Brazil and Spain were never going to be troubled by Niger and North Korea and that is how it panned out. But what made this group interesting, apart from the quality of the two heavyweights, was the battle for the third place. And World Cup debutants Niger managed to overcome North Korea to secure three points that has helped them progress into the last 16 as one of the best third placed teams.
Brazil were dominant, expect for the first 15 minutes of the first match against Spain, when they conceded—the only goal against them so far. That, too, was an own goal and thereafter they seized control of the match and the group. They had 56 per cent possession against Spain, 70 per cent against North Korea and 57 per cent against Niger. They were, arguably, the only team in the tournament to completely control the midfield. Brazil's prospects look strong as they will face Honduras in the last 16 at their 'home ground' in Kochi. In the quarterfinals, unless Honduras pull off the mother of all upsets, they will play the winner of Colombia vs Germany match at Kolkata. A bettor would back Brazil to reach the semifinals and if England continue to play as well as they have done, we could have Brazil vs England as one of the semifinals.
Spain lost 2-1 to Brazil. Their coach Santi Denia cited the humidity as the reason for their loss. And sure enough, in the next two matches with cooling breaks, they completely dominated proceedings. Niger looked lost against Spain's quick passing and North Korea were lucky not to concede more than two. The only setback is that as runners-up they will have to face Group E winners—France, unless they lose to Honduras in the final match. They are good enough to beat France as they showed in the quarterfinals of the 2017 U-17 Euros. But they have to travel to Guwahati and will be hoping that the players can acclimatise fast as France have been based in the northeast.
Niger will face Ghana who beat them on penalties in the semifinal of the 2017 U-17 African Cup. It will be difficult. But Niger have nothing to lose having already qualified for the last 16 in their debut on the world stage.
North Korea played well against Niger and were unlucky to lose. Against Brazil they played an outstanding tactical game. Every time Brazil picked up the ball in defence, the Koreans simply ran back to their half. It seemed strange, but when Brazil attacked they found a Korean wall in front of them. Moreover, their lightning-quick counter-attacks often caught the samba boys unawares. But Brazil always managed to recover, thanks in part to Korea's wastefulness in front of goal. But as North Korea's coach Yong Su Kim said, they are only teenagers and sometimes they make the wrong decision in front of goal. Having lost twice, they had no choice but to attack against Spain. But they were never going to be good enough to go toe-to-toe with the European champions.
In the end, it was a disappointing tournament for North Korea. But the boys played their hearts out every time they stepped on to the football pitch and for that they can be proud.
