WC Qualifiers & AFC U23 C’Ships: Seven Pune FC players shortlisted for National Camp

Seven Pune FC players have been shortlisted for the national camps ahead of the World Cup Qualifiers and AFC Under-23 Championship Qualifiers in March.

Notable among the lot, announced by newly appointed national team Coach Stephen Constantine, is Pune-bred winger Nikhil Kadam. The youngster who came up through the Peninsula Pune Football Academy (PPFCA) ranks is the first Kolhapur-born player to be called up for a national camp at any level.

In fact, of the seven shortlisted, five are from the PPFCA and include; goalkeeper Amrinder Singh, striker Thongkhosiem Haokip, playmaker Lalrempuia Fanai and defender Denechandra Meitei apart from Nikhil. Denechandra is currently on-loan with Churchill Brothers, Goa. All five youngsters will be part of the U-23 National camp.

Meanwhile, midfielders Anthony D’Souza and Dhanpal Ganesh have made the cut into the 32-member shortlist for the senior national team preparatory camp ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qualifier first round play-off.

Nikhil, who first joined the Peninsula Pune FC Academy in 2011, was instrumental in helping the Club’s junior side to back-to-back U20 I-League titles. The pacy winger was then promoted into the senior team in the 2012-13 season and also wrote his name in the history books by becoming Pune FC’s first Maharashtra-born player to score in the I-League (vs. Air India, Pune FC won 6-0).

Speaking about the developments, an excited Nikhil said, “It feels great to be called up for the national camp. I would like to thank my Coach, the Pune FC management and my teammates as without their major contributions, it wouldn’t have been possible. However, this is just the beginning and there is still a long way to go. I would like to focus on my game and help my team in any way I can.”

For the record, the national call up is the first time at any level for Anthony D’Souza too. The Siolim-born winger who joined Pune FC in 2013 has been an integral part of the side over the last two seasons.

Giving his thoughts on the announcement, he said, “Being part of the shortlist for the camp is a big thing for me. First of all I would like to thank God for this opportunity, our Coach Karim Bencherifa for believing and getting the best out of me as well as the Pune FC management and my teammates.”

Interestingly, this is also the first time that a total of seven Pune FC players have been shortlisted for the national camp in one go.

The four-week preparatory camp for the Under-23 side kicks off on 1st March, 2015 in the coastal state of Goa. Post the conclusion of this camp, the final 23-member team will head for the AFC U23 Championship Qualifiers in Dhaka where they face Uzbekistan, Syria and hosts Bangladesh.

On the other hand, the senior team will have a week long camp in Guwahati starting 5th March, 2015 before they face neighbours Nepal in the double leg playoff on March 12th (Home) and March 17th (Away).