Portugal held their nerve in a tense penalty shootout to overcome Brazil and secure a place in the U-17 World Cup final, where they will face Austria, who earned a composed 2-0 win over Italy in yesterday’s semi-finals at the Aspire Zone in Doha.
It is the first time both Portugal and Austria have reached an U-17 World Cup final, and for Austria, it also marks their maiden appearance in a FIFA World Cup final across all age groups.
The final will be played on Thursday at the Khalifa International Stadium at 7pm, while Brazil and Italy face off in the third-place play-off at the Aspire Pitch 7 at 3:30pm.
An electric atmosphere greeted Portugal and Brazil at the Aspire Zone and both teams delivered an opening half that matched it. Both sides created chances, including Portugal’s Anisio Cabral seeing a shot blocked from inside the area and a Dell chance for Brazil that was cleared off the line.
The second half saw the contest become much cagier, with neither defence willing to yield an inch as a spot was at the fingertips of each. A goal could not be found, so matters had to be settled from the spot.
Each team converted their first four kicks before Portugal goalkeeper Romario Cunha skied his attempt. Brazil’s Ruan Pablo had the chance to win it, but hit the post. The teams then exchanged successful attempts before Jose Neto converted for Portugal and Angelo of Brazil sent his over the crossbar to give Portugal the win.
Earlier, Johannes Moser scored a brilliant double as Austria beat Italy. The attacking midfielder netted his seventh and eighth goals of the tournament to earn his team a famous victory.
In a tense first half where both sides struggled to find their fluency, Italy’s Dauda Iddrisa came closest when his rising drive went just over the bar. Austria would strike the first blow 12 minutes after half-time, and in some style.
Moser tricked his way into space before playing a pass into Jakob Werner. He brilliantly turned his man and then slipped an inch-perfect return ball into Moser’s path, who fired an unerring finish beyond goalkeeper Alessandro Longoni. Substitute Valerio Maccaroni almost levelled for Italy but Moser's stunning free-kick – after Italy defender Benit Borasio was sent off – put the result beyond doubt.
Moser, who was adjudged as player of the match, was ecstatic to take his side to the final. “I’m so happy. We can’t believe it yet!” he said. “It was a very physical game, now we have to analyse it and look forward to the final. We are a very small country and it means a lot to all of us. But the job is not finished, and we want to win the World Cup."
Austria coach Hermann Stadler was equally elated: "It's great, it's amazing, it's outstanding. It's a dream for the Austrian football association and especially for all young Austrian footballers. It's the first time the Austrian team is in the final. It's incredible, it's fantastic. The boys worked for each other, and now we are in the final! It's a dream come true."
Meanwhile Italy captain Luca Reggiani lamented missed opportunities but praised his side’s campaign. "We missed some chances in the beginning and we could not get the win. This is football. We have to be proud because I think we have had a good tournament. We lost one game, but we can keep our heads up. We are a good team, and I think we can do a lot together in the future,” Reggiani said.