FATORDA: AFC U-16 Championship runners-up Iran will take on Guinea in the Group C second match at the Pandit Nehru Stadium, here, on Saturday, at 8 p.m.
The Abbas Chamanyan colts are ‘prepared’ to take on the Junior National Elephants.
“We are all prepared. We have good memories in Goa. Good omens are for us and we hope we can repeat the AFC run in the World Cup too,” said Abbas, while addressing the press conference at here.
The Asian side had impressive run in the AFC U-16 Championship before losing in the final against Iraq via shootout and coach believes his side has ‘progressed’ and is prepared for the big-ticket event.
“My best memory here (Goa) is that last year we started the match and reached the final. We have good memories from the Goa. We hope we will have good memories this year too. If there were no changes it would be difficult for us to play in the World Cup. We must be progressive. Around 15 per cent of the team has changed and we are better than last time we played here,” revealed Abbas.
Iran has defeated France and Mexico in their friendlies but the Iran gaffer believes the experience is limited.
Meanwhile, Guinea coach Souleymane Camara stated that his side is ready to take on the Asian outfit.
“We are very much ready, but it’s always difficult to play the first match of any tournament. We are participating for the fifth time so it’s good for us. We want to win the first match at any cost,” said Souleymane.
Guinea feature one of the youngest squad featuring four 14-year-old players and the coach believes that football is all about talent.
