Alexandersson’s young India scripting most dominant campaign in SAFF U17 Women’s Championship history

NEW DELHI: Team India may have clinched the SAFF U-17 Women’s Championship 2025 title with a game to spare, but the job is not done yet, according to head coach Joakim Alexandersson, as per the official website of the All India Football Federation (AIFF).

Five games, five clean sheets, 27 goals. It is already the highest tally of goals India has ever scored in a single SAFF age-group women’s tournament.

Should the Indian team keep another clean sheet in the last game against Bangladesh on Sunday, it will be the first time India completes a SAFF age-group women’s tournament without letting in a single goal.

The title is in the bag, but there are still records to be chased. Alexandersson’s girls will lift the trophy on Sunday evening, but they want it with a perfect record of six wins in six. Only that will give them the proper champion feeling.

“We are going into the last game with the mindset to win. I told the girls, ‘We are here to try to develop the team, and for that, we have to try and give our very best in every game.’ So even though we have already won the tournament, I still want to see a very good performance in the last match,” said Alexandersson, as quoted from the official website of AIFF.

“I think our performance has been very good overall. I am starting to see more of the things that we’ve been working on in the attacking actions. So far, I am pleased about it,” he added.

Midfielder Bonifilia Shullai concurred with the coach’s words.

She said, “Even now, I don’t feel like we are champions yet. We believe the job is not done until the trophy is in our hands and we have that gold medal. There’s still one more match to go, and we want to win all six games, keeping clean sheets along the way.”

The 15-year-old was one of the 14 players who were runners-up to Bangladesh in the SAFF U16 Women’s Championship last year, and will finally get their hands on the trophy this time. Bonifilia scored the second goal in India’s 2-0 win over Bangladesh in the first leg of matches last week.

“It feels very special because after last year’s experience, not only for me but also for the rest of the players who were part of that U16 squad, this is redemption. We lost then, but this time we came back with a stronger mindset. For me, this tournament has been a lesson that every time you fail or get knocked down, you can always rise again, stronger than before,” said Bonifilia.

All of this builds up to October’s AFC U17 Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers where India will face Uzbekistan and Kygryz Republic. For Alexandersson, a perfect showing in Bhutan will provide solid confidence for them as they aim to battle against the best in Asia.

“In this SAFF, we have been the best team at pressing the opponents, winning the ball in good situations, and creating scoring opportunities from that. We have a lot of good quality players in this squad. The combination has been the key,” the coach said.

“The goals and clean sheets give us the feeling that it takes a lot for the opponents to score against us. It’s a big positive heading into the Asian qualifiers. But if we concede (in the last match), it’s not the end of the world. However, going into the qualifiers, our success here is very valuable, knowing that we are very strong in both attack and defence,” the Swede said.

Bonifilia, who has worn the armband when regular captain Julan Nongmaithem isn’t on the pitch, agreed that the regional success gives the girls much-needed confidence ahead of the bigger battles lying ahead.

“Winning this tournament gives us not just confidence but also motivation for the future. As coach said, in South Asia right now, we are the best in our age category. That gives us pride, but also a responsibility to prove ourselves again in the Asian Cup qualifiers. This victory is just the beginning, and we want to keep building on it,” said the Meghalayan.

India will take on Bangladesh in the sixth and last game of the SAFF U17 Women’s Championship 2025 on Sunday at the Changlimithang Stadium.
India versus Bangladesh has almost always been a title decider of this tournament in the past, with both teams winning two trophies each until the 2025 edition but this time, the neighbours haven’t had any answers to the utter superiority of the Young Tigresses. So much so, that the last match between these two traditional rivals, billed as a winner-take-all clash before the start of the tournament, will now be India’s opportunity to top off the most dominant campaign in this tournament’s history. (ANI)