In their opening match of the AFC U-16 Championship, the Indian lads put a wonderful show, especially in the first half but couldn't sustain the energy – eventually succumbing to a 2-3 defeat to a side who's national team is ranked 70 places above the Indian national team.
Nicolai Adam's boys, though, can take a lot of heart from the performance, and will have learned a lot of valuable lessons.
Here's a look at how the junior Blues performed -
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Dheeraj Singh Moirangtem (GK) – 7.5/10
The Manipuri shot-stopper see-sawed during the first half, and nothing encapsulated this better than three incidents that occurred between the 33rd and 35th minutes – he had a horror tackle penalised, saved the subsequent penalty brilliantly (diving low down to his left), and had a howler that gifted UAE their opening goal.
Dheeraj showed considerable mental strength to improve as the match went and made few errors but was not at fault for the other two goals
Mohamad Rakip – 6.5/10
The defender who idolises Sergio Ramos had a solid game at the back and had a relatively error-free game. Rakip also tracked his opposition winger well and gave him very little room to do damage. The Indian was sacrificed for Khumanthem N Meetei later on as India went in search of an equaliser
Jitendra Singh – 6.5/10
The Kolkata defender had a relatively error-free game at the back and marshalled the backline well alongside Mohammed Sarif. Singh could have done better with the third goal where Ahmed Fawzi breezed past him, but will learn from the experience and learn to leverage the physical side of his game better
Mohammed Sarif Khan – 6.5/10
The defender who says his favourite player is Mats Hummels, put in a very Hummels-esque performance tonight, looking smooth and languid for most of the game but getting caught out (along with Jitendra) for the Emirati goals. Khan covered well throughout the game and made some vital interceptions/clearances.
Sanjeev Stalin – 8/10
The left-back was neat in defence and supported his winger going forward but he was simply stupendous on set-pieces. The resident free-kick expert curled in an absolutely delightful free-kick into the top right corner to open the scoring for India.
Stalin had another superb free kick saved by the keeper, the rebound headed over from point blank distance by Aman Chetri. A very two-footed player, he also put in a couple of good crosses as well from the left.
Suresh Singh Wangjam – 6/10
The captain of the team, Suresh controlled the game brilliantly in the opening 45 as India bossed the much larger (physically) UAE team along with Amarjit. Wangjam screened his defence well for most of the match but faded along with most of his other team-mates as the game wore on.
The player was lucky not to get sent off for kicking out in frustration on the 80th minute and was subbed out for Lalengmawia in the dying stages of the game as Adams sought more energy from his team
Amarjit Singh Kayam – 7/10
The Manipur lad absolutely bossed the midfield in the first 45 before fading a little along with his captain. Kayam showed great energy levels as ran himself into the ground while playing as a box-to-box midfielder for the full 90 minutes.
Boris Singh Thangjam – 9/10
The player frequently interchanged with Aniket and excelled on both sides. Thangjam was tirelessly running up and down and showed some twinkle-toed dribbling skills that left the UAE fullbacks grasping for air. His dribbling allied with a devastating turn of pace will make him a vital asset for this Indian team.
Komal Thatal – 8/10
The trequartista started fantastically well with a wonder run that almost culminated in a goal in the 4th minute. Much to his credit, he elected to stay on his feet where he could easily have gone down.
Thatal grew from strength to strength as the match wore on and had a couple of very decent runs and shots at goal. Tiredness crept into Thatal’s game by the fag end, probably due to his incessant off-the-ball pressing
Aman Chetri – 7.5/10
The forward had a couple of good shots on goal, but will rue a couple of ghastly misses in the 88th and 89th minute – one a header from close range that went over, and another a wild swipe inside the box that caught nothing but air. Chetri never ran away from a scoring opportunity despite the misses, showing that he has what it takes mentally to be a top-class striker.
His ability to produce snapshots from implausible situations kept the keeper and the central defenders on their toes throughout.
Aniket Anil Jadhav – 9.5/10
The lad from Kolhapur was irresistible throughout and was arguably India's best player – just shading it from his fellow winger Boris. Jadhav produced many fantastic runs down both flanks and produced the match's stand-out moment when he tricked his way down the left with a touch of magic.
The Indian showed no hesitation in shooting when the occasion called for it and was commendably disciplined off the ball as he tracked back constantly and put in a couple of vital blocks.
Substitutes
Khumanthem N Meetei – NA
Lalengmawia - NA
Both players came in too late to impact the game
