Kushal Das says India U-20 team to play four nations Cup in Croatia

It was a beautiful start to the week for Indian football fans as they woke up to the news of the U-20 boy’s team recording a 2-1 victory over mighty Argentina at the COTIF Cup in Valencia. But it wasn’t the only positive result for India, as the U-16 team also beat Asian Champions Iran by a scoreline of 1-0 in the WAFF tournament.

After the high that the win brought to the young players and to Indian fans all across the globe, AIFF general secretary Kushal Das added that talks were in place for the U-20 team to travel to Croatia to play a four-nation tournament as well.

"We were always positive and had belief in these boys. Our youth development is doing pretty well and these results are due to that. We are next trying to send the U-20 team to Croatia for a four-nation tournament," Das told PTI sources, hours after the Indian boys beat the Argentinian outfit.

The under-16 team defeated Asian champions Iraq for the first time thanks to a last-gasp goal while the U-20 side held on to their lead despite being reduced to 10-men in the second half of the game.

The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) did not grant permission to the men's and women's football teams to travel to Indonesia for the upcoming Asian Games, and Das was one of the senior members of the AIFF to publicly express his disappointment over their decision.

"I can only says that it's very unfortunate and sad. Football is such a global game and you can't use the same criteria for football and handball. I think they (IOA officials) just failed to understand that. We remain optimistic and will try to do whatever it takes to improve," Das added.