The Indian Under-16 football team is all set to take part in the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Under-15 Championship for boys starting on Friday in Nepal.
Though the tournament is for the Under-15 category, India will be fielding its Under-16 team for this year's Championship.
The SAFF Under-15 Championship is a discontinuity of the earlier SAFF Under-16 Championship. The motive behind the change is to allow teams to have a better preparation for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under-16 qualifiers to be held later this year.
There are six countries taking part in the tournament that have been divided into two pools of three teams each.
The top two teams from each pool will progress to the semi-finals. India has been placed with Maldives and host Nepal in Group B while Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka occupy Group A.
India 23-man squad
Goalkeepers: Lalbiakhlua Jongte, Niraj Kumar, Manik Baliyan
Defenders: Sandip Mandi, Shabas Ahammed, Gurkirat Singh, Harpreet Singh, Samir Kerketta, Moirangthem Thoiba Singh, Lalrokima
Midfielders: Lalchhanhima Sailo, Eric Remruatpuia Chhangte, Givson Singh Moirangthem, Aenam Graffenberg Jyrwa, Ricky John Shabong, Ravi Bahadur Rana
Strikers: Bekey Oram, Vikram Partap Singh, Harpreet, Ridge Melvin Demello, Shanon, Aleixinho Viegas, Adarsh Rai Das, Subungsa Basumatary
Head Coach: Bibiano Fernandes
Venues: ANFA Complex, Lalitpur and Halchowk Stadium
Groups
| Group A | Group B |
| Bhutan | Nepal |
| Bangladesh | India |
| Sri Lanka | Maldives |
Schedule
| Date | Team | Vs | Team | Time (IST) | Venue |
| 18-08-2017 | Bangladesh | Vs | Sri Lanka | 14:45 | ANFA Complex |
| 19-08-2017 | India | Vs | Maldives | 14:45 | ANFA Complex |
| 20-08-2017 | Sri Lanka | Vs | Bhutan | 14:45 | ANFA Complex |
| 21-08-2017 | Maldives | Vs | Nepal | 14:45 | ANFA Complex |
| 22-08-2017 | Bhutan | Vs | Bangladesh | 14:45 | ANFA Complex |
| 23-08-2017 | Nepal | Vs | India | 14:45 | ANFA Complex |
| 25-08-2017 | Champion A | Vs | Runners-up B | 14:45 | ANFA Complex |
| 25-08-2017 | Champion B | Vs | Runners-up A | 14:45 | Halchowk Stadium |
| 27-08-2017 | 3-4 place match | 13:45 | Halchowk Stadium | ||
| 27-08-2017 | Final | 14:45 | ANFA Complex | ||
“The team is all prepared to face the challenges in the SAFF Championships. This will be a perfect practice for the AFC U-16 Championship Qualifiers,” India’s coach Fernandes said.
“The tournament will help us strategise and know our strengths and weaknesses. We’ve played well in our practice games but competitive matches are always a different scenario,” he added. “But I’ve full faith that my boys will deliver.
The Indian team arrived in Nepal on Wednesday and will be training for two days before opening its campaign against Maldives on Saturday. The Championship will kick-off on Friday with Bangladesh taking on Sri Lanka in the opener at the ANFA Complex.
Bangladesh are the defending champions for the Championship after they beat India via penalties in the 2015 SAFF Under-16 edition in Dhaka.