Mali reaches U-17 World Cup semi-finals

CAIRO –21 October 2017: Mali qualified for the U-17 World Cup semi-finals after beating Ghana 2-1 in the quarter-finals on Saturday.

The U-17 World Cup is held in India, with Ghana, Guinea, Mali and Niger representing Africa after finishing as the top four in the 2017 Africa U-17 Cup of Nations.

Ghana, Mali and Niger qualified for the round of 16, where Mali defeated Iraq 5-1 and Ghana knocked out Niger, winning 2-0.

The quarter-finals saw another all-African encounter, as Mali faced Ghana in a repeat of the U-17 AFCON final, and Mali won again, qualifying for the semi-finals after its 2-1 win.

Hadji Dramé opened the scoring for Mali after 15 minutes, before Djemoussa Traoré doubled his side’s lead with a long-range effort in the 61st minute. Ghana’s Kudus Mohammed scored a goal, but it wasn’t enough, as the match ended 2-1 for Mali.

African champions Mali secured a second appearance in the semi-finals and will face Spain or Iran on Wednesday.