India U-23 Footballers to Travel to Australia for Camp

India U-23 Footballers to Travel to Australia for Camp

New Delhi: A 22-member India U-23 football team will travel to Australia on Friday as part of their preparation for the forthcoming SAFF Suzuki Cup. The squad has been camping here since July 28.

India will be based at the Valentine Sports Park in Sydney for another 16-day long preparatory camp before they eventually leave for Dhaka on September 1, according to a statement.

"The exposure trip was planned before the Asian Games but unfortunately, we were barred from taking part in the Games. We didn't see any reason to cancel the trip and had to postpone it prior to the SAFF Tournament," head coach Stephen Constantine said.

Apart from the 22 players, two players have been kept in reserve who might get a call-up to join the contingent in Australia if circumstances demand so; 20 boys will eventually travel for the SAFF Suzuki Cup.

Constantine also thanked the clubs for releasing the players from their club commitments for national duty.

"I would like to express my gratitude to the clubs for letting the players join the more-than-a-month long National Team Camp. We need such support from them until the AFC Asian Cup 2019. It's good for the country as well as the clubs. I appreciate that", he added.

"Although we didn't qualify for the AFC U23 Championship, these boys showed good signs in Qatar last year. A few new boys have come and they're putting in an effort to integrate with the other boys."

"It's a group of talented youngsters and I believe a good number of players will graduate to the senior team in time," the coach said. IANS

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