Manipur's Thounaojam Kritina Devi all set to be part of the FIFA U-17 World Cup

Imphal: It looks like it runs in the family --- playing football. Manipur's Thounaojam Kritina Devi will be the third footballer from the same family to feature in a FIFA U-17 World Cup.

Her cousins Kiyam Amarjit Singh was the India captain in the men's FIFA U-17 World Cup the country hosted in 2017 while Thounaojam Jeakson Singh was the lone scorer in that tournament and hence the only Indian to have scored a goal in a World Cup.

The trio belongs to the remote village of Haokha Mamang in Manipur's Thoubal district.

Now Kritina is all set to carry forward the family legacy and be part of the women's team for FIFA U-17 World Cup.

Of course, Kritina had her share of obstacles including her farmer father who was not really happy when she started playing football and had initially opposed the whole idea.

The women's FIFA U-17 World Cup is slated for February-March next year.

"My father is a farmer and mother a housewife. We have a small piece of agricultural land and we are mostly surviving on that. But football is in my blood and I began playing when I was a 10-year-old," Kritina said in an interview.

As Kritina continued to rise to represent the country, her parents began warming up to her choice.

It is to be mentioned here that Kritina was a key member of the Indian team in the 2019 Three-Nation Tournament where she scored the match-winner against Thailand to set up the summit clash against Sweden. India lost the final 0-4.

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