Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Concepcion: Syria bowed out of the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup after a 4-0 defeat to European champions France on Sunday saw them finish bottom of Group F as the curtain came down on the group phase of the competition.
Having picked up just a solitary point from their first two matches after a 4-1 opening loss to Paraguay was followed by a hard-fought goalless draw with New Zealand, the Syrians went into Sunday’s match at the Estadio Municipal Ester Rao needing nothing less than a victory to stand any chance of progress to the knockout stage.
However France proved too strong, scoring two times in each half to advance to the Round of 16 with a 100% record.
Syria held out until the 22nd minute when Lamine Fomba set up Nicolas Janvier for the first of his double before the goalscorer turned provider and played in Odsonne Edouard for number two ten minutes later.
Edouard, scorer of a hat-trick as France defeated Germany 4-0 to win the 2015 UEFA U-17 Championship, had a hand in the Europeans’ third goal just a minute after the interval when the Paris Saint Germain forward passed to Maxime Pelican who then teed the ball up for Janvier to score his second before the Stade Rennais midfielder capped a stellar individual display by setting up the fourth in the 66th minute, with Alexis Claude Maurice providing the finishing touch.
“The game was with the champions of Europe a strong and organised team. They deserved to win the three points and I say congratulations to them,” conceded Syria coach Mohamed Al Attar, who tempered his disappointment at the earlier than hoped for exit by pointing to the positives his young charges can take from their time in Chile.
“We have learned a lot from our experience here, especially the methods and schools of playing that we’ve seen from different teams.”
Photo: FIFA/Getty Images