BEST ATTACKING
NIGERIA
21
GOALS
16 OPEN PLAY GOALS
5 SET PIECE GOALS
TOURNAMENT
AVERAGE 6


MALI
132
ATTEMPTS
12 GOALS SCORED
33 SHOTS BLOCKED
33 SHOTS SAVED
54 ATTEMPTS OFF-
TARGET
TOURNAMENT
AVERAGE 60.3



PLAYERS

Victor OSIMHEN(NIG).
9
GOALS SCORED
9
SHOTS.


TOP SAVES

Samuel DIARRA(Mali)
10
SAVES
2
GOALS AGAINST


Eheh eHh, the malian shot stopper conceded only two goals :O ? This is strange o, that mean the malian defense is tighter than virgin woman hole :O which way nw? Make our defense make sense for 2mao o in order not to concede any cheap or early goal o cos if such happen walahi the mali will pack bus. In Amunike I believe o cos this malian team dey fear mi o

[b][size=14pt]
Eaglets Flooded By Good Wishes, As Bout With Mali Looms
By Salifu Usman, BY TAOFEEK LAWAL
[/size]

Goodwill messages and motivating speeches have continued to inundate the camp of Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets as they prepare to face Mali in the final game of the FIFA U17 World Cup which will come to an end in Chile today.

Bukola Saraki, yesterday, lauded the “indomitable spirit” of Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets after they defeated their Mexican counterparts 4-2 , to berth in the finals of the tournament.

Saraki, in a statement by his media office in Abuja, specifically charged the Eaglets to improve on their present tempo, beat the Malian team and bring the coveted trophy home.

The governor of Katsina State, Aminu Masari, also weighed in on the messages to the team.

The governor, in statement signed by his special adviser on sports matters, Alhaji Aminu Balele Kurfi, said: “I am happy that the team has represented us well. They should bring the cup back for President Muhammadu Buhari. I was so sure that the team will do well in Chile because of what I saw of them when they were here in Katsina for their training camp and I am happy they did not disappoint us,” he said.

In his own statement, the chairman of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Technical and Development Committee, Chief Felix Anyansi-Agwu, made a clarion call to the Golden Eaglets to set a new world record for wins in the tourney.

“At the beginning of the competition, I told the Eaglets to take it one match at a time, which they so brilliantly did. They waited to know the opposition’s strength in the first 10 minutes and then they go all out and punch them hard.”

The former chairman of the House of Representatives’ Sport Committee, Hon Geoffrey Ali Gaiya, restated his belief in the ability of the Eaglets to go for the kill against the Malians but cautioned the Emmanuel Amuneke-tutored team against being complacent and underrating their opponents.

“Our first 11 are world beaters and the same can be said of the bench. Their progression in the tournament have made us see that given all the necessary support, these boys will go places if they are properly monitored and guided in their fledging career. I see us winning the cup for the 5th time but it’s not over until it is over,” he said.

Sponsor of the Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL), Globacom has also urged the team not to falter.
According a statement released yesterday, the telecommunication said: “With the superlative form displayed by the team so far, we are confident that the Eaglets will go all the way to lift the trophy.

We are most delighted that the Eaglets are now within 90 minutes of winning the FIFAU-17 World Cup for a record fifth time.

We urge the Eaglets’ coaches to admonish the players not to underrate the Malians who have shown much determination and resilience so far in the tournament,” the statement added.
[/b]
leadership.ng/news/472839/eaglets-flooded-by-good-wishes-as-bout-with-mali-looms

Nigerians prepare for Glory!!!! Ahu ahu ahuuuu. For tonight you will dine in Chile with d U17 trophy in ur hands. Ahu ahu ahuuuu

Can't wait to STAND UP FOR THE CHAMPIONS- THE MYSTERIOUS GOLDEN EAGLETS(as Sir. TheSuperNerd 'll say) *counting down to an historic victory for our darling team n our darling nation NIGERIA!*
so eaglets bring out your wings, take a leap of faith n fly with Pride. D world is waiting, watching for new conquerors, new kings of world football!. You can do t.

