'350 Sessions in 300 days is enough time to do the job': Dennerby

India’s FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup coach Thomas Dennerby from Sweden felt that he has enough time and reason to prepare the team into a good, solid team and take on the very best in the world. "It's an opportunity to work with this team for a long time. We have like 300 days and have 350 sessions or more. Normally as a head coach, you usually get the senior team players on the international dates -- 60-80 days in a year and a lot depends on how far you can go in major tournaments. Here, you have around four times that. So I hope we have a really good chance to develop the team and have a good tournament. It's a thrilling challenge and the main reason for all of us to come here," Dennerby said ahead of Tuesday's match against Thailand in Mumbai.

'India is thrilling and challenging'

The India U17 women's team is currently in Mumbai, along with Sweden and Thailand competing in the U17 Women's Football Tournament 2019. "As compared to the previous places where everything is already developed coming to India is thrilling and challenging. If we can do something good with this team it will be something new for this country. To help a country like India to have a successful World Cup would be very exciting," he added.

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"The mental part is one of the things we need to work. The girls haven’t played a championship before. Whatever you do the first game of the World Cup will be the first for these girls and we can't change that. The pressure would be if I would have asked them to sing in a concert in front of 30000 people because that’s an act which then hasn’t ever done. But they are footballers, and you are probably best at playing football. You have other people around you to guide you and pick you -- they won't pick you if you're not ready for it. If you are good enough to be picked, you are good enough to handle the situation," Dennerby observed.

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On Fitness levels

"It is extremely important to work hard on fitness levels. It is important that you feel strong in the player's tunnel and feel that you are ready with all that training behind you. I hope to see the test results keep getting better by October next year and it will show the players that they are physically, technically and mentally ready."

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