AFC U17 Asian Cup Qualifiers: India's Ishfaq Ahmed 'happy' to face Turkmenistan

The Blue Colts tactician praised their upcoming opponents but welcomed the challenge for his side with open arms.

On Wednesday, India matched their biggest competitive win in U-16/U-17 men’s team history with a 13-0 thrashing of Brunei Darussalam in the AFC U17 Asian Cup Qualifiers 2025 opener in Chonburi. Ishfaq Ahmed’s boys equalled a 40-year-old record set during the AFC U16 Championship Qualifiers in 1984 when India beat Macau 13-0 just 80 kilometres away in Bangkok.

The Indian head coach expressed his delight with a victory that will surely go down in Indian youth football history. “I’m really proud of my boys. They did quite well. I expected this kind of a start since Brunei is a weak side in our group and we wanted to score many goals.”

Ishfaq Ahmed was particularly happy with the fact that as many as 11 different players added their names to the scoresheet, and with some quality goals. His pick of the bunch was the 13th and final strike by Usham Thoungamba Singh – a bullet strike from 20 yards out that crashed into the roof of the net in the 94th minute.

“So many different goalscorers give everyone a lot of confidence. It was great to see both our centre-backs scoring – a header (Mohammed Kaif) and a volley (Sumit Sharma). That has become kind of a norm with this team. Set pieces are very important. We talked about how we should finish the game in the first half itself. I wanted to take out some players to preserve their energy for the next game.

I would’ve loved to see our strikers score more. We have to learn to be lethal in front of goal. we have two stronger opponents (Turkmenistan and Thailand) to play and there might be fewer chances against them, and you have to take them,” he said.

Hat-trick hero Vishal Yadav, who was the only player to score multiple goals, was confident of his scoring abilities before arriving in Thailand. The winger shared, “Before the game, I believed I would score goals. Our plan was to score as many as possible. The first goal gave me a lot of confidence. I first thought of cutting it across and setting up a teammate but after looking at the goalkeeper I went for the far post with my left foot and found the bottom corner.”

The Varanasi boy, who plays for Punjab FC, now has six goals for India U-17, the highest in the current squad. That includes a crucial brace against Nepal in the SAFF U-17 Championship semi-final last month. “It always feels great to score for the country, for the India badge, and help the team. We want to continue with the winning mentality and qualify for the Asian Cup,” said Yadav.

On Friday, October 25, India will meet Turkmenistan in their second group D match at the Chonburi Stadium at 14:30 IST. Turkmenistan went down 0-2 to Thailand in their opening match on Wednesday for which Ishfaq Ahmed was in attendance.

“I think it was an even game. The red card for Turkmenistan changed everything. They were a bit unlucky not to score. They are a very physical side and it will be a tougher test for us,” said the Indian coach.

The Central Asians were reduced to 10 men early in the second half when captain and centre-back Kakamyrat Babayev was shown a second yellow card, meaning he will be suspended for the India clash.

In August, Turkmenistan participated in the CAFA U-17 Championship where they lost 0-1 to Uzbekistan and 1-6 to Iran before beating Kyrgyzstan 2-0 to finish in fifth place. However, judging their performance against hosts and favourites Thailand on Wednesday, Ishfaq Ahmed feels they are an improved side from two months ago.

“We have to be ready for a physical battle. Most importantly, we have to be prepared mentally. I’m happy to play these kinds of teams. If you want to qualify for the Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia, you have to beat these teams. Only then will it be worth going there and competing against the best in Asia. I’m confident about my boys that they will have a good game tomorrow,” said Ahmed.

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