FIFA U-17 World Cup: England coach Steve Cooper wants a view of Eden Gardens

Steve Cooper, England’s coach at the FIFA U-17 World Cup, said that the support India have shown towards the tournament is almost unheard of.

Steve Cooper can’t get enough of Kolkata it seems. And now he has expressed a desire to visit the Eden Gardens.

Steve Cooper is currently coaching the England side at the FIFA U-17 World Cup. (Getty Images)

“I would love to see cricket at Eden. I am a big fan (of the English team) and should our schedules permit, I would like to watch a cricket match at Eden,” said Cooper ahead of Saturday’s group F tie against Iraq here.

That, however, can’t happen even if Cooper’s team goes all the way to the final here, on October 28. Because there aren’t any matches scheduled at Eden in that time.

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Cooper also said the England support staff has some people who have worked with the England and Wales Cricket Board. There has been a lot of informal interaction with staff of the cricket teams that have toured India too.

And not just Eden, Cooper also said he and the England team would like to take in other sights in the city and elsewhere in the country.

Cooper also said the kind of attention that the under-17 World Cup has received is unheard of ‘for development tournaments elsewhere.‘

“50,000 plus crowd is unheard of in developing tournaments. Maybe a one-off game with the host nation being involved but re-producing crowds like that is a fantastic opportunity for the players to experience what a top game looks like at the top flight, a senior level. And we can’t thank Kolkata enough for that,” he said.