Match Day 1
Tahiti 0 vs Senegal 3
But Senegal’s Amadou Sagna hit the target within seconds of kick-off against Tahiti and would go on to complete his hat-trick in the opening Group A fixture. Sagna scored the fastest goal in competition history, breaking the deadlock for Senegal against Tahiti after just 9.6 seconds to surpass the previous best-mark set by Nigeria’s Monday Odiaka in 1985.
They never looked back after that, winning 3-0 at Lublin Stadium.
The Young Lions of Teranga were on their game from the off, piling on pressure and seizing control with a 2-0 lead inside 30 minutes.
Sagna was not done turning heads after the first minute, either.
The 19-year-old netted a hat-trick in the Group A opener, scoring one final time in the 50th minute to secure all three points and a perfect start for the Africans.
Qatar 0 vs Nigeria 4
Flying Eagles of Nigeria started their World cup campaign on a high as they thrashed Qatar 4-0 in the opening match of the Group D match of the FIFA U20 World Cup in Poland.
The Nigerian team which is participating in the tournament for the first time mauled the Asian representatives at the Stadion Miejski in Tychy.
Maxwell Effiom got the first goal for the Paul Aigbogun’s side on 12 minutes before Sweden based Henry Offia doubled the lead on 24 minutes with both assists from Captain Ikouwem Utin.
Manchester City’s Tom Dele-Bashiru got the third goal after the break on 68 minutes before Defender Aliyu Salawudeen completed the rout on 74 minutes.
The Eagles next play the USA on Monday and then face Ukraine on Thursday at the Bielsko-Bahalia stadium.
Earlier in the competition, West African neighbors Senegal thrashed Tahiti 3-0 to go top of Group A while Colombia dealt a huge blow to hosts Poland debut at the competition with a 2-0 thumping.
In Group B, Italy pipped Mexico 2-1 in a keenly contested match to go top of Group B, Ecuador also beat Japan by the same margin in the second encounter.
Panama 1 vs Mali 1
A late penalty kick converted by Panama substitute Diego Valanta secured a draw for Los Canaleros against Mali in the opening match day of Group E at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Poland 2019.
Chances were few and far between on a sunny early evening in Bydgoszcz. African champions Mali looked the more dangerous of the sides in the first half, with Mohamed Camara and Lassana N’Diaye posing a considerable threat through the middle. Panama keeper Marcos Allen made a point-blank save from N’Diaye in the 18th minute.
There was nothing he could do, however, about Boubacar Konte’s strike 20 minutes later. Playing on the counter-attack, Konte dribbled in from the left wing before unleashing a fiercely-driven low shot past a helpless Allen to give The Eagles the lead at the break.
Camara struck the crossbar midway through the second half, but Mali failed to double their advantage and that proved costly.
Towering centre-back Abdoulaye Diaby fouled Panama left-back Guillermo Benitez just inside the penalty area in the 85th minute, and Valanta did the rest in successfully converting the resulting spot-kick to bring Panama their fourth draw in 16 U-20 World Cup matches.
Argentina 5 vs South Africa 2
A four-goal second half spurred Argentina to a 5-2 victory over South Africa in their Group F opener at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Poland 2019.
La Albiceleste dominated swathes of the game and jumped ahead early. Fausto Vera’s cool finish in the fourth minute put the Amajita in catch-up mode, but South Africa embraced that role in the first half and drew even through Keenan Phillips in the 23rd minute.
Though South Africa were able to exert some control in the first 45 minutes, Argentina took command as the game wore on. Ezequiel Barco’s second-half brace was galvanising; first the 20-year-old midfielder converted a penalty to give his side the lead, then he struck a sumptuous volley for Argentina’s third in the 71st minute.
They did not look back, scoring twice more through Julian Alvarez and Adolfo Gaich while South Africa added one to their total late on courtesy of a Lyle Foster spot kick.
Match Day 2
Senegal 2 vs Colombia 0
Senegal made it two wins with a victory against Colombia at the Lublin Stadium on Sunday, cementing a slot in the tournament’s knockout stages.
Les Lions de la Teranga had the ball in the net on 21 minutes and even though Ibrahima Niane’s header was ruled offside, Senegal were soon celebrating a one-goal lead 13 minutes later after converting from the penalty spot.