Before the Mexico/Nigeria game, Romero had only conceeded "2 goals" also. He was ahead of Diarra going into our semi-final game (yep.... I checked the stats after the Mali/Belgium game........*smiles*).

But what happened?? He was hit for "Four" by the Mysteriously Lethal Nigerians. Now he's conceeded more than Udoh.

Also, before the semi-finals, Mexico were "unbeaten" in the competition. They were also on a run of 3 semi-finals, 3 wins (similar to our 7 semis/7wins b4 the game)...... But we "ended" them both and took our Semis record further to 8 semi-finals/8 wins.

I see a near-similar pattern playing out in the final........... **winks***

It's surely gonna be an interesting duel........*smiles*

lakesidepapa:
BEST ATTACKING
NIGERIA
21
GOALS
16 OPEN PLAY GOALS
5 SET PIECE GOALS
TOURNAMENT
AVERAGE 6


MALI
132
ATTEMPTS
12 GOALS SCORED
33 SHOTS BLOCKED
33 SHOTS SAVED
54 ATTEMPTS OFF-
TARGET
TOURNAMENT
AVERAGE 60.3



PLAYERS

Victor OSIMHEN(NIG).
9
GOALS SCORED
9
SHOTS.


TOP SAVES

Samuel DIARRA(Mali)
10
SAVES
2
GOALS AGAINST


Eheh eHh, the malian shot stopper conceded only two goals :O ? This is strange o, that mean the malian defense is tighter than virgin woman hole :O which way nw? Make our defense make sense for 2mao o in order not to concede any cheap or early goal o cos if such happen walahi the mali will pack bus. In Amunike I believe o cos this malian team dey fear mi o

TheSuperNerd:
Before the Mexico/Nigeria game, Romero had only conceeded "2 goals" also. He was ahead of Diarra going into our semi-final game (yep.... I checked the stats after the Mali/Belgium game........*smiles*).

But what happened?? He was hit for "Four" by the Mysteriously Lethal Nigerians. Now he's conceeded more than Udoh.

Also, before the semi-finals, Mexico were "unbeaten" in the competition. They were also on a run of 3 semi-finals, 3 wins (similar to our 7 semis/7wins b4 the game)...... But we "ended" them both and took our Semis record further to 8 semi-finals/8 wins.

I see a near-similar pattern playing out in the final........... **winks***

It's surely gonna be an interesting duel........*smiles*

Hopefully. but to my own view, the winner will be determined by the team that can play better defensely and physically. Our midfield must be well organize today and spray passes to disorganize the malian defense and they should free man to man when attacking/possessing and close marking man to man when defensing. The malian team is likely physical than ours so we should play a very good possessing football so as to pressure them and foul on us

Mali has not played anyone in our class. Mexico could beat Mali.

terzurum5:
[b][size=14pt]
Pinnick: Amuneke has earned our respect
[/size]
NFF President Amaju Pinnick will be with the Golden Eaglets when they take on Mexico in the FIFA U-17 World Cup semi-finals on Thursday.

The NFF boss departed on Monday evening, following the Eaglets’ 3-0 thrashing of three –time winners Brazil in the quarter -finals on Sunday.

“I am very excited with the way the team has played so far, raising our country’s flag very high. The head coach, Emmanuel Amuneke has shown tremendous maturity and has managed the team and everything around it brilliantly.

“Amuneke is the kind of person you would naturally recommend for higher responsibilities. He has clearly rubbished all insinuations and dark innuendoes against him and has continued to do a marvelous job quietly. He has earned his respect.”

The Eaglets take on Mexico’s U-17 at the 30,000 –capacity Estadio Municipal Ester Roa in Concepcion, with the prospect of a second –ever all-African final looming large in the South American nation.

Mean and miserly (in terms of goals conceded so far – only one) Mali take on Belgium (the only European team left in contention) in Vina del Mar, which has become a home of sort to the Golden Eaglets and will host Sunday’s final.

