15-year-old set to spearhead Gulf Nation\u2019s challenge in the AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualifiers in Oman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This Goan lad will take the pitch in the AFC U-17 Asian Cup 2023 qualifiers in Muscat, Oman, that commenced on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But not in the blue strip of India. Instead, he will wear the maroon of Qatar in which he is expected to sparkle at the centre of the attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meet Justin Fernandes, all of 15, a strapping 5-foot- 11-inches tall and endowed with the qualities of an aggressive centre-forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His consistent appearances in the top bracket of the goal scorers\u2019 list through age group tournaments evidence his prowess and the ensuing rare honour of an expatriate being bestowed the coveted Qatari colours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Son of Camilo who hails from Murida village in Cuncolim and Abigail, from Assolna, Justin was born and raised in Qatar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A bright student, now studying in Class XI, science stream, Justin has what it takes to be a thinking player \u2013 vital for success in any sport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His inspiration? \u201cLionel Messi,\u201d says the lad, who he follows keenly \u2013 even to the extent of locking on to Paris-St Germain, the French giants for whom the Argentinean superstar turns out these days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That might seem to be a paradox of sorts. Justin, you see, is an English Premier League \u2018freak\u2019, soaking up the action on television seemingly incessantly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So much so that his great big ambition is \u201cto play in the EPL!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Justin\u2019s precocious talent earned him the privilege of representing the Gulf nation which he has done with aplomb for more than a year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First taking to the sport as a seven-year-old, his natural talent and abilities caught the eye of scouts and he was duly invited to the Absolute Sports academy to hone his fast-growing skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He moved to the Aspire academy in 2019 and sustained the promise he revealed by excelling in the QFA U-13 and U-15 leagues with Al Ahli.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His influence in the club\u2019s fortunes is unmistakable. In 2020 he was among the leading scorers in the U-13 league while assisting Al Ahli to third place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In 2021, Al Ahli took the top podium, with Justin inevitably finding the net prolifically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even before his exploits propelled Al Ahli to the top, he was accorded the 2018 Qatar Foundation\u2019s best U-13 player accolade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And, as an U-11 and turning out for Absolute Sports in Armenia at a summer camp in Yeravan, Justin was adjudged best forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Justin also inspired his academy to a tournament win in Georgia as an U-12.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was only a matter of time that the lad would earn the rare privilege of turning out in Qatari colours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The summon duly arrived and off went Justin in the revered maroon shirt to do national duty in Slovenia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE as an U-16, proving to be a menace to rival defenders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With his control, scoring prowess and speed, Justin\u2019s presence in the team was a foregone conclusion as Qatar gear up for U-17 continental honours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Camilo played a bit of football himself but attributes his son\u2019s sporting genes to his grandmother, Abigail\u2019s mother, Jovina, who played hockey for Mumbai in the 1970s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Given the Indian, and particularly Goan, diaspora in the Gulf region, one wagers that Justin will be among the players closely watched in Muscat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And, on the pitch one suspects, even more closely by defenders in the ranks of Iraq, Lebanon, Bahrain and hosts Oman who make up the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
heraldgoa.in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
15-year-old set to spearhead Gulf Nation\u2019s challenge in the AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualifiers in Oman. This Goan lad will take the pitch in the AFC U-17 Asian Cup 2023 qualifiers in Muscat, Oman, that commenced on Saturday. But not in the blue strip of India. Instead, he will wear the maroon of Qatar in … Continue reading Goan lad sports Qatar colours<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,5,10,15,16,20,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16662","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-amazing-feats","category-education","category-nris","category-pios","category-records-in-asia","category-records-india-national","category-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16662","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16662"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16662\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16698,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16662\/revisions\/16698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16662"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16662"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalrecordsindia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16662"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}