Iraq will have hopes of realising its maiden pre-quarterfinal berth in the FIFA Under-17 World Cup as it squares up against England in the final round of the Group F league at the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday.
The match will see an interesting clash of styles and philosophies as the two top sides in the group meet to decide the final positions.
Third best team
England has already made the grade with successive wins while Iraq’s four points — from a win and a draw so far — assures it of a berth in the knock-out stage, at least as a third-best team.
Going by the current group equations, Iraq is expected to be among the 16 teams to make it to the next stage.
The match could see both sides testing their bench strengths. England coach Steve Cooper hinted at the possibility of resting some of the players. “We will be putting up a team that we think can win the game. We want to win the game and finish on top,” Cooper said.
England’s big strength has been its creative midfield where Jadon Sancho, Philip Foden, George McEachran and Callum Hudson-Odoi have impressed with their cohesive show.
Passing efficiency
England will rely on building its attack on passing efficiency while Iraq has been playing a more direct football, characterised by long passes primarily aimed at releasing striker Mohammed Dawood.
That sets up the contest between Dawood and Sancho — if they are not rested. Both have scored three goals each, and the match offers the scope of a contest within a contest.
“If we win we will be the leader and stay here (Kolkata),” said Ali Ibadi, Iraq’s first-choice goalkeeper. “Everyone is surprised at what we did but we believe that we are good and doing very well.”
Japan, which has three points from a win and a loss, needs to beat New Caledonia in the concluding outing of the Group-E league, which will be held at the same venue.
Japan, which downed Honduras 6-1 before losing 2-1 to group topper France, is almost assured of a pre-quarterfinal berth taking on a side which has already conceded 12 goals in its two loses so far.
“We need to win in order to go to the next round. Some of our players are eager and hungry to play,” Japan coach Yoshuro Moriyama said.
