Nine years on: England MU17s’ World Cup win

Saturday 28 October 2017 was a landmark day for youth football in England, as the Young Lions won the FIFA U17 World Cup for the first time.

It was the day that names such as Phil Foden, Marc Guehi and Morgan Gibbs-White made a big breakthrough, paving the way for stellar careers in the Premier League and for England’s senior team. 

It followed the success of the England men’s under-20s the previous June, and many of the players who featured that day have gone on to have distinguished careers.

The tournament took place across India in sweltering hot conditions, but fears the weather would affect the final at Kolkata's Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan were unfounded as the packed crowd of over 66,000 were treated to the most dramatic match of the tournament.

Despite England starting well, it was Spain who took a quickfire lead through Sergio Gomez, who later spent two seasons at Manchester City, after 10 minutes.

Gomez notched his second to double Spain's lead just after the half hour mark. But England kept their cool in the heat and Liverpool prospect Rhian Brewster pulled one back with his eighth goal of the tournament on 44 minutes.

This shift in momentum was pivotal and, from that moment on, it was all England. Goals from Gibbs-White, Guehi and a Foden double secured an impressive comeback 5-2 win to ensure the Young Lions lifted the trophy.

Following the final whistle, England head coach Steve Cooper, who has gone on to manage Leicester City and Nottingham Forest in the Premier League, said: “It’s a little bit surreal and I think I’ll feel a little bit better tomorrow when we actually realise what we’ve done.

“The players have been fantastic all throughout the tournament and the staff.

“To be 2-0 down in a World Cup Final, in my opinion against the run of play, and then to come back and win 5-2 tells you everything about the character of the English players.

“This trophy is a dedication to the good work being done back in England with the club academies and the development of young players.

“For me, it’s recognition of where English football not just is, but where it can go and where we want it to go.

Marc Guehi, an ever-present during the tournament, added: “It’s a dream come true and the best moment of my life,” he said.

“I’m just really, really happy to have scored but it’s all about the team performance.

“We have the quality, we have a good team so we knew we could do it."

Perhaps the most emotional moment, however, was from goalkeeper Curtis Anderson, who dedicated the win to his grandad, who had died at the previous EUROs.

Anderson also realised the magnitude of having had both the U17 and U20 England teams win World Cups in the span of just a few months.

“It shows that we haven’t got just one good team. We’ve got multiple good teams," he said.

“The England way from seniors down to us is obviously working.”

From the squad of 21 players, eight of them went on to win senior England caps.

To date, Guehi, Foden, Gibbs-White, Angel Gomes, Jadon Sancho, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Emile Smith-Rowe and Conor Gallagher have gone on to earn over 150 England caps combined.

Match Details

Goals:

Spain: Gomez 10, Gomez 31
England: Brewster 44, Gibbs-White 58, Foden 69, 88, Guehi 84

England MU17 2017 World Cup-winning squad: Curtis Anderson, Timothy Eyoma, Lewis Gibson, George McEachran, Marc Guehi, Jonathan Panzo, Phil Foden, Tashan Oakley-Boothe, Rhian Brewster, Angel Gomes, Jadon Sancho, Nya Kirby, Josef Bursik, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Joel Latibeaudiere, Danny Loader, Emile Smith Rowe, Steve Sessegnon, Morgan Gibbs-White, Conor Gallagher, Billy Crellin

Head coach: Steve Cooper