Mali and Belgium play the first semi final, starting from 5pm (9pm Nigeria time), before the Nigeria, Mexico clash that will again kick off at midnight in Nigeria.

On Monday, NFF Deputy General Secretary, Emmanuel Ikpeme arrived in Chile to join the high–flying Golden Eaglets.
[/b]
thenationonlineng.net/pinnick-amuneke-has-earned-our-respect/

that means before now he wasnt in their good books? he really proved them wrong. a no-nonsense coach

terzurum5:

Yea Manu Garba, Nduka Ugbade and Emmanuel Amunike are for sure good choices for our cadet teams so far. I personally critisized Coach Emmanuel Amunike on this thread looking at the number of talents that abound in this country. I expected him to have fished out talents better than what he has presented so far. I still hold firmly to my position. However, looking at the results which the team have produced so far, I say thombup to the Coaching crew and the players.

terzurum5 what other talents do u want him to present that are better than what we re seeing now?

BascoVanVeli:
Mali has not played anyone in our class. Mexico could beat Mali.

I also rate Mexico higher than Mali.....hopefully the boys will turn up tonight cuz honestly ehn, I no wan hear say another African country beat us to the title...... better for an European or American opponent to beat us than an African, we will never hear the end of it on this continent.

safarigirl:
I also rate Mexico higher than Mali.....hopefully the boys will turn up tonight cuz honestly ehn, I no wan hear say another African country beat us to the title...... better for an European or American opponent to beat us than an African, we will never hear the end of it on this continent.

My sister, let me frank, I am wary of those Malians. Did u ever watch how dey play?I watched dem for 90mins against Croatia and Belgium. They are usually robust in their pattern, sterving their opponents of ball possession, choking up d game and preventing them from creating chances.
Plus dey are early starters. I hope we wouldn't have gone down by 2-3 goals before we wake up as usual after 20mins.

Where my hope lies is in d ability of our players to score from all most nothing.

mikron:
terzurum5 what other talents do u want him to present that are better than what we re seeing now?

As if he was in camp with the team for the selections.

terzurum5:
[b][size=14pt]
Will the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup see an all-African Mali vs Nigeria final?
[/size]
Although the biannual tournament has never produced an all-African final since the first edition in 1985 in China, this year’s edition looks quite promising for the two African nations. Nigeria ranks higher than any other team in the competition, having emerged winners four times and runners-up thrice. The west African nation are the defending champions after beating Mexico 3-0 in the 2013 edition hosted by the United Arab Emirates.

Mali, who are yet to lose a match in the tournament, will be looking to end their opponent’s dominance by reaching the finals and lifting the prestigious trophy.

However, on the other hand, Nigerian will come all out to hunt for their fifth trophy in the history of the global competition.

The two African sides have registered impressive results so far and would want to prove a point by facing each other in the finals on Sunday if they beat their Thursday opponents. Nigeria have scored a total of 17 goals so far, 14 from open play and three from set pieces while their African counterparts have scored nine goals after 114 attempts. Mali boasts of one of the best attacking records in this year’s tournament but have had 29 of their shots blocked, 31 saved and 45 off-target.

Emmanual Amunike’s team are privileged to have the tournament’s top scorer Victor Osimhen, who has bagged eight goals and provided two assists so far for his team. Out of the eight goals, only one has been scored from the spot. Mali’s top scorer, on the other hand, is Sidiki Maiga with two goals and one assist. Judging from the statistics, fans should expect a highly offensive match, particularly from Nigerians, if the two teams make it to the finals.

Team records
Mali seem to have a better defensive record compared to Nigeria so far, having conceded only one goal in their last five matches. On the contrary, despite being clinical and ruthless in front of goal, Nigeria’s defense line has soaked in two more goals than their potential weekend opponents. The Aiglonnets could rely on this fact to penetrate the Golden Eaglets' defense line if they meet in the finals, and score quick goals to seal off the match early enough.

