U17 World Cup Preview: Germany vs. Burkina Faso

Germany face Burkina Faso in the Round of 32 tie at the U17 World Cup.

After topping their group with five points, Germany will meet Burkina Faso in the Round of 32 as they aim to repeat the 2023 success in the U17 World Cup. The game will be played on Saturday (3:45 PM CET).

As the 11th-ranked group winner was supposed to meet the 10th-ranked runner-up, Germany were initially seeded with Colombia. However, since the two teams were in the same group, Germany and France exchanged opponents.

Germany started the campaign with a 1-1 draw with Colombia, and they were under pressure in the final group stage fixture after a similar scoreline against North Korea. It took them half an hour to break the resistance of debutants El Salvador, but Marc-Patrick Meister’s side climbed to the top spot with a 7-0 victory.

Wisdom Mike and Jeremiah Mensah scored a couple of goals each in the group stage. In addition to the absence of Bayern’s new superstar Lennart Karl, who will now feature for the U21s, Germany missed Natnael Abraha and Keziah Oteng-Mensah due to injuries before the start of the tournament.

Lasse Eickel and Ben Kieffer replaced the duo in Germany’s squad for the tournament in Qatar. The latter started the game against El Salvador, while Kieffer came off the bench to add his name to the scoresheet. Apart from the two substitute goalkeepers, all 18 outfield players have already featured in the tournament.

Germany had a weak record in the U17 World Cup before their first triumph in Indonesia a couple of years ago. They were unable to qualify for two of the previous four competitions before the 2023 edition.

Burkina Faso progressed from the group stage of the U17 World Cup for the first time since 2009. Both Germany and Burkina Faso were knocked out of the Round of 16 on that occasion, which was the only tournament staged on the African continent.

Oscar Barro’s side lost their opening fixture in Qatar to the USA before narrow wins over the Czech Republic and Tajikistan. Asharaf Loukman Tapsoba, who finished joint top-scorer in the U17 African Cup with seven goals, is the star player of the team. Ten players started all three group stage fixtures for Burkina Faso.

The winner will face either Senegal or debutants Uganda in the Round of 16.

Predicted Lineups:

Germany: Trippel; Akumu, Hawighorst ©, Kieffer, Scheller; Kaba, Bekir İş, Mensah, Ley; Mike; Staff

Burkina Faso: Ouattara; Coulibaly, Fadil Barro, Dabo, Ouedraogo; Zalle, Kogo; Diakité, Zongo, Cherif Barro ©; Tapsoba