FIFA U-17 World Cup | It’s a pity the ball hit the post, says India U-17 coach Luis Norton de Matos

10/10/2017

India U-17 head coach Luis Norton de Matos lamented the misfortune of his young side who hit the goal post yet again on Sunday during their second group stage match against Colombia and ended up losing 2-1. The loss has brought the hosts on the brink of an early elimination from the tournament.

After a 3-0 loss to USA in the opening group stage game where India’s U-17 side was denied by the crossbar, the incident happened yet again on Sunday. Full-back Rahul Kannoly's left-footed volley beat the Colombian goalkeeper easily before it was deflected wide by the goal post.

After the game, which India eventually lost 2-1, coach Luis Norton de Matos said, “It is a pity that the ball hit the post and we did not score. Had we scored a goal, we would have been 1-0 up and the outcome of this match could have been different."

"In the first match against USA also, the ball hit the post and on the counter, they (USA) scored. That match would have been 2-1 (in favour of USA) and in today's match, the result would have been different. We could have won or at least it would have been 2-2," Matos added.

However, India scoring their first ever goal in a FIFA event through Jeakson Singh was definitely a moment to cherish and the Portuguese tactician looked relieved nonetheless. India lost the game due to a concentration lapse and the coach rightly blamed it on the side’s inexperience.

He said, “It (the goal of Colombia) happened within minutes of our goal (through Jeakson Singh). Had our players settled down for three-four minutes, the goal would not have been there. It was due to the inexperience of the players."

India’s hero of the day Jeakson Singh was euphoric after putting his name in the annals of history and his long run stretching across the ground was evident to it. “It was a nice experience and I felt on cloud nine when I scored the goal, however, we tried our best but were unlucky. It is obviously a great feeling to score for my country in a FIFA World Cup but it would have been sweeter had we won the match.”

“To me, in fact, it does not even matter as long as we score. We deserved a result, and we tried our very best to get it but in the process, we learnt a huge lesson what international football is all about," Singh added.

India take on Ghana on October 12 where even will not guarantee them a qualification to the next round as they have to wait for the other results.