Erick Thohir Hopes The Creation Of A New History At The 2023 U-17 World Cup

JAKARTA - PSSI General Chair Erick Thohir hopes to create a new history in line with the 2023 U-17 World Cup semifinals which are currently taking place in Indonesia.

In the match which took place at the Manahan Stadium, Solo, Tuesday, November 28, 2023, there were four teams competing for the final ticket.

The four are not random teams, they are Argentina U-17 who are facing Germany U-17 and France U-17 who are challenging Mali U-17.

The match was clearly included in the prestigious match even though the U-17 World Cup was a show for the age group.

Erick Thohir hopes that this classy dish can provide entertainment for Indonesian football lovers.

The four teams competing in the semifinals are the best teams. We are lucky to be able to witness the actions of the Argentine U-17 elite team, Germany U-17, France U-17, and Mali U-17, a black horse from Africa," said Erick Thohir.

"We hope that two quality semifinal matches will pass the two best teams in the final match," he continued in a press statement quoted on Tuesday, November 28, 2023.

Of all the 19th edition of the U-17 World Cup semifinalists, France U-17 is the only team to have won. Les Bleus was once the best in the U-17 World Cup in 2001.

In the tournament that took place in Tokyo Tobago, the Young Chicken Team defeated Nigeria U-17 with a score of 3-0 in the final. Meanwhile, Germany U-17 and Mali U-17 had their best achievement limited to being runners-up at the U-17 World Cup.

Die Mannschaft was ranked second in the first edition of 1985. In addition, Germany U-17 was also twice the third-ranked team in 2007 and 2011, and once finished fourth in 1997.

Mali U-17 was runner-up in 2015. They also finished fourth in the 2017 edition.

Meanwhile, Argentina U-17 has qualified for the semifinals five times, finished third in 1991, 1995, and 2003 and twice as the fourth-ranked team in 2001 and 2013.

Looking at the attendance of four teams in the semifinals held at Manahan Stadium, Erick Thohir said that there would be a new history to be created in this edition.

Argentina U-17, Germany U-17, and Mali U-17 dream of making history at the U-17 World Cup, following France's U-17 footprint."

"I am sure that today's two semifinal matches will be exciting and dramatic, the best team that will qualify for the final. A new history will be created in our country," said Erick.

Despite that hope, the high enthusiasm of the audience in Solo can also be seen from the status of the semifinal ticket that has been sold out.

In fact, the FIFA U-17 World Cup Local Implementation Committee (LOC) 2023 provides quite a lot of tickets, namely 10 thousand sheets.

"I appreciate the enthusiasm shown by the community from the preliminary to the last eight is extraordinary."

"In fact, when Indonesia U-17 was eliminated, they were still busy going to the stadium. Towards the end of this event, let's get busy and make the 2023 U-17 World Cup a success until the final," said Erick Thohir.