Bhubaneswar: Burying the 0-8 loss in the opener against the USA, India is now to restart their FIFA World Cup under-17 women’s championship campaign eyeing points in the play against Morocco in Group A here on Friday.
“ We have a good chance against Morocco tomorrow. If we can show the right attitude, we can score and get some points,” said Thomas Dennerby on the eve of play at the Kalinga Stadium here.
“We need to fight it out–we have no other option left,” the Swedish football strategist has now a one-point agenda.
“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 percent 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 stands at the bottom of the table because of a poorer goal difference. A win for India would help India stay in contention for qualifying for the next round.
“Morocco is a strong team, who defends well. They are technically good with their passing game, the accuracy is also impressive”, the 63-year-old football manager opined.
“We have watched them play against Brazil and scoring against them will be a challenge. But for us, it is either a win or out of the tournament. The girls need to play free football and they should avail every chance that comes their way. If they are afraid to hold on to the ball, then they may lose the game immediately,” said the Swedish coach.
Derby is optimistic that the match against Morocco is a perfect opportunity for India to make a strong showing.
“The fans felt we weren’t good in our last game. But this time, we have got a chance to handle the game in a better manner and show them that India certainly can play a better brand of football,” he said.