Nigeria and Mexico have met previously in the 2013 finals. The African outfit beat their South American rivals 3-0 to clinch the FIFA u17 World Cup. When the two sides meet again in the semi-finals this year, Nigeria will have an upper hand, having appeared in the final seven times. On the other side, Mali’s unbeaten run could inspire them a win in the semi finals against the Red Devils who have only scored five goals and conceded three.

Players to watch
Nigeria’s Osimhen will most-likely torment Mexico defenders by virtue of being the tournament’s top scorer with eight goals and two assists. The 17-year-old (pictured below) has attracted interest from top Premier League sides such as Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City.

Mali’s star player Sidiki Maiga (below) has managed to score only two goals and provided one assist, but his impressive team work and individual energy makes him standout. The talented forward is well-known for his selflessness and composure in front of goal, a decisive factor that could tear Belgium apart.

It would be interesting to witness the first-ever all-African grand finale at the FIFA U-17 World Cup. [s]If the two African sides meet, Mali will most likely carry the day by drawing inspiration from their unbeaten run and willingness to overwrite history.[/s]
[/b]
m.livesoccertv.com/news/16096/will-the-2015-fifa-u-17-world-cup-see-an-all-african-mali-vs-nigeria-final/

by the time we whitewash mali tonight this writer will edit this post.

terzurum5:
[b][size=14pt]
EPL Club Tempts Osimhen With One Million Pounds
[/size]

FIFA U17 World Cup leading scorer Victor Osimhen could be the next Golden Eaglet star to hit the English Premier League after a club there offered to pay for the player from Ultimate Strikers Academy starting from a million pounds.

Osimhen, 17 in December, has scored eight goals as Nigeria romped to a seventh semi-final in the U17 World Cup.
“An un-named EPL side are willing to splash the cash for Osimhen.

They want to start the bidding from a million pounds,” a top source familiar with this interest disclosed.

Osimhen knows his way to goal and has great techinique for a big centre-forward. He could also drift to the wings to create space for his teammates.

Manchester City signed Kelechi Iheanacho and Chidiebere Nwakali and Musa Yahaya was reportedly engaged by Tottenham Hotspur when Nigeria won a record fourth U17 World Cup two years ago.
[/b]
thebusinessdispatch.com/epl-club-tempts-osimhen-with-one-million-pounds/

this is the kind of news i want to hear always

Icon4s:


As if he was in camp with the team for the selections.

no mind him, tez no want to hear any story, thas the spirit. oga icon4s how body na? whats ur take on the big match tonight? i forsee a 3-0 drubbing of mali by our boys.

Icon4s:


My sister, let me frank, I am wary of those Malians. Did u ever watch how dey play?I watched dem for 90mins against Croatia and Belgium. They are usually robust in their pattern, sterving their opponents of ball possession, choking up d game and preventing them from creating chances.
Plus dey are early starters. I hope we wouldn't have gone down by 2-3 goals before we wake up as usual after 20mins.

Where my hope lies is in d ability of our players to score from all most nothing.

they conceded first against the Belgians, if they make that mistake against us, they'll be 3 goals down in 8 minutes.

Our boys score in quick succession too

lexyman:



They re both good , but I think the Malian defense has really helped him . If he wins it , he deserves it .

udoh will win it, nothing will go to mali. naija will clear the honours table

safarigirl:
they conceded first against the Belgians, if they make that mistake against us, they'll be 3 goals down in 8 minutes.

Our boys score in quick succession too

But dey equalised 6mins later.

Well, I hope our boys rise up to d occassion. We need this trophy so badly.

linked:
The eaglets placed themselves under unnecessary pressure by needlessly giving the balls away in dangerous areas... Mexico's second goal was a result of a complete defensive disaster.... guess the defenders were having a nap..

no i dont think so, our defenders were afraid of picking cards if they had tackled (most likely) fouled the onrushing cortes, the referee might ve issued a straight red if cortes was brought down. the coach amunike would have told them to avoid any kind of card be it yellow and worse still red. they were missing bamgboye already so accumulating more cards en-route the final would not have been a good idea. thank God we won. the land is green

mikron:
terzurum5 what other talents do u want him to present that are better than what we re seeing now?

