India U-17 has crossed the semi-final hurdle to reach the SAFF U-17 Championship 2024 Final, beating Nepal U-17 by 4-2 in a high-pressure game on 30th September 2024 at the Changlimithang Stadium in Bhutan.
Later on the same day, Bangladesh U-17 defeated Pakistan U-17 in sudden death in another action-packed semi-final to enter the SAFF U-17 Championship 2024 Final to set the final fixture set to be played on 28th September 2024 at the Changlimithang Stadium in Bhutan.
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India U-17 came out victorious beating Nepal U-17 by 4-2
After a goalless first half between the two teams, Vishal Yadav for India broke the deadlock in the 61st minute of the game. Vishal scored a brace with a second goal coming in the 68th minute. Subash Bam reduced the margin for Nepal as he scored in the 85th minute and created pressure on the Indian lads. However, Khongjam Rishi Singh diluted that pressure with his goal in the 85th minute.
India's pressure resurged again after Mohammed Kaif's clearance to deny a corner was deflected into his own goal and Nepal got their second goal. But the Indian boys showed massive character to keep it cool and scored the fourth one to ensure India's qualification into the final.
Bangladesh U-17 made a thrilling comeback to beat Pakistan U-17 by 8-7 on sudden death
Shahab Ahmed scored the first goal to give Pakistan the lead in the 32nd minute. Abdul Rehman extended Pakistan's lead by 2-0 with a spot-kick in the 62nd minute. Pakistan had a 2-0 lead but Md. Manik scored in the 74th minute to reduce the margin for Bangladesh. The coveted equalizer for Bangladesh came in the 4th minute of the injury time as Manik scored again to stop Bangladesh from being disqualified.
Both teams headed into the penalties with strong control over themselves. It reflected in the pitch when both teams scored 5 out of 5 penalties in the regular shootout to keep it level on 5-5. The shootout forced into sudden death and after two penalties each, the scoreline was again level on 7-7. However, Pakistan missed their last penalty and Bangladesh had the advantage to score theirs, and they did so to historically win the game by 8-7 on penalties.
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Past Winners of SAFF U-17 Championship
Edition | Host | Winners | Runners-up | Score | Third Place |
2022 | Sri Lanka | India U-17 | Nepal U-17 | 4-0 |
Bangladesh U-17, Sri Lanka U-17 |
Top Goalscorers of the 2024 edition
Pos. | Players | Teams | Goals |
1 | Sujan Dangol | Nepal U-17 | 4 |
2 | Subhan Karim | Pakistan U-17 | 3 |
Hemneichung Lunkim | India U-17 | 3 | |
3 | Vishal Yadav | India U-17 | 2 |
Md Manik | Bangladesh U-17 | 2 | |
Muhammad Talha | Pakistan U-17 | 2 | |
Thinley Yezer | Bhutan U-17 | 2 | |
Tandin Phuntsho | Bhutan U-17 | 2 |
India U-17 will meet Bangladesh U-17 for the second time in this tournament as they already met in the inaugural match, but now in the SAFF U-17 Championship 2024 final that is scheduled to take place at the Changlimithang Stadium in Bhutan on September 30, 2024.
Match Details
Final | India U-17 vs Bangladesh U-17
Date | 30th September, 2024
Time | 5;30 PM IST
Venue | Changlimithang Stadium, Thimpu, Bhutan
Streaming Details
Indian football fans can watch the game live on Sportzworkz YouTube channel.