BHUBANESWAR: The final outcome of the opening match against the USA was a real eye-opener for the India U-17 Women’s football team. The manner of the defeat was a harsh one. Leaving the disappointment of the 0-8 defeat behind, India coach Thomas Dennerby is now looking to inspire his wards to come up with an improved display in their second outing of the ongoing FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup. Facing Morocco in a Group A meeting on Friday, Dennerby is hopeful that India can return with points in the marquee event.
“We have a good chance against Morocco tomorrow (Friday). If we can show the right attitude, we can score and get some points,” said Dennerby on Thursday. “We need to fight it out — we have no other option left,” he said.
The coach is hopeful that the girls can come up with better decision-making on the pitch when they take the field against the African nation. “We have a team that can definitely handle the speed but football is not all about running or the number of sprints the girls take. It is also about taking the right decisions at the right moment. That was the biggest problem we faced against the USA in our early game – the girls need to put their hundred per cent on the pitch,” Dennerby added.
Morocco lost 1-0 against Brazil in the opening match of Group A and neither India nor Morocco are yet to log a point. India sits at the bottom of the table because of poorer goal differences. A win for India would help them stay in contention.
“Morocco is a strong team, who defends well. They are technically good with their passing game, the accuracy is also impressive. For us, it is either a win or an out of the tournament. The girls need to play free football and they should avail themselves every chance that comes their way.” India vs Morocco, Live on Sports18 from 8 pm