New Delhi: The India U-19 squad landed in Tehran at 4.30am on Friday morning for the U-19 AFC Qualifiers which kick-off on October 31. The squad arrived from Doha where they were based for the last 12 days.

Chief Coach Colm Toal said he was “happy,” to have arrived in Tehran. “It always helps when you come in early. Arriving early has its own advantages,” Colm maintained.

The boys were greeted by rain and temperatures as low as seven degrees which came in sharp contrast to the Doha climate.

“The Camp in Doha was pretty useful. We got to practice on excellent grounds which is very much essential prior to such an important Championship. The boys made full use of the facilities,” Coal added. “We need to make use of the time in Tehran and focus on our first match,” Toal quipped.

The India U-19 team even played a practice match in Doha where they beat Al – Rayyan U-19 team 4-1. Brandon Fernandes scored a hat-trick while Johny Chand Singh scored the other.

India who have been clubbed in Group C with hosts Iran, strong contenders Uzbekistan, dark horses Turkmenistan and arch-rivals Pakistan have been drawn to play their first match against play their first match against Turkmenistan on October 31.

The boys were given a day’s rest to overcome from the jet lag and will resume their practice session from Saturday.

The squad is as follows:

Goalkeepers: Ravi Kumar, Albino Gomes, Md. MoniruzzamanAnsari.

Defenders: Bikramjit Singh, Sonu, Arijeet Singh, Pawan Kumar, Akashdeep Singh, Pritam Kotal, Edwin, Narayan Das.

Midfielders: Sehnaj Singh, Prabir Das, Pranoy Halder, Johnny Chand Singh, Tirthankar Sarkar, Sunny, Anto Xavier, Brandon Fernandes.

Forwards: Holicharan Narzary, Sumit Passi, Rajinder Kumar, Malswamfela.

Head Coach: Colm Joseph Toal.

Assistant Coaches: Francisco Bruto Da Costa & Syed Shabbir Pasha.

Goalkeeping Coach: Feroze Sheriff.

Physio: Vijayan Inian Lenin

Manager: CM Ranjith.



Fixture:

Group C: Uzbekistan, Iran Pakistan, India, Turkmenistan.



Oct 31: Pakistan vs Uzbekistan – 3.30pm

Oct 31: India vs Turkmenistan – 6.30pm – IST: 8.30pm

Nov 2: Pakistan vs Turkmenistan – 2pm

Nov 2: Iran vs India – 6.30pm – IST: 8.30pm

Nov 4: India vs Uzbekistan – 3.30pm – IST: 5.30pm

Nov 4: Turkmenistan vs Iran – 6.30pm

Nov 6: Turkmenistan vs Uzbekistan – 3.30pm

Nov 6: Iran vs Pakistan – 6.30pm

Nov 8: Pakistan vs India – 3.30pm – IST: 5.30pm

Nov 8: Uzbekistan vs Iran – 6.30pm