Infantino hails India’s performance after five wins at U-15 World Cup

New Delhi: FIFA president Gianni Infantino has praised India’s performance at the inaugural FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival in Azerbaijan, describing the young side as a “very, very strong team” and highlighting its campaign as one of the tournament’s major highlights.

In a video interaction with a young Indian footballer, shared on his Instagram account, Infantino acknowledged India’s performances during the competition and said the tournament was about more than just winning matches, particularly for players at the Under-15 level.

“India won quite a few games. You have actually been a very, very strong team in this very first FIFA World Cup and Festival here in Azerbaijan. It has been one of the highlights,” Infantino said.

“Many teams have performed well, many players have done fantastically, and it’s important in football, in any case, especially at the Under-15 level, of course, to come, to enjoy the experience, to learn and to go back home with something that you can cherish and take with you for your whole life,” he added.

Coached by Bibiano Fernandes, India finished 87th among 189 participating nations after playing 10 matches in the inaugural tournament in Baku.

The Blue Colts registered five victories, defeating Laos (4-2), Cameroon (2-1), Bahrain, Trinidad and Tobago, and Cuba (6-4). They suffered four defeats against Senegal, Honduras, Afghanistan and Kazakhstan, while their only draw came against Grenada (3-3), despite taking a three-goal lead in the match.

India signed off their campaign on a winning note, beating Cuba 6-4 in the 87th-place play-off at the Hovsan Competition Complex on October 30.

R Lalremruatfela emerged as India’s leading goalscorer with nine goals, while Lalawmpuia finished with eight. Nibas contributed four goals, with Macdonnish Ngairangbam and Ronandev Aheibam scoring three each. C Lalhmingropuia and Soumojit Sarkar also found the net during the campaign.