FIFA U17 World Cup: Brazil, Mali coaches highlight Europe's growing strength ahead of third-place playoff

The drama, the emotion, the perseverance and the pain, for both Brazil and Mali it all boils down to this, a final nudge for a podium finish. Both the sides were valiant with their efforts throughout the tournament, excited scores of crowds along the way, they stumbled before the final hurdles. Brazil were admittedly outplayed by an emphatic England side whereas Mali were knocked out by an equally dominant Spain, but controversy marred the game with a wrongly disallowed goal for the African champions. Both the sides addressed the press before their Third Place playoff tomorrow, we take a look at 5 key takeaways from these two press conferences.

#1 The Importance of a third-place match and their approach to the game

The third-place game at any tournament always has the fear of the losing it's competitive edge with coaches giving chances to those who didn't have the opportunity to play in the tournament, but both Brazil and Mali highlighted the importance of the game when they were asked in the press conference.

"It's an honour to be here playing a World Cup. We are happy to be one of the 4 best teams. We had the chance to go all the way but we couldn't grab it. Now it's the 3rd place we are fighting for. I've told the players that every time you play for your country to give your all." said Brazil coach Carlos Amadeu highlighting the importance of working with a developing bunch of players, he further added "It's the experience that's important. Playing 7 matches is more important than playing 5 or 4. Every time we take the field we have a responsibility to make the country proud and that's what we're gonna do tomorrow too."

Mali coach Jonas Kokou Komla spoke on similar lines like his opposition counterpart on his team's motivation to play tomorrow "It's personal motivation for the players after they lost the last match. The third place will also be a success for the team and give me great satisfaction. A podium finish will be an honour for the nation. We play the matches for the love of the game and are looking forward to the game" he said.

#2 Europe is giving more importance to youth and growing as a powerhouse believe both the coaches.

Two European teams will compete for the trophy, one of which is Spain

The FIFA U17 World Cup will be hosting it's first all European final and both Brazil and Mali coaches were heard talking positively about how the European nations are growing exponentially as a powerhouse even at the youth level and are making most of their infrastructural advantages.

"Europe has better resources and thus has an advantage over the African teams. We have similar levels of quality and techniques in our teams but we need the resources. It's the resources that are needed," said Mali coach Komla.

Brazil too stressed on the importance of these European teams playing competitions like the European Championships year after year which gives them more recognition and competitive experience. Coach Carlos Amadeu talked about how the competitive levels in Europe are much higher which can sometimes become the differences in player growth, he said: "European nations have regular competition for their players that's why they are getting stronger. Even at club level, all the teams are equally competitive, in Brazil, the stronger teams are more dominant, unlike Europe. The players get more recognition playing there."

#3 Mali highlight the importance of Goal Line Technology in the game

The controversial goal that wasn't allowed to stand

Mali might feel that it's slightly unfair on their part on having to miss out on the finals after having a goal disallowed in their semi-final against Spain. Coach Jonas Komla believed that Cheick Doucoure’s goal-bound effort which was disallowed as the referee adjudged it to have not crossed the line could have been a turning point for the African nation had it stood, even though they were outclassed in almost all departments by the European champions.

Goal-line technology which has been incorporated in various major league's around the world has highlighted time and time again it's importance in the development of football as a game, with certain decisions becoming match-changing. Talking about the issue the coach said: "The referee like all of us is just human after all and it's justified that he might have committed an error in judgement. We played well (against Spain) but it seemed luck didn't favour us. It will be a lot better for the teams if FIFA implements Goal Line technology in the game as soon as possible."

#4 The tournament has been a great experience for both the coaches and their teams

Mali humbled Asian champions Iraq 5-1 on the way

The FIFA U17 World Cup has been a whirlwind of a tournament over the past month, which saw great goals, standout moments and capacity crowds, an experience that both the coaches acknowledged would play a great part in the development of their players.

Brazil, who got a home-like atmosphere in Kolkata where they played their final two matches believe that the tournament was a highly competitive one and as a whole has been a great experience. "The level of the competition was really high. There have been so many good contenders from Europe, Africa and South America. They have really enjoyed playing here. It didn't look like U17 when we were playing or watching the other matches. The 7 matches we played was a great experience," said the coach.

Mali too believe that the tournament would be a great step for their players on their road to development and can't wait to end the tournament on a high note when they face Brazil tomorrow.