India loses to South Africa in the BRICS U-17 Football Tournament

The BRICS U-17 football tournament has not been a happy affair for the under -17 Indian football team. The U-17 team recently recorded their second defeat after they were defeated by the South Africans (0-1). This match which was played at the GMC stadium saw the South African team giving a stiff challenge to the aggressive Indians. The only goal scored in this match was scored by the South African U-17 team in the second half of the match. This goal happened to be their winning goal of the match as well. With this impressive victory against the Indian team the South Africans have gathered their first three points of the tournament. On the other hand the Indian U-17 team who were defeated by the Russians in their opening encounter of the tournament seems to be a in a tight spot without a single point. The fast and furious U-17 South African team seems to be more agile and fit compared to the Indian team. Ndamolelo Radzilani from the South African side scored the very important single goal for the team in the 22^nd minute thus enabling them to win the match and also gather full points.

The match saw both the hosts and the visiting South Africans playing an attacking game. The U-17 team of South Africa which touched the Indian soil last Friday night did not show any signs of any travel fatigue. The team was successful in moving the ball with ease with short quick passes. The short quick passes were also followed by overhead passes. These passes made the Indian defence look brittle and weak which ultimately led to the visiting South Africans scoring their match-winning goal in the 22^nd minute. South African footballer Lyle Foster showed a lot of promise and determination. He displayed his agility by making a quick rundown on the left and sent a high cross into U-17 Indian team. This saw the entire Indian team’s defence being broken. On the other hand complimenting his teammate Lyle Foster, Ndamolelo Radzilani followed the ball and was able to get the better of his marker ultimately leading the ball into the goal post.

It would be worthwhile to note that the Indian players did try to make inroads into the rival box with short quick passes. However, the efforts of the Indians proved to be futile in front of the strong and heavy defence by the South African defenders. The U-17 South African team didn’t allow the Indians to get the momentum in their favour.

Nicolai Adam, the Indian coach, did try to raise the morale of the Indian team in the break. This seems to have affected the Indian U-17 positively and they showed more aggression. However, they could not score the equalizer to keep their hopes alive.