AFC U-17 Asian Cup: Korou Singh named India captain

Promising midfielder Korou Singh was on Tuesday named India captain for the upcoming AFC U17 Asian CupThe talented 16yearold has become an influential player on the pitch in the recent past After scoring a goal each in the SAFF U17 Championship and the AFC U17 Asian Cup Qualifiers the winger went on to put on a fine show in the teams training matches in Spain and Germany against the junior teams of some of the top clubs in the world like Atletico de Madrid Real Madrid VfB Stuttgart FC Augsburg and moreOverall he scored three goals and made five assists in the 10 practice matches in Europe before reaching Thailand where he scored one and assisted another in two training games against local sidesBeing the captain of India in a tournament like the AFC U17 Asian Cup is a big responsibility and we believe that Korou is quite capable of carrying out such leadership responsibilities India head coach Bibiano Fernandes said while announcing Korou as the captain of the teamThe India U17s are currently training at the Khao Yai Sports Complex in Thailand and will travel to Bangkok on June 14 before the start of the AFC U17 Asian Cup where they are set to play Vietnam June 17 Uzbekistan June 20 and Japan June 23 in Group DFor Fernandes it was a matter of finding the best suited player who could not only lead the team on the pitch but off it as wellIts been a process through this year and a half with this team Peka Vanlalpeka Guite was the captain last year in SAFF and the AFC qualifiers said FernandesThen some new boys came in and we tried to rotate the captains armband to as many boys as possible to see who takes up the leadership role in a good mannerIt was also a matter of giving it to someone who the entire team loves and respects and someone who can lead the rest of the boys both on and off the pitch After assessing all the players in all areas we had a meeting with the team officials and decided Korou was best suited he saidBeing a captain means that one has to take responsibility for the entire team encourage them on all occasions and lead them through difficult times In my books a captain has to lead by example said FernandesExcited to lead India Korou said Its an absolute honour for me to be named captain in such a prestigious tournament like the AFC U17 Asian Cup I never thought Id ever be given such responsibility but I feel grateful that the coaches have seen the potential in me to lead this teamAlso Read Transfer window for new football season to begin on June 9 announces All India Football FederationThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever