Liverpool striker Rhian Brewster scored as England produced a stunning 5-2 comeback to beat Spain in the final of the U17 World Cup on Saturday.
The Young Lions reached the final after winning all three of their group games, while Brewster hogged the headlines with hat-tricks in the quarter-finals and semi-finals.
This set up a mouthwatering clash with Spain in Kolkata, and Steve Cooper named an unchanged side in pursuit of World Cup glory.
Brewster led the line, flanked by Man City‘s Phil Foden and Chelsea‘s Callum Hudson-Odio, but England were dealt a double blow in the early stages.
Spain went 2-0 up within the first half-hour, with Barcelona forward Sergio Gomez beating Curtis Anderson twice, threatening a repeat of England’s miserable final defeat in the U17s Euros in the summer.
Here's @RhianBrewster9 scoring his 8??th goal of the #FIFAU17WC: pic.twitter.com/TL2ZQU3Jr9
— England (@England) October 28, 2017
But it was Brewster who led the revival, with the 17-year-old reducing the deficit on the cusp of half-time, heading home Steven Sessegnon’s cross emphatically.
England turned on the magic after the break, and Cooper oversaw a dominating display throughout the second half.
Wolves‘ Morgan Gibbs-White, one of few England U17s representatives not to play for a top-flight club side, equalised on 58 minutes, with Sessegnon again provider.
And Foden notched a brace, with one either side a goal from captain Marc Guehi, to seal a sensational victory in India.
The #YoungLions' 2017:
? #U17EURO
? @TournoiToulon
? #FIFAU20WC
? #U19EURO
? #FIFAU17WC pic.twitter.com/bGhmYgpZoH— England (@England) October 28, 2017
It has been a remarkable year for England’s youth sides, with the U17s’ World Cup triumph adding to the U20s’ World Cup win and Toulon Tournament victory in June and the U19s’ Euro success in July.
Brewster finished the U17 World Cup as top scorer, having struck eight goals in six games.
He will now return to Merseyside, where he is likely to take up duties with Neil Critchley‘s Liverpool U23s once more—but Jurgen Klopp will no doubt be watching intently.
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