Hosts India will have their task cut out when they face teams from from football powerhouses USA, Colombia, and Ghana in Group A of the Under-17 World Cup come October.
With the country hosting its first ever Fifa event, expectations are high. However, the competition is stiff. The team’s squad members, who do not have much international experience, will be thrown in the deep end once the tournament commences.
USA and Ghana will be coming into the tournament on the back of an impressive run of results and are favourites to grab the first two qualifying spots for the knockout stages.
Colombia’s indifferent run during their qualifiers means that match might be India’s best bet to get some points on the board. Despite the recent form, the South American team, just like USA and Ghana, remains a major threat considering their pedigree and results from previous tournaments.
Here is a look at all the teams in the group:
I. India (hosts)
U-17 World Cup record:
Ranked in the lower reaches of the Fifa rankings, India are strugglers even on the continental scene. In fact, the Indian national team has made little impression on the international stage over the past four decades. They have never represented Asia in a Fifa tournament at any level.
Road to World Cup:
India, being the host country, automatically qualified for the tournament. Under previous manager Nicolai Adam, the team were held to a 3-3 draw against Saudi Arabia in the 2016 AFC U-16 Championship, and while they were defeated by UAE and Iran in their other group stage games, they displayed encouraging progress.
The coach:
Portuguese coach Luis Norton de Matos assumed control of the Indian U-17 side in March 2017, replacing Adams who controversially departed his role earlier in the year. De Matos represented Portugal at senior level during his playing days and has coached a host of club sides in his homeland, in addition to the Guinea-Bissau national side. “I do have an Indian connection as my great grandfather was born in Goa,” De Matos revealed after his appointment. “I will retain the positives of the last two years as we move forward.”
Big Number:
7 is how many times India have participated at the AFC U-16 Championship, but only once have they progressed past the first round. In 2002 the team managed to make it to the quarter-finals, their best result to date, where they were defeated by Korea Republic.
II. USA
U-17 World Cup record:
USA have participated in 15 of the 16 editions of the U-17 World Cup, having only missed out only in 2013. Their best showing was in New Zealand 1999, where they came fourth, narrowly missing out on a spot in the final after losing to Australia on penalties in the semi-finals. The Americans reached the quarter-finals on four other occasions, most recently in Peru 2005. USA had a dismal outing at Chile 2015, failing to emerge from the group stage for the first time since 2001.
Road to India:
Despite eventually losing to Mexico in the CONCACAF U-17 Championship final on penalties, USA’s most notable achievement at Panama 2017, apart from reaching the U-17 World Cup itself, was defeating El Tri 4-3 in a group-stage thriller. The win was the USA U-17 side’s first victory against their arch-rivals in the history of the continental finals, putting an end to Mexico’s 25-game unbeaten streak in the tournament. USA impressed throughout the qualifying tournament, winning every game till the dramatic finale, where Mexico equalised in stoppage time.
The coach:
John Hackworth took over from Richie Williams – who was at the helm during USA’s disappointing performance at Chile 2015 – as the USA’s U-17 side’s coach in late 2015. The Florida native has previously been an assistant for the U-17 national team, and head coach at Major League Soccer side Philadelphia Union. He will be the last man to take charge of a U-17 national team that has been part of the USSF’s (United States Soccer Federation) Residency programme, which will be disbanded after the finals.
Big Number:
5 – Almost half of the 2017 CONCACAF U-17 Championship’s ‘Best XI’, as voted by the technical study Group of the tournament, were from USA: Goalkeeper Justin Garces, defenders Jaylin Lindsey and James Sands, midfielder Chris Durkin and forward Josh Sargent all made the cut.
III. Colombia
U-17 World Cup record:
India 2017 will be Colombia’s sixth appearance at an U-17 World Cup and their first since Nigeria 2009, where they finished third and matched their previous best performance at the tournament, which came in Finland 2003. In their other appearances, Los Cafeteros reached the round of 16 at South Korea 2007 but exited at the group stage at Scotland 1989 and Japan 1993.
Road to World Cup:
Colombia secured their World Cup berth by virtue of their third-placed finish at this year’s South American U-17 Championship. Two wins, one draw and one defeat saw them take second place in Group A behind Chile and move comfortably into the hexagonal final phase. Things were more complicated there, though. An opening victory over Ecuador (2-1) was followed by a draw with Venezuela before losing to Chile (1-0) and Brazil (3-0). With World Cup qualification on the line, Colombia bounced back with a 2-1 win over Paraguay to seal their passage to India.
The coach:
Though never a professional player, Colombian Orlando Restrepo has been a lifetime student of the game. He is also a sports technology practitioner and physical education instructor.
The 60-year-old has racked up extensive coaching experience at club level in his homeland, Bolivia and Costa Rica while enjoying a successful spell with Atletico Nacional’s U-17 side between 2013 and 2015. He has been in charge of the national U-17 team since August 2016.
Big Number:
3 – The number of goals scored by each of Santiago Barrero, Juan Penaloza and Jaminton Campaz in the qualifying event. Between them, the trio accounted for 75 per cent of Colombia’s goal tally.
IV. Ghana
U-17 World Cup record:
The 1990s were a truly remarkable era for the Black Starlets, winning the Fifa U-17 World Cup twice – in 1991 and 1995 – reaching four out of five finals and finishing third in the 1999 edition. Some of the starlets from the 1990s, including Samuel Kuffour, Stephen Appiah and Michael Essien, would go on to represent the senior side at the World Cup in the 2000s. Since those heady days though, except for a semi-final berth in 2007, the Ghanaians have had something of a barren run, reaching the global showpiece just twice in the last seven attempts.
Road to World Cup:
The two-time champions reached their first U-17 World Cup for a decade in, at times, stop-start circumstances. After edging Burkina Faso 6-5 over two legs in the second round of qualification, they saw off Ivory Coast to progress to the Africa U-17 Cup of Nations in Gabon. They hit their stride during the continental tournament, defeating Cameroon 4-0 and the hosts 5-0, the latter result securing their spot as the first African side on the plane to India. After that, the Ghanaians did not score again in regulation time, drawing 0-0 with Guinea in their final group game and winning on penalties to reach the final against Niger, where they lost 1-0 to Mali.
The coach:
Paa Kwesi Fabin took charge of the Black Starlets in October 2011, meaning he has reached the U-17 World Cup for a third time. Despite a strong showing in Gabon, he has hinted at alterations for India 2017. “We will surely make some additions to the squad before the World Cup,” he said. “We had some of the guys who got injured, which prevented them from joining the team in Gabon. We hope to get these boys and we will also do more scouting to try and get a few others as well.”
Big Number:
9 – Goals scored by Ghana at Gabon 2017, to add to their nine scored in the qualifiers. No team scored more at the CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations finals, despite the Black Starlets failing to score during their final four hours in the tournament.