Dear Colleagues,
Please find below the report regarding India U-17 World Cup team's 1-2 loss against Sporting Lisbon in their last match in Portugal during the Exposure trip in Europe. ---------------------- *INDIAN BOYS' TOIL HARD AGAINST SPORTING LISBON * *NEW DELHI:* First chapter of India U-17 World Cup team's exposure trip to the Europe comes to a closure with a slender 1-2 defeat against Sporting Lisbon, the hotbed of Portuguese Football who time and again produced masters of the game akin to none but Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Figo. Carlos Silva (40') provided the much-needed lead to the home team at the end of the first half. Aniket Jadhav (41') quickly levelled the scoreline after the resumption but another goal by Ussumane (51') settled the tie for the home team. The match, which was slated to be a 40-minute-half affair, started at a great pace and the Indian colts lived up to the expectation to contain the flurry of attacks, mostly from both the flanks. Naorem curled in a long ball from the right in the 20th minute which almost found the target but the goalkeeper stood tall to defy him. After the half-hour mark, Abhijit tried his luck from the top of the box but the Sporting defence couldn't be unsettled by that. On the eve of the half-time, Sporting Lisbon found the back of the net from a corner. Gill, who was handed the pair of gloves by coach Matos tonight, failed to collect the ball which eventually invited the peril for India. As soon as the match resumed, Aniket drew the first blood for the visitors. After the equaliser, India pushed the hosts to the wall with a plethora of attacks. Anwar's header went straight to the goalie whereas Sanjeev's long-ranger was cancelled out by the cautious Sporting defence. A few minutes later, Ussumane scored again for the hosts to put them back in the driver's seat. Six minutes later, India were awarded a penalty but unfortunately, Aniket Jadhav squandered the opportunity to put India back on the same page once again. Sporting Lisbon created a few chances towards the end of the game but Indian defenders saw off the danger cautiously to keep the scoreline unchanged. ---------------------- For all other updates and all news and exclusive pictures please follow our Official Twitter Handle @IndianFootball at *https://twitter.com/IndianFootball* <https://twitter.com/IndianFootball> Also, follow and like the Official Page of Indian Football Teams on Facebook at *https://www.facebook.com/TheIndianFootballTeam* <https://www.facebook.com/TheIndianFootballTeam> Media Department, AIFF. Alternate: me...@the-aiff.com Website: www.the-aiff.com