Soumo Ghosh
AIFF Media Team

KHAO YAI, THAILAND: Deep in the region of Kao Yai, just beside the third largest National Park in Thailand, the India U-17 Men’s National Team toil away on a daily basis, as they prepare for the AFC U-17 Asian Cup. It is within this semi-forest region of no distractions that dreams are not only being made, but also being nurtured and encouraged.

Every room belonging to any member of the India U-17 national team has a note pasted on the wall, that leaves a simple message for everyone: “Qualify for the World Cup”. For holding midfielder Gurnaj Singh Grewal, it’s small gestures like these that make the team so special.

“The atmosphere within this team is really good. Everyone has a positive mindset, and we are all collectively confident that we can make it to the (FIFA U-17) World Cup,” says Gurnaj to the-aiff.com. “Our staff officials all take good care of us and make sure that we are all in a good mindset ahead of the Asian Cup.”

India have been drawn in Group D of the AFC U-17 Asian Cup, where they will face the likes of Vietnam (June 17), Uzbekistan (June 20), and Japan (June 23). The top two teams from each group will make it through to the quarter-finals, and ensuring a seat in the semi-finals would also mean qualification for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, which is set to take place later this year.

Hailing from Chandigarh, Gurnaj is one of the lucky youngsters, who have had the backing of their family in their endeavour to become a professional footballer. While many families in India encourage their children to pay more attention to studies rather than to sports, Gurnaj’s parents went the other way.

“My father always wanted to be a footballer, but could never play at the professional level. He’s passed that dream onto me, and I very much intend to fulfil it,” Gurnaj said to the-aiff.com.

Apart from being an inspiration, Gurnaj’s father has also played a big role in getting him kick-started in the beautiful game.

“My father was my first coach, so I learned a lot about technique from him, before I joined the CFA (Chandigarh Football Academy),” said Gurnaj.

The young holding medio soon showed his mettle and was called up to the India U-17 team last year, going on to play a key role as the team lifted the SAFF U-17 Championship and secured qualification for the AFC U-17 Asian Cup.

“The camps we had in Spain and Germany were an eye-opener for most of us. We had not really seen much of the world before that, but the level of football, coaching, and attention to details, especially off the pitch, were something completely new to us,” he said. “We were given detailed classes by the coaches in Spain and Germany about rest and diet, which really helped us understand that aspect of the game.

“Of course, we also got to play against the junior teams of some big clubs like Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, VfB Stuttgart and FC Augsburg. I have seen these teams on TV as a kid, but never imagined that I could play against them someday. That really motivated all the players,” said Gurnaj.

“I can say with guarantee that after playing such teams, our players are very confident on the pitch, and absolutely focussed outside it. We all want to qualify for the World Cup,” he said.