India face mighty South Korea with FIFA U-17 World Cup berth at stake

Qualification for the semi-finals of the AFC U-16 Championship wiill see the Blue Colts book an automatic place at next year's global youth event in Chile.

The Indians may have impressed, but the way the Koreans have played so far, it’s imperative to feel the severity of the situation for the Blue Colts. In the absence of Rohit Danu, termed as one of the better players in the squad by many, Bibiano Fernandes will once again look at the ever-present Vikram Pratap Singh to inspire his lads.

Both sides have one thing in common through, the group stage – India and Korea Republic have conceded none in the last three games. It’s impressive, given the magnitude of the tournament and the number of goals that have been scored across all groups. The match will be played at the Petaling Jaya Stadium in Selangor, Malaysia on Monday.

About The Teams

India

India will be nursing a lot of injuries and niggles, predisposed by the physical battles their midfielders and full-backs have had against Vietnam, Iran and Indonesia. Right-back Shabas, Givson Singh Moirangthem and Ridge Demello will need to be ready to play another big encounter against the pace of South Korea.

The Indian team has qualified for the knockout stages for the first time in sixteen years and they should not let it ride on their heads. One more top performance and India will see themselves qualify for the U-17 FIFA World Cup 2019 on merit, a historic achievement if it happens. But, there’s a lot to be thought about by Fernandes, who must have done his research on the Taegeuk Jeonsa lads.

India's probable lineup against Korea Republic

While India will be making at least one change in Bikash Yumnam, a tactical switch is something Bibiano may look for. The opposition plays with swift wingers as well as midfielders, applying pressure on the midfield and winning most balls in the air. The tactician will, thus, ask his players to keep the ball on the ground, as aerially, Korea have the clear advantage.

Defensively however, Korea aren’t the fastest. Demello and Ravi Bahadur Rana will need to make most of the scarce opportunities they receive. Bekey Oram will need to continue his dominant, physical performances with such a lanky figure, while Vikram needs to shed the weight of captaincy from his shoulders and gel better with his attackers.

The defence, though, has been arguably flawless. The pair of Yumnam and Thoiba have been calm on the ball and have headed like bosses on the pitch, something not synonymous with Indian football. However, with Bikash unavailable, Harpreet Singh's performance along with Thoiba will be integral for India. They hold the key to the team's passage to the next round. Full-backs Shabas and Gurkirat need to continue their good work, but can move a little forward when the opposition is tiring.

It’s going to be a typical 4-3-3, like we’ve seen throughout the tournament from India. A back four, a midfield three of Bekey, Ricky and Givson, and an attack featuring Ridge, Ravi and Vikram will walk out with 1.2 billion Indian hopes pinned on them.

Korea Republic

Led by coach Kim Jung-soo’s attacking theory and some poor defending by the opposition, South Korea arrive to the quarterfinals as easily the most attacking side. The Red Devils have scored 12 times in three games, without conceding any, and it will be an uphill task for the Indian boys to match up to their height aerially, their speed on the pitch, and their handful smartness when they dribble.

The Korea Republic side scored 12 goals in the group stages of the tournament

Almost every player in this side is a good dribbler, sans the centre-backs. Their dribbling has made the life of a lot of defenders difficult and India will be no different. The team have won the title twice and have been runners-up the same number of times, so they know how to win. However, they did crash out at the group stage in 2016 and India will expect them to have another poor day at the office.

The team starts in a 4-2-3-1 shape, with at least four players running with engine every time a player has the ball at his feet. The full-backs make marauding runs forward and their cutbacks can hurt India. Thus, Ridge and Vikram will need to track back deep.

South Korea’s strength lies in their three aggressive midfielders in the form of Seo Jae-min, Yoon Seok-joo and Kim Dong-jyun. Jeong Sang-bin scored twice against Afghanistan, so he cannot be left out of the list as well.

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Coaches Corner

Kim Jung Soo (Korea Republic)

“I would like to congratulate our players for qualifying to the knockout stage. However, we are facing an important match in the quarterfinals. We will prepare for this game just like all the other games.” 

“Credit must be given to the Indian team who have made it past the group stage without conceding a goal. I think all the teams that have qualified to the knockout stage can be considered favourites for this tournament. We have to take all games from now on seriously.”

Bibiano Fernandes (India)

“It has been a great honour for the Indian team to qualify for the knockout stage after 16 years and congratulations to each one of us for having worked very hard,”

“We are the underdogs because Korea Republic have got a good team and they are tactically swift. Individually and tactically they have better players in every position. We have done a good job so far without conceding a goal."

“We are going into the quarterfinal, we know the challenges as we are playing Korea Republic and we will be looking forward to facing them. This is what we have been preparing for all this time and I think my players deserve to be at this stage and we will give our best.”

Telecast

The game will be telecast live on Star Sports 2/2HD from IST 6 pm on Monday.

Venue

The stadium that seats 25,000 spectators was opened in 1996. It hosted rugby at the 1998 Commonwealth Games and was later renovated in 2004. The Malaysian Indian Sports Council is one of its tenants and that may give the Indian lads a little homely feeling.

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What To Expect

A Korean victory. This may sound a little biased against India, but that’s how this tie stands at the moment. India will start as massive underdogs and if they can pull off a win against Korea, they will have done a Leicester City here.