A four-goal blitz from Aman Chettri and a double strike by Komal Thattal in the first half helped India Under-17 football team whip a select WIFA U17 XI 8-0 in an exhibition match played under lights at the Cooperage stadium here today.
Exhibiting commendable physical prowess, good skills with the ball and good position play, India XI, preparing for the FIFA Under 17 World Cup under the tutelage of Coach Nikolai Adam, caught the eye with their slick moves.
Had they not missed innumerable scoring chances, the scoreline could have well reached double digits.
After a few missed opportunities, Chettri opened the scoring in the 18th minute.
Two goals in a span of four minutes by Komal Thattal made it 3-0 by the 28th minute before Chettri slammed home three goals in a row - in the 33rd, 43rd and two minutes into first half injury time.
WIFA XI, who put on a game fight in the initial minutes, were just overpowered by the opposition, who were superior in every facet of the game.
The second half was a mere formality and substitute Saurabh Meher made it 7-0, before another substitute, Abhijit Sarkar, rounded off the tally.
"We would like to thank WIFA for arranging the match on such a short notice. My boys did well considering the fact that they were burnt out. This is the first exhibition match and we will play in West Bengal and Guwahati after a break. The boys have to work on their finish, otherwise we could have won by a bigger margin," said Nikolai.
