Playing four matches in eight days is tough: Toal

With Indian football team playing four matches in a span of eight days at the AFC U-19 Championships, Youth Development head coach Colm Joseph Toal on Tuesday said it`s going to be a tough ask for the boys who need to be at the peak of their fitness.

New Delhi: With Indian football team playing four matches in a span of eight days at the AFC U-19 Championships, Youth Development head coach Colm Joseph Toal today said it`s going to be a tough ask for the boys who need to be at the peak of their fitness.

"When you are playing four matches in the span of eight days, the going gets really tough," said Toal, who is also the incharge of the current team. "When you play in such a condensed tournament, it goes down to the team which can recover fastest. It`s basically a battle of endurance. Also teams who have a reservoir of fit players, because they are the ones who recover faster than their less fit counterparts," opined the Brit coach. India, who got the better of Nepal by a solitary goal on Sunday, play 57th-ranked Uzbekistan on October 10 followed by Turkmenistan (October 12). "We are lucky to get a break before we play the highest ranked Nation in our Group. But look at Nepal; they play four matches in six days. It`s really very tough for a small side who are ranked lowest in the Group," Toal said. October 4. "The boys don`t play such high-intensity games that often. Added to that, Qatar were excellent, especially in the second half when we were having problems coping with the pace of their play. But to recover within 48 hours, which is the bare minimum as per the FIFA mandate, and perform the way we did was a credit to the boys` character and endurance," he added.