Fiji will be among 190 nations competing at the inaugural FIFA Under-15 World Cup and Festival in Baku, Azerbaijan, from October 24th to 30th, with a 14-member squad named for the historic tournament.
The Fiji Football Association has selected 12 locally based players and two New Zealand-based players for the competition.
Fiji FA says the young Fijians head into the competition following their participation at the OFC Under-15 Development Tournament in Auckland, New Zealand, where they recorded two wins, two draws and one loss.
Fiji defeated Tonga 4-nil and the Cook Islands 2-nil, while drawing 2-all with New Caledonia and nil-all with Samoa. Their only loss was a 3-nil defeat to Tahiti.
Fiji FA says the Auckland tournament provided the players with valuable international experience ahead of the global competition.
They say participating nations will play group matches before being placed into different competitive tiers based on their performances, giving young players more opportunities to compete internationally and experience different playing styles.
The Fiji team will be guided by coaches Rajneel Kumar and FIFA Talent Coach Talal Safar, with Shamal Kumar serving as goalkeeper coach.
Siteri Bainivetau will be the team manager, while Osama bin Khalid and Vilimaina Tuivaga will serve as team doctor and physiotherapist respectively.
The Fiji squad includes Joshua Prasad, Simione Poe, Koresi Batirerega, Avneet Chandra, Penaia Steiner, Elijah Rakabatia, Ratu Smith, Manueli Batiniu, Jason Prasad, Marika Saro, Samuela Loganimoce, Rishant Rishab, Jaiveer Sharma (NZ) and Ryan Swami (NZ).
