India U17 gear up for SAFF U17 Championship in Bhutan

The Blue Colts will compete in a familiar yet meteorologically challenging environment.

The flight to Paro, Bhutan, is one of the most picturesque and thrilling travel experiences you can get in the world. Looking down on the majestic Mount Everest, the highest point on earth actually feels surreal. Its peak spears past the thickest of clouds. This journey is nothing new for the India U-17 football team. Exactly 12 months ago, they did the same trip and had the SAFF U16 Championship trophy as extra luggage on the return flight as well.

However, the excitement was brand new again when the Blue Colts touched down in Bhutan on Wednesday evening to take the crown again. Of the squad of 23, 16 were part of last year’s triumphant campaign under head coach Ishfaq Ahmed, and are looking to make it two in two.

Paro International Airport is considered one of the most challenging airports to land in the world. Traversing the mountains, landing on a narrow runway running parallel to the Paro Chhu River, with a hair-raising final approach provides an adrenaline rush. It’s almost customary for passengers to applaud the pilots after the plane lands successfully in Paro. The Blue Colts will hope to continue their custom of success in Bhutan.

It’s an hour-long road journey from Paro to Thimphu, the capital, where all matches of the SAFF U-17 Championship will be played from September 20 to 30. En route, Ishfaq Ahmed shares his fascination for the mountain nation.

“I love this place. It’s my second time here. The weather is always brilliant for football. Whenever we play here, it feels like home because there’s a lot of support for India. It’s our neighbouring country, not too far from us. We have really good memories from last year, so hopefully we repeat that.”

India U-17 began training at their base camp in Srinagar in July, more than two months ago. In the last week of August, they travelled to Indonesia to play two friendly matches against the hosts, losing 1-3 and winning 1-0, respectively. Training at the TRC Ground in Srinagar at an altitude of 1,500 metres on artificial turf, like Thimphu’s Changlimithang Stadium, has been beneficial. Thimphu is located at over 2,400 metres.

“Thimphu is higher in terms of altitude, the air is thinner, so it does take some time to adjust. We struggled a bit in our first game against Bangladesh last year (winning 1-0). Hopefully, we can do better this time. We are better prepared, and had a fantastic exposure trip, which helped us see the level of the boys,” said Ahmed.

India will begin their campaign against Bangladesh in Group A on September 20 at 17:30 IST before playing Maldives on September 24. The semi-finals are on September 28, followed by the final on September 30.

“In the last leg of our training in Srinagar, we focused more on tactical stuff. After being together for two months, the fitness levels are much better than in the initial couple of weeks. We played a few matches locally. Players have been combining and communicating well, which is key in big games. We made a few tweaks, did the post-mortem of the Indonesia friendlies. I am happy with our preparations,” concluded Ahmed.

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