[b]
Sir Icon4s, TheGoodJoe and many other persons here had already enlightened me, some few days ago, as to Amunike's choice of players and the reasons behind it, which I quite agree.

However, from the thinking of a non Coach, but a passionate fan with high expectations, I may still ask these questions.

How many of these guys can get average contracts with average Clubsides with what they have shown so far?

How many of these guys can walk in to the next U20 with what they have shown so far?

I know that they may produce the Cup, but what about the future?
Though am not God to look into the future.

Honestly Sir, I don't know how many youth competitions you have watched, but with what I have seen, so far hhhhhhhmmmmmmnnnnnn
...................................................................................................................................................... We have better players than 'some' of the players paraded by Coach Emmanuel Amunike.
Am not not in any way downgrading the boys and their performance. I am not a Coach, but this is my observation and opinion.

Once more, kudos to the technical crew and the boys as we look forward to going past the Malians this night.
[/b]

Icon4s:

But dey equalised 6mins later.

Well, I hope our boys rise up to d occassion. We need this trophy so badly.

like I said, against us, they won't have time to equalize.

Meanwhile, I wasn't aware we needed this trophy badly.

TheSuperNerd:
One more thing:

Mali would "undoubtably" be formidable opponents....

But I still feel we just beat the "toughest" team in the tournament............

Anyway, the thing is this.........

NIGERIA HAS NEVER LOST TO AN AFRICAN TEAM AT THE FIFA U-17 WORLD CUP SINCE THE "VERY" FIRST EDITION IN 1985.......

-China 1985: Guinea 1-1 Nigeria (Nigeria won 4-2 on pen.)
Stage: Semi-finals

**Guinea had A Traore and a Koita.... So does this Malian team.... Coincidence?? *smiles*

-Japan 1993: Ghana 1-2 Nigeria
Stage: Final

-T&T 2001: Nigeria 1-0 Burkina faso
Stage: Semi-finals


Note: On November 8th, it is the team that wants it "bad enough" that will take the title..... History will as always have to take the back seat.... But watch out!! History knows how to rear its "head" often times than not.....*smiles*

ALL THE BEST IN THE FINAL GOLDEN EAGLETS........

LET'S SHOW THE WORLD THAT "ASIA" IS "NOT" THE ONLY CONTINENT THAT GUARANTEES US TROPHIES AT THIS LEVEL........... LET THEM KNOW WE CAN WIN ANYWHERE........ I MEAN..... "A-N-Y-W-H-E-R-E"

*****BIG SMILES*****

the mexicans would have whopped this malian team had they met in the course of the tournament

safarigirl:
Top Scoring vs. Best Attacking


Top Goal Scorer vs. Top Goal Saver

Ayaff already share award, make FIFA no spoil am.

Golden Boot- Osimhen
Silver Boot- Eggestein (barring last minute changes)
Bronze boot- Nwakali (,, ,, ,, ,,)

..

Golden Ball- Nwakali
Silver ball- Chakweze (barring any last minute changes)
Bronze Ball- Some Other Player



Golden Glove- Diarra *wipes tears*

FairPlay Award- Belgium ( Bamgboye disqualified us and the ages of some of the Mexican and Malian players are questionable)



it should end this way, give or take a few names

udoh wll go with the golden glove

peeps keep hyping this malian team and i kept telling them we will take them to the cleaners tonight. we have the best rampaging attacking side in this tournament, and we dont do draws, and we hardly score 1 per match save for the croatian match which was really not important save for pride. 11pm today is just by the corner. mali will weep their eyes out cos we will break their hearts. they must go down. that one is certain. 3-1 in our favour. the land is green

terzurum5:

[b]
Sir Icon4s, TheGoodJoe and many other persons here had already enlightened me, some few days ago, as to Amunike's choice of players and the reasons behind it, which I quite agree.

However, from the thinking of a non Coach, but a passionate fan with high expectations, I may still ask these questions.

