Anísio Cabral's goal hands Portugal the Under-17 World Cup!

Portugal has been crowned Under-17 World Champion. On Thursday, November 27, in Doha, Qatar, the Under-18 National Team beat Austria 1-0 (goal scored by our Anísio Cabral), with eight players from Benfica in action in the grand final.

Daniel Banjaqui, José Neto, Mauro Furtado, Rafael Quintas (captain), Stevan Manuel, and Anísio Cabral were part of coach Bino Maçães' initial selections.

Portugal won the Under-17 World Cup for the first time in its history! 

This achievement bears the signature of nine players made in Benfica: Daniel Banjaqui, José Neto, Ricardo Neto, Mauro Furtado, Rafael Quintas, Miguel Figueiredo, Stevan Manuel, Anísio Cabral, and Tomás Soares.

Anísio Cabral – scorer of the decisive goal – was the second-highest scorer in the competition (Silver Boot), with 7 goals – curiously, he scored both Portugal's first and last goals in the tournament.

Mauro Furtado was voted the third-best player in the competition and was also considered the best player on the field by FIFA, as he had been in the semifinal against Brazil. 

As captain, midfielder Rafael Quintas had the honor and responsibility of lifting the World Cup trophy!

A VERY RED AND WHITE WORLD CUP

In addition to the significant influence of this unprecedented title for Portugal, there is more Benfica in this U-17 World Cup. The Reds are the most represented club in the entire competition, with 10 players: the nine Portuguese players and Jaden Umeh, playing for the Republic of Ireland.

As was the case in the summer at the European Under-17 Championship, Benfica once again provided the most players for the national team, which was victorious on both occasions.

In both cases, there were nine athletes: eight were called up again, with the only exception being the “swap” of Gil Neves for Miguel Figueiredo.

These nine players have represented Sport Lisboa e Benfica since the youth ranks, with an average of 10 years at the club.

Four of these players have their origins in the Benfica Football Schools (Rafael Quintas, Anísio Cabral, Stevan Manuel, and Miguel Figueiredo), while two players come from the Training and Development Centers (Miguel Figueiredo, from CFT Aveiro; Tomás Soares, from CFT Braga).

STATEMENTS

Rafael Quintas: “It's a huge source of pride. Being able to represent Portugal is already incredible, doing so at a World Championship is even more so. Being captain increases the responsibility, and being champion is unforgettable, it's incredible. We made history, and we want to continue doing so with this team.”

Anísio Cabral: “Scoring a goal is very special, even more so for Portugal. I felt great. We are world champions. I think it took a lot of hard work, both on my part and on the part of the whole team. I have to thank everyone who has always supported me, the coaches and players at Benfica, and the players on the national team. The goals are a reward for all the hard work.”

José Neto: “It's an indescribable feeling, something that's impossible to explain. Being European champion was already great, but being world champion is something that... there are no words for it. I'm very proud of what our team has achieved. I think we played a very good tournament. We're a very close-knit group, we always give our all for each other, and I think we deserve this victory.”

Miguel Figueiredo: “It's a dream. I didn't participate in the European Championship, I worked hard to be here and to become champions. All together, for Portugal, it's incredible. It's not every day that you become world champion. It will remain forever in our memories and in the memories of the Portuguese people, because we made history.”