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The 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup is getting closer with less than four weeks remaining till India host probably their biggest sporting event since the 2010 Commonwealth Games. The whole of India will be looking forward to this tournament as this will be the first time India take part in any major FIFA event and the success of the tournament would prove to be vital in popularizing football in the country
Over the years, there have been many footballers who have scored a bucket-load of goals at the tournament with a few of them having won the Golden Boot for the top scorer of the tournament. Here is a list of the all-time top scorers of the FIFA U-17 World Cup.
#5. Valmir Berisha and Macauley Chrisantus- 7 goals in 7 matches
At No.5, we have a tie between Nigeria’s Macauley Chrisantus and Sweden’s Valmir Berisha. Both players have won the Golden Boot for being the top-scorer of their respective tournaments with 7 goals.
Chrisantus scored 7 goals at the 2007 U-17 World Cup in South Korea where Nigeria won their 3rd U-17 World Cup. Now plying his trade at newly promoted Greek Super League club PAS Lamia, Chrisantus scored in Nigeria’s every game barring the round of 16 and final. He was also adjudged the second best player of the tournament and was consequently awarded the Silver Ball.
Valmir Berisha was the top scorer at Sweden’s only appearance at the U-17 World Cup till date at the United Arab Emirates in 2013. Berisha scored a brace during Sweden’s thrilling 3-3 draw against Nigeria in the group stage before scoring a goal each in Sweden’s wins in the round of 16 and the quarter-finals.
Sweden were eliminated in the semi-finals after being thrashed by Nigeria 3-0. However, Berisha helped Sweden to third place by scoring a hat-trick in the third-place play-off against Argentina.
#4. Ishmael Addo and David- 7 goals in 6 matches
At No.4, once again, we have a tie. This time it's between Ghana’s Ishmael Addo and Spain’s David, both of whom scored 7 goals during a time when the U-17 World Cup had 16 teams. Spain’s David was the first person to score 7 goals at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 1997 at Egypt. He scored all of his goals during the group stage including four goals in Spain’s 13-0 drubbing of New Zealand which is an all-time record in the tournament’s history.
Spain eventually ended the tournament in third place and despite not scoring a single goal in any knockout match, David ended the tournament as the top scorer, thus bettering Nigerian Wilson Oruma’s record for the most number of goals scored at a single U-17 World Cup tournament.
Former East Bengal player Ishmael Addo was the top scorer at the 1999 U-17 World Cup in New Zealand with 7 goals, and the first 3 came in a hat-trick in Ghana’s 7-1 drubbing of Thailand in their final group game. Addo went on to score a brace in Ghana’s 3-2 win over Uruguay in the quarter-finals. He also scored a late equalizer in the semi-final against Brazil which kept Ghana in the game before they lost in a penalty shootout.
Addo’s final goal of the tournament came in the 3rd place play-off against the USA which Ghana won 2-0.
#3. Florent Sinama Pongolle- 9 goals in 6 matches
The 2001 FIFA U-17 World Cup saw France making their first appearance at the competition since 1987 and their first appearance since the tournament was named FIFA U-17 World Cup (the tournament had been called the FIFA U-16 World Cup from 1985-1989).
France had a poor start to the tournament as they lost their opening match against Nigeria with a 87th-minute goal from Florent Sinama Pongolle being a consolation one. However, France went on to win their next two group games against the United States and Japan, scoring 5 goals in both matches with Sinama Pongolle netting a hat-trick in each game.
The forward scored in France’s 2-1 win over Brazil in the quarter-finals, thus scoring the most number of goals in a single edition of the U-17 World Cup, bettering David’s and Ishmael Addo’s haul of 7 goals in 1997 and 1999.
His goal-scoring streak came to an end in the semi-finals but Les Bleus won the match 2-1 to reach the final where they were up against the opponents of their tournament opener- Nigeria. Once again, Sinama Pongolle scored France’s opening goal of the match and the team went on to score two more goals to avenge their group defeat and win the tournament.
Florent Sinama Pongolle not only won the Golden Boot but also the Golden Ball. His performances propelled Liverpool to sign him a few months later.
#2. Souleymane Coulibaly- 9 goals in 4 matches
At the 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup, Ivorian footballer Souleymane Coulibaly produced one of the finest individual performances at any U-17 World Cup by scoring 9 goals in just 4 matches. Coulibaly scored 90% of Ivory Coast’s goals at the tournament. He scored all of their group goals including four goals in a 4-2 win over Denmark and a much-needed hat-trick in a 3-3 draw against Brazil which helped the Ivorians automatically qualify for the round of 16.
In the round of 16, Ivory Coast squandered a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 to France where the striker scored the opening goal of the match. Despite Ivory Coast’s exit, Coulibaly won the Golden Boot. This is the only instance in the 24-team format of the tournament that the Golden Boot winner is from a team which got eliminated in the round of 16. It’s only the fourth instance in the history of the FIFA U-17 World Cup that the Golden Boot winner is from a team that got eliminated in the first knockout stage of the competition, the other two instances being Brazil’s Adriano in 1991, Australia’s Daniel Allsopp in 1995, and Portugal’s Manuel Curto in 2003.
Coulibaly’s performance in the tournament led to top clubs like Real Madrid and Manchester United wanting to sign him in their youth teams. He was eventually signed by Tottenham Hotspur.
#1. Victor Osimhen- 10 goals in 7 matches
In the previous edition of the U-17 World Cup held in Chile, a new record for the most number of goals at a single tournament was created by Nigerian Victor Osimhen. Osmihen, who was playing a small club named Ultimate Strikers Academy based in Lagos, scored in each and every game for the Nigerians.
After scoring four goals in the group stage, Osimhen scored a hat-trick in Nigeria’s 6-0 thrashing of Australia in the round of 16, equaling Japan’s record for the largest win margin at a knockout game of the U-17 World which they had attained against New Zealand at Monterrey in 2011.
He scored a goal each in Nigeria’s quarter-final and semi-final wins against Brazil and Mexico respectively as the Golden Eagles reached their eighth U-17 World Cup final which was against Mali, making it only the second African U-17 World Cup final.
In the title clash, Osimhen gave Nigeria the lead in the 56th minute by scoring his 10th goal of the tournament, thus becoming the highest goal-scorer in a single edition of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, bettering the record previously held by Florent Sinama Pongolle and Souleymane Coulibaly. Nigeria won the match 2-0 and won their 5th U-17 World Cup title. Victor Osimhen won the Golden Boot as well as the Silver Ball for the second best player of the tournament.
