FIFA Under-17 World Cup Preview: Paraguay vs Mali, Friday 8 pm

Paraguay take on Mali in a FIFA Under-17 World Cup match.

(Photo: AP)

• Paraguay take on Mali in a FIFA Under-17 World Cup match at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai on Friday.
  
  
• The match is scheduled to start at 8 pm.
  
  
• In India, the match will be broadcasted on SONY TEN 2, SONY TEN 2 HD, SONY ESPN, SONY ESPN HD, SONY TEN 3 and SONY TEN 3 HD and DD Sports channel. It can be viewed online on the SonyLiv app.

African champions Mali would look to start their FIFA U-17 World Cup campaign on a winning note when they take on Paraguay in a Group B match in Mumbai on Friday.

Mali are the runners-up in the last edition of the U-17 World Cup in 2015 and this time they would be aiming to move one step ahead by clinching the title. In the 2015 final in Chile, they were beaten by Nigeria 0-2.

Mali have a strong squad, with good attack and defence, and they are one of the dark horses who could go the distance in the U-17 showpiece event.

For Paraguay, this will be their fourth appearance in the FIFA U-17 World Cup. Their debut, and best result to date, came at New Zealand 1999, where they finished fifth. However, they failed to progress beyond the group stage in their two subsequent appearances, at Trinidad and Tobago 2001 and Chile 2015.

This time, they would want to better their last edition performance and for it Friday's game becomes crucial.

Paraguay secured their World Cup berth thanks to their third-placed finish at this year's South American U-17 Championship.

Both the teams did not play any practice games. While Paraguay landed in the megapolis a bit early, Mali arrived late, with just four days left for the tournament.

Paraguay have some strong players, with their defence as well as attack equally good.