Mali U-17 And Uzbekistan U-17: The Steps Of The Former Finalist Repeating Sweet History

The U-17 Mali national team will face Uzbekistan in the inaugural match of Group B of the 2023 U-17 World Cup (photo: Doc. FIFA)

JAKARTA The Mali U-17 national team began chasing their dreams at the 2023 U-17 World Cup against the U-17 Uzbekistan national team in the first matchday of the Group B preliminary round.

The two teams started their journey in Indonesia in a duel that will take place at the Manahan Stadium, Solo, Central Java, Friday, November 10, 2023 at 16.00 WIB.

The 2023 U-17 World Cup in Indonesia will be Mali's sixth appearance in this competition. They are here to treat failures in this year's U-17 Africa Cup of Nations.

Mali posted a ticket to Indonesia by reaching the semifinals of the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations. They tackled Congo in the last eight before losing to Morocco on penalties in the semifinals.

Soumalia Coulibaly's team then fought against Burkina Faso in the race for third place. Unfortunately, they lost 1-2 in that match.

After failing in Africa, Mali's ambition now is to pursue their dreams in Indonesia. They want to win after their previous best performance is to be runner up.

Mali debuted in the competition in 1997 and their best performance took place at Chile 2015. At that time they broke through the final, but lost against Nigeria, starring Victor Osimhen.

Mali's journey in the group stage of the U-17 World Cup is also impressive. They have qualified for the knockout stages in four of their five appearances at this event.

Meanwhile, Uzbekistan comes to Indonesia after ten years of absence from this competition. The 2023 U-17 World Cup will be their third appearance in history.

Uzbekistan first competed in the U-17 World Cup in 2011. At that time they finished as winners of Group D before beating Australia 4-0 in the round of 16.

Their journey at that time then stopped after losing against Uruguay in the quarter-finals. White Wolves then returned in 2013 after a successful U-17 AFC Asian Cup for the first time.

However, their journey only reached the round of 16. It happened after they suffered a narrow 0-1 defeat against the Honduras national team.

However, Uzbekistan is unbeaten in their last five matches in the group stage at the U-17 World Cup. They won three and drew twice.

Mali U-17 and Uzbekistan U-17 schedules:

Mali U-17 vs Uzbekistan U-17

Matchday I Group B

Manahan Stadium, Solo

Kick off: 16.00 WIB