India U-20 aim to build on previous win against Nepal

The Blue colts registered their first victory against Sri Lanka on Friday.

The India U-20 National Team will look to build on their win against Sri Lanka to carry the momentum forward in their next match against Nepal, which kicks-off at 7pm tomorrow (Sunday, July 31, 2022) at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar.

The match will be streamed live on SportzWorkz YouTube channel, and on the Eleven Sports platforms.Speaking on the eve of the match, head coach Venkatesh Shanmugam said that the 4-0 victory against Sri Lanka “provides the team with much needed confidence. But it’s just the start.”

“Winning matches is the most important part. Winning by a good margin gives the players the belief that they can break down rival defences. I hope we can carry the same mentality into the next game as well,” said Venkatesh.

“It’s just a first win. It was a good performance against Sri Lanka. But we now need to focus on the next two matches against Nepal, and Maldives,” he quipped. “This result of course will give a lot of confidence to the boys, and they can come to the next game with a strong mindset.”

Nepal have had a couple of good performances so far in the SAFF U-20 Championship, defeating the Maldives 4-0 and Sri Lanka 3-0 their first two matches. Tactician Shanmugam Venkatesh feels that it will be a much closer fight between India and Nepal in the upcoming game.

“The next game is very crucial for us, and the boys know that. It is a tough game, and Nepal have shown that they are a very good side. Both the teams are quite close. It’s going to be a tough game again, but we need to play our game and get the job done,” averred the mentor.