Fresh from a rousing start to its campaign, England’s firepower will be tested by two-time former champion Mexico in a mouthwatering group F contest of the FIFA Under-17 World Cup at Salt Lake stadium on Wednesday.
Proving too hot for Chile, England asserted its supremacy in the group with a 4-0 rout and another similar outing will certainly seal its pre-quarterfinal berth.
But El Tri will be no pushovers and the Mario Arteaga outfit is bidding for its first win in this edition after being held to a frustrating 1-1 draw by Iraq .
Having won two titles since the turn of the century, Mexico is one of the most consistent sides of the tournament.
After conceding an early 16th minute goal by Mohammed Dawood, Mexico became nervous but looked in control in the second half, in which it scored through Roberto de la Rosa six minutes after the break.
Mexico had a heartbreak in the 74th minute when Diego Lainez came close to scoring.
“It is always to difficult to begin a World Cup. Players were nervous which is obvious. For the first 20 or 25 minutes they were on the back foot. As the game progressed they gained momentum and took control. They needed time to compose,” Arteaga said.
England’s Jadon Sancho, who rejected a staggering £30,000 a week offer from Manchester City to join Borussia Dortmund last month in a projected £10 million deal, showed why he’s in demand.
The Dortmund forward struck twice taking over after Chelsea midfielder Callum Hudson-Odoi gave England the lead inside five minutes with Sancho making the assist.
Then came the turn for Manchester United prodigy Angel Gomes who curled in a freekick coming on as a substitute and the holiday turnout of over 46,000 in the country’s biggest football amphitheatre could not have asked for a better kick-off.
It was a big statement from the Steve Cooper side which seem determined to follow up a summer of success at youth level — winning the U-20 World Cup in Korea and making the Euro U-21 last-four in Poland earlier this year.
England, which failed to progress beyond group stage in the last edition in Chile 2015, has not progressed beyond quarterfinals from three attempts as Cooper faces the biggest group F challenge.
Arteaga had opted for a four-man backline in Raandoval, Alan Maeda, Carlos Robles and Adri Vuez and it remains to be seen how they cope against the menacing English attack.
Squads (from):
Match starts at 05:00 pm
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