After their narrow 1–0 victory over the hosts, Qatar, Italy’s Under-18 National Team will be back in action tomorrow, Thursday, 6 November (15:30 local time / 13:30 CET), on Pitch 3 of the Aspire Zone in Doha. They will face the Bolivian side in the second matchday of Group A at the Under-17 World Cup in Qatar, currently underway.

Massimiliano Favo warned: “It won’t be an easy match given that Bolivia, like all South American teams, play with both technical skill and great determination. They lost 3–1 to South Africa in their debut, so they’ll be looking to turn things around against us. We know this is an important game because a win could pave the way to the round of 16 with one match to spare.”

The Azzurrini, who trained yesterday at the Al Erssal sports centre, will have their usual final session this afternoon to iron out the details ahead of tomorrow’s match.

THE OPPONENT. Bolivia, led by the Argentinian manager Jorge Damián Perrotta, qualified for the Under-17 World Cup as a result of finishing seventh in the South American Championship. After finishing fourth in Group B with three points, one win, a 1–0 victory over Uruguay (1 April), and three losses: 2–0 against Venezuela (28 March), 3–0 against Brazil (30 March), and 2–1 against Ecuador (3 April), they were then defeated 3–0 to Argentina in the 5th–8th place semi-final, before beating Ecuador in the 7th-place playoff, thanks to a goal in the 52nd minute from 2008-born Bolivian winger Santos García Cuéllar.

This is the Bolivian national team’s first appearance at the Under-17 World Cup, after two previous ones in 1985 (China) and 1987 (Canada), both of which ended at the group stage. At that time, the tournament was exclusively for Under-16 teams. Tomorrow’s match will see the first game in history between Italy and Bolivia in this category.

SQUAD LIST

Goalkeepers: 1. Francesco Cereser (Torino), 12. Alessandro Longoni (Milan), 21. Sebastiano Nava (Juventus);
Defenders: 16. Benit Borasio (Juventus), 5. Leonardo Noah Bovio (Inter), 15. Cristiano De Paoli (Como), 2. Dauda Amihere Iddrisa (West Bromwich Albion), 3. Jean-Tryfose Mambuku (Stade de Reims), 13. David Marini (Cesena), 6. Luca Reggiani (Borussia Dortmund);
Midfielders: 8. Alessio Baralla (Empoli), 7. Andrea Luongo (Torino), 17. Valerio Maccaroni (Roma), 14. Fabio Pandolfi (Milan), 4. Vincenzo Prisco (Napoli), 18. Federico Steffanoni (Atalanta);
Forwards: 19. Antonio Arena (Roma), 9. Thomas Campaniello (Empoli), 11. Destiny Onoguekhan Elimoghale (Juventus), 10. Samuele Inácio (Borussia Dortmund), 20. Simone Lontani (Milan).

Staff – Coach: Massimiliano Favo; Head of Delegation: Filippo Corti; Deputy Youth National Teams Coordinator: Daniele Zoratto; Assistant Coach: Davide Cei; Goalkeeping Coach: Davide Quironi; Fitness Coach: Adalberto Zamuner; Match Analyst: Andrea Loiacono; Doctors: Sofia Calaciura, Clarich, and Alessio Rossato; Physiotherapists: Giorgio Giannini and Enrico Matera; Nutritionist: Claudio Pecorella; Academic Tutor: Stefano Presciutti; Press Officer: Alessandro Paoli; Administrator: Antonio Martuscelli; Club Italia Representative: Riccardo Poggetti; Secretary: Massimo Petracchini.

 

FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025

Group Stage (3 to 11 November)

Group A: Qatar, Italy, South Africa, Bolivia
Group B: Japan, Morocco, New Caledonia, Portugal
Group C: Senegal, Croatia, Costa Rica, United Arab Emirates
Group D: Argentina, Belgium, Tunisia, Fiji
Group E: England, Venezuela, Haiti, Egypt
Group F: Mexico, South Korea, Ivory Coast, Switzerland
Group G: Germany, Colombia, North Korea, El Salvador
Group H: Brazil, Honduras, Indonesia, Zambia
Group I: United States, Burkina Faso, Tajikistan, Czech Republic
Group J: Paraguay, Uzbekistan, Panama, Ireland
Group K: France, Chile, Canada, Uganda
Group L: Mali, New Zealand, Austria, Saudi Arabia

 

Matchday 1 (3 to 5 November)

Monday 3 November

South Africa 3–1 Bolivia
Costa Rica 1–1 United Arab Emirates
Senegal 0–0 Croatia
Japan 2–0 Morocco
Argentina 3–2 Belgium
New Caledonia 1–6 Portugal
Qatar 0–1 Italy
Tunisia 6–0 Fiji

Tuesday 4 November

Ivory Coast 1–4 Switzerland
Brazil 7–0 Honduras
Mexico 1–2 South Korea
Haiti 1–4 Egypt
Germany 1–1 Colombia
England 0–3 Venezuela
North Korea 5–0 El Salvador
Indonesia 1–3 Zambia

Group A standings: South Africa 3 (+2), Italy 3 (+1), Qatar 0 (-1), Bolivia 0 (-2)
Group B standings: Portugal 3 (+5), Japan 3 (+2), Morocco 0 (-2), New Caledonia 0 (-5)
Group C standings: UAE 1, Costa Rica 1, Croatia 0, Senegal 0
Group D standings: Tunisia 3 (+6), Argentina 3 (+1), Belgium 0 (-1), Fiji 0 (-6)
Group E standings: Egypt 3 (+3), Venezuela 3 (+3), Haiti 0 (-3), England 0 (-3)
Group F standings: Switzerland 3 (+3), South Korea 3 (+1), Mexico 0 (-1), Ivory Coast 0 (-3)
Group G standings: North Korea 3 (+5), Colombia 1, Germany 1, El Salvador 0
Group H standings: Brazil 3 (+7), Zambia 3 (+2), Indonesia 0 (-2), Honduras 0 (-7)

Wednesday 5 November

13:30: Tajikistan vs. Czech Republic, Aspire Zone, Pitch 8, Doha
13:30: Panama vs. Ireland, Aspire Zone, Pitch 3, Doha
14:00: Paraguay vs. Uzbekistan, Aspire Zone, Pitch 1, Doha
14:30: Austria vs. Saudi Arabia, Aspire Zone, Pitch 5, Doha
15:45: Mali vs. New Zealand, Aspire Zone, Pitch 2, Doha
16:15: United States vs. Burkina Faso, Aspire Zone, Pitch 4, Doha
16:45: France vs. Chile, Aspire Zone, Pitch 7, Doha
16:45: Canada vs. Uganda, Aspire Zone, Pitch 9, Doha