Colombia’s Anderson Arroyo fouled Niane inside the area, and the forward made no mistake from the spot – firing past Kevin Mier and registering his first goal of Poland 2019.
Colombia pressed in the second half in search of an equaliser but Senegal doubled their lead on 85 minutes – another goal coming from the penalty spot. Ousseynou Niang was brought down by Andres Reyes before Dion Lopy converted his spot-kick to seal the deal for the African side.
USA 2 vs Nigeria 0
Nigeria’s Flying Eagles fell to a 2- 0 defeat to the United States of America in their second Group D game at the ongoing 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland on Monday.
Sebastian Soto scored both goals for USA in the encounter played at the Bielsko Biala Stadium.
The Americans dominated the opening exchanges with Timothy Weah causing problems for the Flying Eagles defenders.
Sebastian Soto gave the Americans the lead in the 18th minute nodding home Alexis Mendez’s corner kick.
Weah came close to adding the second few minutes later but is effort was deflected into corner kick.
Jamilu Mohammed, Henry Offia and Effiom Maxwell all came close to equalising for Nigeria afterwards but had their efforts saved by the USA goalkeeper Brady Scott.
Soto scored the the second goal for the United States immediately after the break after he was played through on goal by Chris Gloster.
The Flying Eagles were awarded a penalty in the 70th minute but it was overruled for offside after the centre consulted VAR.
Eight minutes was added at the end of 90 minutes but the Flying Eagles were unable to get back into game.
South Korea 1 vs South Africa 0
Korea Republic picked up their first points of the FIFA U-20 World Cup Poland 2019 courtesy of a hard-fought 1-0 win against a resilient South Africa in Tychy. Kim Hyunwoo’s second half header was the difference in the Group F clash, the result of which left the Amajita with a slim chance of reaching the last 16.
Even though torrential rain significantly affected the flow of the match in the opening period, it was South Africa who were in the ascendancy in the first half. A good stop by Lee Gwangyeon in the Korea goal kept out a deflected effort by Siphesihle Mkhize, but the downpour inhibited the quality of play in general – meaning few opportunities.
With conditions clearing after the break, and some harsh words from Chung Jungyong likely ringing in the Taeguk Warriors’ ears, the Koreans returned to the field a different side.
The Asian outfit fired a couple of warning shots across the South African bow, with Cho Youngwook blazing over having been teed up by Oh Sehun, and Jeong Hojin later rattling the Amajita crossbar.
Thabo Senong’s side did not heed these warnings, and the deadlock was broken with just over 20 minutes remaining. A deflected cross into the South African penalty area looped high into the Tychy sky, and it was Hyunwoo who found the corner of the net with a clinically accurate header.
The Koreans comfortably saw out the game, and head into their final Group F clash with already-qualified Argentina level on points with their opening day conquerors Portugal. South Africa face a must-win clash against the two-time U-20 World Cup winners in Bielsko-Biala.
Saudi Arabia 3 vs Mali 4
Mali came from behind to defeat Saudi Arabia 4-3 at the Gdynia Stadium on Tuesday night in one of the most entertaining games to date at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Poland 2019.
This match-up of continental champions lived up to its billing, tilting back and forth several times. Saudi Arabia built a two-goal lead after just 20 minutes thanks to Feras Albrikan running loose behind the Mali defence and Hassan Altambakti converting a penalty.
Saudi Arabia would gift a goal back before the half, however, as goalkeeper Abdulrahman Alshammari’s attempt to play the ball to a team-mate was intercepted by Sekou Koita, who fired into an empty net.
Mali entered the second half reinvigorated, leveling the game in the 54th minute through Ibrahima Kone. It was only nine minutes later that Saudi Arabia regained the lead through Khalid Alghannam, whose cute lob struck in full stride from 25 yards out caught goalkeeper Youssouf Koita off guard.
Still, Mali were unfazed. First Boubacar Traore tied the match once more via a rocket from the right-hand side. Then came the 90th-minute winner courtesy of Mohamed Camara, followed by unbridled joy from the African champions. Koita’s curling cross found Camara at full pace, giving Mali four points from two games and a great chance of advancing to the knockout stages.
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