India U-20 side to play Argentina U-20 in Cotif tournament

All India Football Federation (AIFF) has drawn up a template where all national teams will be playing international competitions in addition to their domestic schedule.

The India U-20 team will lock horns with their Argentine counterparts in the Cotif tournament.

India’s U-20 football team will be playing against Argentina U-20 during a tournament in Spain from July 29.

Besides Argentina, the Indians will be taking on the national U-20 sides of Venezuela and Mauritania in the COTIF Cup — the Mini Mundial Sub U-20 men’s football tournament.

They will also play Murcia U-20, a local side in the tournament.

National team director Abhishek Yadav said the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has drawn up a template where all national teams will be playing international competitions in addition to their domestic schedule.

“The COTIF tournament in Spain falls well into our plans and we are excitedly looking forward to it. In the Sub U-20 category, India will be up against teams from renowned football powerhouses that will be preparing for the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2019 qualifiers,” he said.

“For the development of all national teams across age-groups, we have drawn up a template in which playing matches on a regular basis has been given high weight,” Yadav, also an AIFF executive committee member, said.

“In an ideal mix, in addition to domestic competitive matches, we will participate in competitions involving AFC opposition, non-AFC opposition, matches against higher-age teams, in different playing conditions, etc.”

The U-20 national team will comprise players who represented India in the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 and those who played in the AFC U-19 Qualifiers in 2017.

“We are pushing the envelope. We have done this with the U-17 World Cup team and are doing it with the U-16 boys’ national team as well. We will soon extend it to the female national teams and a fresh U1-5 boys’ national team,” Yadav stated.