Hosts Nigeria And Brazil Favourites For U-17 World Cup
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The 2009 FIFA Under-17 World Cup kicks off on Saturday with host team Nigeria under pressure to defend the championship they won for the third time two years ago in South Korea.
This competition has been very dear to the average Nigerian fan because the country first conquered the football world at the maiden edition of the tournament in 1985.
It was 24 years ago that a bunch of unheralded youngsters topped the inaugural Under-17 tournament at the Workers Stadium in Beijing, China, in fine style to become national heroes overnight.
Nigeria will again win the championship in Tokyo, Japan, in 1993, with a team bursting of top-class talent like Nwankwo Kanu, Celestine Babayaro and Wilson Oruma, who will go on to bigger things as professionals in Europe.
The country's team, affectionately known as the Golden Eaglets, ruled the world a third time two years ago in South Korea at the expense of a hard-fighting Spanish side.
Overall, this bi-ennial tournament has produced a long list of stars - Ronaldinho (Brazil), David Silva, Cesc Fabregas (Spain), Michael Essien, Nii Odartey Lamptey (Ghana) and Seydou Keita (Mali).
As hosts and defending champions, Nigeria are hard pressed by to win their fourth World Cup on November 15 at the 60,000-capacity Abuja National Stadium.
However, the Eaglets have suffered several setbacks in this quest - two head coaches have been replaced within a year, while current coach, John Obuh, has had to start almost from the scratch after 15 players were dropped after a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) test showed they were above the age allowed for the tournament.
The age test has become the major talking point leading to this year’s tournament with African champions Gambia insisting they will not make public the names of their players who fail the test they have conducted. Their argument is that they wish to protect the image of the players.
However, despite this new rule the home team will remain as one of the favourites to win the tournament.
Obuh's lads appear to have overcome this setback with some encouraging results since then, including a win and a draw with two-time African champions Gambia in Bunjul in a build-up game in September.
But first the defending champions will have to negotiate through what has been referred to as a "Group of Death", which includes Germany and Argentina.
If they can manage the pressure from their fans, they can go very far in this competition. The fans though expect them to successfully retain the trophy, and anything short of this would be regarded as failure.
In Stanley Okoro, Nigeria have a youngster headed for the top. ‘Little Messi’ is a flying left winger, who is played on the right side of attack and has already made his mark in the CAF Champions League with his club Heartland FC of Owerri.
His pace, sleeky skills and vision will unsettle the most organised defence. The 16-year-old Okoro has also proved to be both a provider and scorer of goals.
“We are world champions and the boys will not disappoint. They know is expected of them and they will deliver,” said coach Obuh.
There is hardly any global tournament where the Samba boys of Brazil do not rank as one of the big favourites, and this championship will not be an exception.
The Brazilians won their ninth South American Under-17 title at the expense of a brave Argentine side, who staged a great comeback only to lose the final on penalties. The youngster to drive the South Americans to victory would most likely be Wellington, a superb technician, who is reportedly a target of English Premier League top guns Arsenal.
The 17-year-old Fluminense forward held his nerve to dispatch Brazil’s ninth penalty to give them continental crown in a penalty shootout with perennial rivals Argentina.
It was fitting that Wellington, who was a revelation throughout the tournament, should be the one to bring the curtain down on this fabulous fiesta of football on Chile’s northern shore.
One could also not discount the chances of Mexico, who first won this competition in Peru in 2005 with a 3-0 thumping of mighty Brazil. In that team were Arsenal’s Carlos Vela and Spurs’ Giovanni Dos Santos.
They hosted and won the 2009 CONCACAF Under-17 Championship. Striker Martin Galvan, who scored three goals during the qualifiers, was spotted by Barcelona scouts as a 13-year-old. He has since made his debut for Cruz Azul in the Mexican top flight. However, three-time winners Brazil and Mexico will first clash in Group B based in Lagos.
Off the pitch, world soccer governing body FIFA have put local organisers on their toes to ensure a successful and hitch-free tournament to be staged in eight cities across this football-mad nation.
Public interest has been low-keyed as organisers complained of a shortage of funds, while there has been last-minute renovation at some of the stadiums to stage the tournament. Several FIFA inspection visits have left very little cheer with vice-president, Jack Warner, has been ever outspoken that the local organisers have to step up their act, if Nigeria is to play the perfect host to the cream of tomorrow’s stars today.
