India U-16 football team lose to China in four-nation meet

India's U-16 team's hopes of winning against the hosts were crushed as China defeated India 1-0 in the Four-nation International Tournament in China's Wei Nan city on Tuesday. China were ferocious during the opening exchanges of the match and goalkeeper Biaka had to come up with two stupendous saves in the 16th and 17th minute to keep India in the game.

India had almost taken the lead in the 30th minute of the game when Ridge De'Mello's ambitious attempt hit the woodwork. It was followed by another close moment when Vikram's shot missed the target by a whisker and India were looking dangerous.

China, however, didn’t mellow down and made India regret missing their chances in the 42nd minute by taking a 1-0 just ahead of the half-time. Playing against an experienced side like China wasn’t easy but the Indian team managed to make their attack consistent.

De'Mello remained a threat throughout the game for the hosts and saw himself coming close to scoring in the early second-half as well, but couldn’t really capitalize on the chances.