India Announces 23-member Squad for the SAFF U-19 Championship

India Under-19 football head coach Shuvendu Panda announced a 23-member Indian squad for the upcoming SAFF U-19 Championship, in Kathmandu on September 21. The squad flew to Saudi Arabia for a training camp early on Friday from where they will travel to the Nepal capital on September 19. India are in Group B along with Bhutan and Bangladesh, while Group A includes the hosts, Maldives and Pakistan.

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After a single round-robin group stage, the top two teams from both groups will move into the semifinals. Dashrath Stadium in Kathmandu will host the final on September 30. India hosted the event last time in the Under-20 category and emerged as champions, defeating Bangladesh 5-2.

The only other time the SAFF Championship was held in the U-19 category was in 2015 in Nepal. The hosts defeated India on penalties after regulation time ended in a 1-1 stalemate.

Indian Squad for the SAFF U-19 Championship:

• Goalkeepers: Lionel Daryl Rymmei, Divyaj Dhaval Thakkar, and Manjot Singh Parmar.
• Defenders: Thomas Kanamoottil Cherian, Jahangir Ahmad Shagoo, Vijay Marandi, A Siba Prasad, Manabir Basumatary, Surajkumar Singh Ngangbam and Ricky Meetei.
• Midfielders: Manglentheng Kipgen, Ishaan Shishodia, Arjun Singh Oinam, Yash Chikro, Ebindas Yesudasan, Raja Harijan and Thumsol Tongsin.
• Forwards: Gwgwmsar Goyary, Sahil Khurshid, Linky Meitei Chabungbam, Kelvin Singh Taorem, Naoba Meitei and Dinesh Singh Soubam.