Shillong Lajong to organise match between NorthEast XI & India U17 squad
India will be hosting its first ever FIFA Tournament in the form of FIFA U17 World Cup in 2017 to be played over 6 Indian cities in the second half of 2017, it will be the first time that India by virtue of being the host nation will be featuring in a World Cup.
With the aim of putting together a strong competitive side to compete at the event; the All India Football Federation formally flagged off its preparations for the upcoming tournament in November 2015.
The India U17 World Cup team has had extensive preparation with camps in Germany, Spain & UAE and also played the AFC U16 qualifiers performing admirably against teams such as Bahrain, Lebanon & Iran.
India U17 World Cup Coach Nicholai Adams wants to further strengthen the squad and hence begun a second round of scouting across India. Keeping in mind some new additions the India World Cup team will now play a select North East team, being organised and fielded by Shillong Lajong Football Club with the support and cooperation of all the state football associations of the North East including Sikkim. In total a 22 member squad consisting of boys from 7 North Eastern states of Assam, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura are currently training with Shillong Lajong FC in Shillong. Lajong’s Head of Youth Development Gumpe Rime and AIFF Coach Francisco Bruto Da Costa are overlooking the preparation for this squad. Shillong Lajong will be organising a game for this select NorthEast XI to face the India U17 squad on January 29 in Guwahati. The effort will be supported on ground by Assam State Football Association.
National team scouts will be present at the game and select the most outstanding players who will be part of the U-17 World Cup Probable Squad.
