Indian colts take on South Korea in the quarter-final of AFC U16 Championship 2018 at Petaling Jaya Stadium in Malaysia on Monday, October 1.
When does the match start and how to watch it live
The quarter-final will start at 8:45 pm local time, 6:15 pm IST and 1:45 pm BST.
Star Sports 2, Star Sports 2 HD will provide live television coverage of the match in India. The live stream will be available on Hotstar.
What to expect from the match
India can create history on Monday as a win in the much-anticipated quarter-final will help them seal a place in the 2019 U17 World Cup that will be held in Peru.
Bibiano Fernandes' team have punched above their weight with some impressive displays in the group stages of the tournament to qualify for the knockout rounds for the first time since 2002.
India finished second behind Indonesia in the four-team Group C. The colts were defensively disciplined as they didn't concede even a single goal over three matches.
Vikram Pratap Singh has netted the only goal for India in the ongoing tournament so far. The skipper's goal came in their 1-0 win over Vietnam.
Fernandes' boys held heavyweights Iran to a crucial draw in the second match and followed it up with another goalless draw to seal the quarter-final berth.
India will be banking on their defensive discipline to cause a major upset against tournament favourites South Korea. However, the absence of central defender Bikash Yumnam, who has been suspended for the tie, comes as a cause for concern.
Boys sweat it out for tomorrow as they clash against South Korea in the Quarter Finals of AFC U-16 Championship.#StarsOfTomorrow #BackTheBlue #WeAreIndia #IndianFootball pic.twitter.com/0JEOslIG25
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) September 30, 2018
On the other hand, India's finishing has been below-par as their only goal in the tournament has come from the spot.
Nonetheless, coach Fernandes insists that his boys have been working hard in the training sessions and is hopeful of a better show from his frontline.
"We are creating chances at will and we created some of the best goal scoring opportunities of the match against both Iran and Indonesia. If we had taken those chances we could have won both matches," Fernandes was quoted as saying by All India Football Federation's official website.
"All of those matches are past and we are working on our finishing in the training sessions. Going ahead we cannot afford to be complacent in front of goal in the knockout matches. That will hurt us very badly."
The boys from the Indian team are going to play one of the most important matches of their nascent careers and coach Fernandes has insisted the gravity of the situation and what a win in the quarter-final can do to Indian football.
The gravity of the moment in immense: India coach Fernandes
Nonetheless, he isn't looking too much ahead and concedes Korea are overwhelming favourites not just for Monday's tie but for the championship as well.
"Everybody in the squad including the staff knows the gravity of our quarter-final bout. The boys have sacrificed a lot for these coming ninety minutes and have worked tirelessly day in and day out for the same. This is the moment that they have been preparing for, almost their whole lives till now," Fernandes added.
"The gravity of the moment is immense and everybody is apprehensive of what it means and what it can mean for Indian Football.
"Korea Republic are one of the teams touted to win the AFC U-16 Championship and the match against them will be the most challenging ninety minutes that any one of us has ever faced. Korea Republic are the overwhelming favourites."
As Fernandes insists, Korea have been the most impressive team in the group stages, scoring 12 goals without conceding any.
They had decimated Australia 3-0, Afghanistan 7-0 and Iraq 2-0 to book a date with underdogs India in the quarter-final.
Watch: Sunil Chhetri's message to India U16 team
Boys, we are rooting for you! pic.twitter.com/SxcCaG3k4S
— Sunil Chhetri (@chetrisunil11) October 1, 2018