MARGAO
India kept their hopes of reaching the knockout stage of the AFC U-17 Women’s Asian Cup alive with a commanding 4-0 win over Lebanon in their final Group B fixture at the Suzhou Taihu Football Sports Centre in China on Friday.
The victory marked a historic moment for the Young Tigresses, who registered their first win in the competition in more than two decades and moved to within touching distance of qualifying for the knockout stage for the first time in 21 years.
India goalkeeper coach Mario Aguiar said the players are highly motivated to secure qualification for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
“Everyone knows how important the qualifying matches are for every side. This will be a tough road, but all the players are passionate about progressing through the qualifiers,” Aguiar said.
“For us, there is only one goal ” to qualify for the World Cup. This is a very important year for the team,” he added.
“We have to achieve positive results in the qualifiers. We have to do it for India,” Aguiar stressed.
The former Sesa Goa goalkeeper also praised Muni’s performances during the tournament.
“Goalkeeper Muni is showing excellent reflexes in every match and has shown remarkable improvement. The team is fully prepared and I am very confident. We will give our 110 per cent,” he said.
India will now face China in a decisive clash on May 11, with a place in the next round and potential qualification for the World Cup at stake.
“It is a big dream for every player to qualify for the World Cup. We hope to take on China strongly. We must be ready physically and mentally and try our best to get all three points. We should not think about past results and must focus only on this match,” Aguiar added.
