Pakistan earn first points at FIFA U-15 World Cup with Jordan, Nigeria draws
File photo: a football match in progress in Skardu, Pakistan (S SHER XAMAN photography, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0). The photo shows football in Pakistan; it is not from the Baku tournament.
Pakistan’s young footballers are finally off the mark at the FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival in Baku. The Shaheens played two matches in a single day on Monday and held both Jordan and Nigeria to 1-1 draws, collecting their first two points of the tournament after three straight defeats.
Kaleemullah the hero in both games
The two matches followed an almost identical script, with the same hero at the centre of both. Against Jordan, Kaleemullah put Pakistan in front, and although Jordan fought back to level, the Shaheens held their shape to the final whistle and saved a valuable point. It was the same story against Nigeria: Kaleemullah struck again in the first half to give Pakistan the lead, only for Nigeria’s Timothy Ijach to react quickest to a loose ball in the box and restore parity four minutes later. Nigeria, physically the stronger side, pressed hard in the second half, but Pakistan refused to buckle and claimed a second draw of the day.
A comeback after a difficult start
The draws matter all the more because Pakistan’s start to the tournament had been rough. The team lost all three of its opening fixtures, including a 4-2 defeat to Gambia on 24 October, a 1-0 loss to South Sudan and a 4-0 defeat by Cyprus. To come back from that run and take points off two well-regarded sides in one day is a real lift for a young squad still learning tournament football.
What comes next
The Shaheens now get a rest day before the tournament’s second phase on 28 and 29 October, with the tier finals to follow on 30 October. This is FIFA’s largest-ever youth event, featuring 189 member associations, and matches are played eight-a-side over two 20-minute halves. Nigeria, meanwhile, finished the first stage unbeaten with seven points from five matches.
