Brazil trounce Germany 2-1 in a heroic second half comeback, make it to semi-finals

Brazil needed a second-half turnaround to defeat Germany 2-1, and with it, reach the semi-finals of the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 in Kolkata on Sunday evening.

Played in front of a passionate crowd of 66,613 at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan Stadium, Brazil made the brighter start to the contest and went close to taking the lead just six minutes in. Brenner won possession on the edge of the Germany box and found Alan, whose low drive struck the far post.

As the match passed the quarter-hour mark, Germany settled down and looked the better side up to half-time. They would open the scoring from the penalty spot on 21 minutes after John Yeboah was tripped by a sliding Lucas Halter in the Brazil box. Captain Jann-Fiete Arp converted his spot-kick for his joint-leading fifth goal of the tournament.

Yet, it was in the second half that the South American champions turned the match around with two goals in six minutes. Substitute Weverson levelled matters on 71 minutes with a powerful shot off the underside of the crossbar before Paulinho drove home a bullet finish six minutes later, to the delight of the Brazil-supporting Kolkata crowd. The result sent Brazil into a last-four meeting with England in Guwahati on Wednesday.

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SPAIN vs IRAN 3-1 (Report and Highlights from FIFA)

Spain eased their way into the semi-finals of the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 with a 3-1 victory over Iran in Kochi on Sunday.

It was the European champions that dominated proceedings from the kick-off, with Abel Ruiz putting them ahead before the quarter-hour mark. On the rebound, the Spain captain drove his shot past Iran goalkeeper Ali Gholam Zadeh.

La Rojita nearly doubled their advantage, but Gholam Zadeh made a superb save to deny Cesar Gelabert at his feet, with the ball flying over the Iran crossbar.

Match Highlights: Spain 3-1 Iran

Any hopes Team Melli had of a comeback ended on the hour mark, as Sergio Gomez scored a fantastic goal when he received a Ferran Torres pass before turning and beating Gholam Zadeh with a left-footed long-distance strike. Torres then added a third goal when he converted Mohamed Moukliss’s low cross.

Though Saeid Karimi pulled a goal back for Iran, Spain held on to secure their spot in the last four and a meeting with Mali in Navi Mumbai on Wednesday.