How many of these guys can get average contracts with average Clubsides with what they have shown so far?

How many of these guys can walk in to the next U20 with what they have shown so far?

I know that they may produce the Cup, but what about the future?
Though am not God to look into the future.

Honestly Sir, I don't know how many youth competitions you have watched, but with what I have seen, so far hhhhhhhmmmmmmnnnnnn
...................................................................................................................................................... We have better players than 'some' of the players paraded by Coach Emmanuel Amunike.
Am not not in any way downgrading the boys and their performance. I am not a Coach, but this is my observation and opinion.

Once more, kudos to the technical crew and the boys as we look forward to going past the Malians this night.
[/b]

U see sir, Stars are not born every day. Problem is u are expecting this crop to b like the last U17. Many of u should go back and rewatch d last U17, they are nt too far ahead of this crop. Mayb bc u watched them at U17 & U20 back to back what beclouds ur mind more may jst b their U20 play. As I said before go back to Manu's boys' U17 matches and u'll see that d deference might jst b dat dat team had more creative and proficient attacking midfielders which this team is not blessed with.

As i said before also, stars are nt born every day. It is nt every year that u can come across young talented players like Iheanacho, Yahaya, Success and co.
This may jst b d best crop Amuneke could assembly from the academies this time around.

And the issue of these boys not getting above average clubs in Europe. That is a blantantly wrong conclusion. In 2001 Nigeria lost to France in d U17WC final. The only players I know dat got any reasonable offers in Europe were Femi Opabunmi(FC Zurich of Switzerland) and mayb Temile Omonigho (one Bulgarian club). These rest na Naija league harvest them. But 2 yrs later, Mikel's set crashed out at d grp stage. I dnt need to tell u the number of offers that came for Mikel, Ogbuike, Okoronkwo, Bala, Promise, Sarki and co.

So bro, I love this crop of Eaglets and they are going places.

Icon4s:

But dey equalised 6mins later.

Well, I hope our boys rise up to d occassion. We need this trophy so badly.

Badly ke..? The Malians need it more...

terzurum5:

[b]
Sir Icon4s, TheGoodJoe and many other persons here had already enlightened me, some few days ago, as to Amunike's choice of players and the reasons behind it, which I quite agree.

However, from the thinking of a non Coach, but a passionate fan with high expectations, I may still ask these questions.

How many of these guys can get average contracts with average Clubsides with what they have shown so far?

How many of these guys can walk in to the next U20 with what they have shown so far?

I know that they may produce the Cup, but what about the future?
Though am not God to look into the future.

Honestly Sir, I don't know how many youth competitions you have watched, but with what I have seen, so far hhhhhhhmmmmmmnnnnnn
...................................................................................................................................................... We have better players than 'some' of the players paraded by Coach Emmanuel Amunike.
Am not not in any way downgrading the boys and their performance. I am not a Coach, but this is my observation and opinion.

Once more, kudos to the technical crew and the boys as we look forward to going past the Malians this night.
[/b]

Where are these so called boys i want to meet and MRI them lol.

#AskTheCaptains
With the final of the FIFA U-17 World Cup Chile 2015 now just a matter of hours away, Abdoul Dante and Kelechi Nwakali, captains of Mali and Nigeria respectively, took time out of their busy schedules to answer some questions from enthusiastic fans using the #AskTheCaptains hashtag on FIFA's Twitter account. FIFA.com presents the entirety of the interactive interview – made possible by you – with the skippers of the CAF African U-17 champions and reigning world champions below:

@ottmarnolasco21: Did you think that your team would get this far?
Dante: Well, we didn’t come here to make up the numbers. We proved at the African U-17 Championship that we were a good side. As African champions, we wanted to demonstrate that we could play a bit, both individually and as a team. We knew, though, that it wouldn’t be easy to reach the final and that we would need to show a lot of unity and mental strength.
Nwakali: Our objective here in Chile was to take the trophy back to Nigeria. We’ve done what needed to be done to make that possible. We’re in the final and we’re going to win.

