BHUBANESWAR, Oct 18: Five months of preparation was not enough for the Indian team to get ready for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, said head coach Thomas Dennerby.
Hosts India crashed out of the tournament with three successive defeats, conceding as many as 16 goals.
“We have been away from our family since March, trying to have a good performance, but we need to accept the fact that these five months were not enough to get ready to really challenge the best teams,” Dennerby said after India’s last match.
India were awarded a spot in the World Cup main draw by the virtue of being the tournament hosts.
India ended their campaign without scoring a goal and suffered a 0-5 defeat to formidable Brazil in their last group match here on Monday.
“For India, the tournament is over,” the 63-year-old said after the match at the Kalinga Stadium.
“There is no chance to come to the knockout stage. Of course, it is always painful to leave the World Cup in the group stage.
“In one way, I am still proud of the girls because they were putting in the extra effort, working very hard and trying their very best,” the coach added.
Prior to the match against Brazil, India conceded eight goals in their opening match against the USA and three against Morocco.
“India has a good chance to be a top team in Asia. You have talented players enough and we showed that today, but they need time,” Dennerby said at the post-match press conference.
“They need to come to a good environment where they do training sessions every single day. It can’t be like working very, very hard for two-three months and then stop two-three months and go back again because you’ll always reach the same level. The consistency and playing regularly is what we need to have.
“We need to have a good long-term programme for them with a really good schedule because I know when I see your players that there are talented players. But we need to take care of them at an early age and let them play football at good academies,” he added. (PTI)
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