BASIL SYLVESTER PINTO
PANAJI
With wins against Vietnam and UAE respectively Islamic Republic of Iran and Japan are the first two sides to not only book a place for the semi-finals of the ongoing AFC U-16 Championship India 2016, but also seal two of the four available spots from the tournament for the FIFA U-17 World Cup which will be held in India next year.
On Monday, the third quarter-finals match-up features Oman taking on DPR Korea at 4 pm at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda while In the final last-eight fixture (kick-off: 7 pm) at GMC Stadium, Bambolim, Group D table-toppers Uzbekistan take on Iraq, who finished second in Group C.
Oman, who have twice won the age-group Championship emerged leaders in Group C to progress to the next round. They started with an encouraging 3-0 result against Malaysia, to hold a strong Korea Republic side 1-1 and repeat the score-line against a confident Iraq side. On the other hand, DPR Korea who looks to be the first nation to win back-to-back titles at the AFC U-16 Championship started their campaign well with an easy 2-0 outing against Yemen, to swamp Thailand 4-1 in their next engagement only to go down 1-3 against a highly competitive Uzbekistan side. By then, they had already done enough to find a place in the last eight stage, but the defeat ended their group stage as second-best in Group D.
A confident Oman U-16 Head Coach Yaqoub Al Sabahi looking ahead at their semi-final game against DPR Korea had this to say. “First of all, it is not going to be an easy game. We need to be careful. I think DPR Korea is a good team. But we have high hopes and we will be ready for the game. We know from the beginning that coming here whichsoever the team we play we want to achieve something and thus have to put in our best efforts. Our players have the confidence to play this game and qualify to the U-17 World Cup, the Gulf nation gaffer remarked.
DPR Korea Head Coach Yun Jong-su on his opposition stated that looking at the results of Oman so far it was obvious that they were a strong team in their group stage. “Our team target is to qualify for the U-17 World Cup next year and we will do our best,” the confident East Asian gaffer said. Given the fact that they have played all their group games at GMC, Bambolim, and their game against Oman on Monday is at another venue, the DPR Korea was asked if it would affect the team. “It is true we are playing the quarter-finals at another venue (PJN Stadium, Fatorda), but what matters is how we prepare, the field does not matter,” Jong-su replied downplaying the concept.
On feeling pressure for the game ahead with the winner automatically qualifying to the U-17 World Cup, the Oman Head Coach stated that they prepare for the present. “This game (v DPR Korea) is like the last game for us and we will be there. Our mentality is that we need to win this game, “Al Sabahi, the Head Coach of the twice AFC U-16 Championship nation stated.
On his part, Jong-su, the DPR Korea gaffer admitted that if they win the game they will qualify for the junior World Cup next year. “For our young players it would a dream to play the World Cup. But I do not think there is any stress on them. For the quarter-finals, our players will try their best physically, mentally and strategically to get the desired results,” he opined. Competition records state that DPR Korea are one of the strongest teams at the tournament and have reached the finals on four of the last six editions.
A proven player in their ranks, the availability of their No.7 player, Kim Hwi-hwang for the all-important game after serving a one-match suspension, holds a lot of weightage to the DPR Korea side. Admitting that his presence would boost their side, Jong-su said: “Number 7 is one of the best players in our team who plays as a forward and we depend a lot on his performance. I expect a lot of him and he has to be prepared for the next match.”
Oman is not short of influential players either. And Arshad Al Alawi who has scored thrice in the Group Stage has emerged as their key player in the tournament. Without discounting on his talent, the Oman Coach believed that Arshad was only good as the rest of his team. “Arshad is a good player, but he is not scoring by himself. We have 11 good players on the field and for me in football it is about team-work. And if the other players do not perform, so won’t he and I hope the team plays collectively well.”
On playing the defending champions, Oman Head Coach admitted that they were up against a high quality outfit. “DPR Korea is one of the best in Asia in all the 16 Championship editions thus far. From the beginning, we were ready to face any team. We need to present our country well in the game. It has been a long time we have been away from the U-17 World Cup. I think the moment is come and I hope we reach our dream,” Al Sabahi stated.
Uzbekistan’s who won the title once in 2012 are pretty much capable of going all the way again. Their passage to the quarters stage has been quite facile winning all their games “ against Thailand 5-3, Yemen 1-0 and DPR Korea 3-1. In the meanwhile, Iraq would look to improve their best performance in the competition which was a semi-final appearance back in 2012. They took to the group stage by upsetting the applecart with a 2-1 win against Republic of Korea, before playing out two identical 1-1 score-line draws against Malaysia and Oman to advance to the final eight.
Iraq U-16 Head Coach Qahtan Chitheer while looking at their match on Monday appeared positive. “It is a big game against Uzbekistan. We look forward going to the World Championship. I think it will be a good match with the audience enjoying it,” Chitheer said. His very experienced Uzbekistan counterpart, Timur Alimkhodjayev felt that their next game was like any other quarters stage game in the Championship. “Regarding the upcoming match, all other teams that have qualified for the quarter-finals stage are strong ones. We expect a strong match, beautiful game (v Iraq). Both the teams will try to reach to the next stage and qualify for the U-17 World Cup next year but we will try our best to be the winners,” the Central Asian side Head Coach affirmed.
On added pressure for the game with the winner getting a U-17 World Cup ticket, The Head Coaches thoughts were elicited. The West Asian country Head Coach Chitheer stated that like the other teams in fray they look forward to the Championship. “We will not play with pressure, but will play relaxed. In order to go forward to the end of the mission we need to do just that as the U-16 players that we brought here should learn to cope with the situation if they want to represent their senior team in the future,” Chitheer opined. The Uzbek U-16 coach Alimkhodjayev stated matter-a-factly: “All games are played under pressure. We had a lot of preparations for this tourney which should keep us in good stead.”
On the strengths of the opposition, the Iraq U-16 coach, Chitheer was very respectful. “We hope our players will gain experience and good lessons in such group of teams to ensure our further progress. Uzbekistan is a respected team with good, strong players,” he added.
“Iraq is very good individually. As a team, they have prepared well in tactics. So it will be a tough match,” the Uzbek coach Alimkhodjayev assessed on their immediate opposition.
