Spain bounced back from their opening loss to Brazil in style and notched up a 4-0 victory over Niger in a Group D match of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Kochi today.
European champions suffered a 2-1 defeat at the opening match to South American powerhouse Brazil on last Saturday, but recovered swiftly to open their account in the tournament.
Barcelona’s Abel Ruiz scored twice, while Cesar Gelabert and Sergio Gomez scored one each in what was a comprehensive win for the Santiago Denia-coached side.
Niger were the better team off the blocks as they dominated the game in the opening minutes, much to the surprise of Spain and the crowd here. The first eight minutes saw Niger earn three corners, but they failed to create any significant chance out of them. As the game progressed, Spain started to settle down and began to take over the game. The European champions played with more accuracy, and in the 21st minute, they took advantage of a defensive error to take the lead.
The second half began on better note for the Africans as they went without conceding till Gomez hit the target in the 82nd minute. The Niger goalkeeper had no chance against Gomez’s left-footer from outside the box.
Last Saturday, Niger defeated North Korea 1-0 to register their maiden FIFA World Cup win in their maiden appearance in all age formats.