Kathmandu: Confidence on sky high after the 5-0 rout of Maldives in their last group league match, India coach Thomas Joseph expects a repeat performance from his “talented” wards against hosts Nepal in the semi-final of the SAAF U-16 football tournament here on August 8.
While India, who emerged second from Group A, will take on the Group B winners Nepal in the second semi-final, Pakistan will be up against Bangladesh in the first last four match to be played on the same day.
“They are a very good side and the results speaks for them. However, our boys are up for the task. We take one match at a time and our sole aim now is to win the semifinal,” Joseph said of the upcoming tie.
“It’s equally important for everyone to understand their role as so far they have done a great job. We find difficulty in picking up the starting XI as almost all of them are equally talented,” he added.
After a slow start to the tournament, the Indian colts showed great improvement and impressed all and sundry with their performance against Maldives.
“You need to give credit to these guys. They showed a great presence of mind and stuck to the plans,” said a proud Joseph. (PTI)