to ever play for India at youth level. With plenty of tournaments like the AIFF Youth Cup, the U-16 AFC Championship and the BRICS U-17 Football Cup taking place, there is plenty of exposure for our young side.
That is the very point of youth football – development. Results usually do not matter much at this level – just look at how often African sides win the U-17 or U-20 World Cups but their senior sides do not. Yet, one feels that after so many games where the Indian Colts have put in fantastic performances deserving of victories in vain, they are desperately in need of a win for morale.
Adam seems to have taken the hint, now giving his side a tactical education as they look far more compact as opposed to the gung-ho attitude in the U-16 AFC Championships. Speaking after the loss to Russia, Adam had this to say : “We tried our best to score and we tried hard enough, I even made some attacking changes but credit to the Russian Team for not allowing as that many clear goal-scoring opportunities. At the end of the day, the result counts, it does not matter if we deserved to win or lose.”
#4 Dheeraj increased his reputation with a stunning performance
Chalk it up to the quirks of football, but in a game where India dominated much of the game through the attacking talents of Aman Chetri, Aniket Anil Jadhav and Komal Thatal, one of our standout performers was the goalkeeper, Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem.
India's tall custodian was already in the limelight, having saved two penalties in the recently concluded AFC U-16 Championships which led to him being rated one of the best prospects for the Indian senior football side in the future. He continued his good form, with a superb performance that kept India in the game right until the end.
Against a physically imposing South African side, Dheeraj was commanding from set-pieces bar one occasion where he spilled the ball early on. Mopping up any loose balls, distributing with quick throws forward, Dheeraj was superb throughout, including a stunning reflex save from a volley in the 65th minute and keeping out a certain goal-bound header in injury time.
With Gurpreet Singh Sandhu also enhancing his reputation abroad, it won’t be long before Dheeraj follows in his footsteps.
#5 China represent India’s best chance for points
China have had the misfortune of playing the top two sides in the BRICS Cup right at the start, going down by two goals to Brazil in their opening encounter, which they were lucky was not by a larger scoreline. The Chinese also went down 1-4 to Russia, as they struggled to deal with the excellent movement of both these sides.
Thus, India will come up against a side low in morale, but since the Indian Colts have lost out to both Russia and South Africa, China represents India’s best chance of a positive result, with the game against Brazil likely to be a step too far.
It’s a bit ironic, given that China have plowed millions into the development and scouting of their youth side, while India have made do with whatever little they could manage. This will be an even contest, no doubt, as while China have looked poor so far in defence, they have threatened while going forward and India need to be wary when they meet on the 11th.
