FIFA U17 World Cup: Dortmund's Sancho surprised by Kolkata crowd, can't wait for England vs Mexico

The name Jadon Sancho might be one that will reverberate around the footballing fraternity for a long time in the coming future, but at the age of 17, England U17's star man says he's already been caught by the thrill of the "entertaining crowd" here at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.

Sancho who scored a brace and provided an assist for the first goal in the Young Lions, 4-0 thumping of Chile in their World Cup opener went off the field lapping up a roaring ovation from the Kolkata crowd of almost 45,000 when he was substituted, a memory that is bound to last with him for a long time.

“I just like exciting the crowd with my football. India’s been great, the welcome has been really good, they’ve cheered us on and they were screaming our names; To hear someone screaming your name from another country is really big, as I never knew that I was known out here,” said the Borussia Dortmund man in an exclusive interview with the FA.

“Everyone’s buzzing and really happy that they’re here, so we just can’t wait for the next game,” further added the forward who could be the main cause for worry or the Mexican side he faces in the next match.

CONCACAF U17 Champions Mexico, on the other hand, have started the World Cup on a slower note, dropping points against Iraq in their opener but seemed to have been not worried much about the previous result and more focused on the task at hand as coach Mario Arteaga addressed the press before his nation's tie yesterday.

Arteaga and his players seemed to be more charged up after the probable nerves in the first half of the first game that cost them two points and now look to take the game to their English opponents

"You can attack them. They will definitely attack us but will also give us some space to attack so we can do damage too. Tomorrow we are going to have a really good match and it's going to be an interesting match for the fans. We have a good team." said the coach, almost as to make a clear statement of intent, that El Tri aren't going to be bullied by England, unlike Chile. Mexico who have been relaxed after their first match believe it's that the junior team's success is crucial for the senior side.

"Definitely it's an important issue for the Mexican FA. The U-17 squad is the beginning for further processes of the national team. We know the importance. We have had two good teams who have been world champions (2005, 2011) and as you know the national team, they have been filling the rosters with many players that have come up the youth ranks. It's the main point to begin an international career. We have been following up these teams and we have received all the support from the Mexican federation to go ahead with this process." said Arteaga.

Mexico face England today in one of the more high profile ties of the tournament. The Group F encounter starts at the much-talked-about Yuba Bharati Stadium starts kicks off at 5 pm IST.