@Supereaglescomp: What’s been the most important factor in getting you to where you are right now?
Dante: It’s definitely the mental strength I mentioned earlier. Irrespective of the opponent, situation or level of pressure, our heads never go down. Even when the other team dominates us for 90 minutes, we still believe we have a chance. This quality is something that our coach has instilled in us over the past couple of years. He keeps telling us that although we’re tired, we need to remember that our opponents are too. When you’ve got greater mental strength, you always end up winning.
Nwakali: Hard work. If you listen to your coach and you give 100 per cent, you get your rewards. We’ve worked extremely hard to get to this point.

@koolaidman2kool: How did you motivate your team-mates during the semi-final?
Dante: I was suspended, but I told them that even though I wasn’t there, we should still act as one, unified group. Although Belgium scored first, the team managed to fight back. We wanted to make history for our country.
Nwakali: Since the tournament began, we’ve always opened the scoring in our matches, but that wasn’t the case against Mexico. As captain, I tried to motivate my players as best as I could, telling them to wake up and that the game was far from over, even though we were a goal down.

@Iam_XP01: What’s the best team you’ve played against here, and which player has impressed you the most?
Dante: Croatia. They had some great players, especially their No10 ( Nikola Moro ) and their No7 ( Josip Brekalo ). They really impressed us with their attacking play – they tired us out.
Nwakali: Mexico were our most difficult opponents. I thought their two forwards, the No9 ( Eduardo Aguirre ) and No10 ( Claudio Zamudio ), were very good players. They really gave us the run-around


@HboyTohBad: What are you planning on doing after the final?
Dante: I want to go and see my family in Bamako. After that, if there’s a possibility of signing a professional contract, then that would be the dream scenario. This competition has led to me getting a lot of offers, but I need to take one thing at a time.
Nwakali: I want to go back home, hopefully with the trophy, so that we can reflect on what we’ve accomplished, and then I’ll give some thought to my next career move.

@christianm015: Dante, what has it meant to you to lead your team to the final of the U-17 World Cup, and to go head-to-head with the best in the world?
Dante: Being here representing and captaining my country is an immense honour. I’m very happy and proud to have got this far, and I plan on going all the way. People back home in Mali have supported us from the start. This morning, we even got a call from Seydou Keita! He encouraged us, reminding us that it was the first time that Mali have been African champions and have had a chance to become world champions. He told us to keep doing what we’ve been doing, right to the end.


@Ezeh_UK: Nwakali, Mali won the African U-17 Championship, where you finished fourth. Are you afraid of playing them in the final?
Nwakali: They’re the current African champions at U-17 level. But we’re the reigning U-17 world champions. We’re not afraid of them at all, but we do respect them and realise that they will be worthy opponents.

Icon4s:


U see sir, Stars are not born every day. Problem is u are expecting this crop to b like the last U17. Many of u should go back and rewatch d last U17, they are nt too far ahead of this crop. Mayb bc u watched them at U17 & U20 back to back what beclouds ur mind more may jst b their U20 play. As I said before go back to Manu's boys' U17 matches and u'll see that d deference might jst b dat dat team had more creative and proficient attacking midfielders which this team is not blessed with.

As i said before also, stars are nt born every day. It is nt every year that u can come across young talented players like Iheanacho, Yahaya, Success and co.
This may jst b d best crop Amuneke could assembly from the academies this time around.

And the issue of these boys not getting above average clubs in Europe. That is a blantantly wrong conclusion. In 2001 Nigeria lost to France in d U17WC final. The only players I know dat got any reasonable offers in Europe were Femi Opabunmi(FC Zurich of Switzerland) and mayb Temile Omonigho (one Bulgarian club). These rest na Naija league harvest them. But 2 yrs later, Mikel's set crashed out at d grp stage. I dnt need to tell u the number of offers that came for Mikel, Ogbuike, Okoronkwo, Bala, Promise, Sarki and co.

So bro, I love this crop of Eaglets and they are going places.

I concur Sir.


**Bigger**



&


**Smiles**