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SURAKARTA, Indonesia – Canada’s winless streak at the FIFA U-17 World Cup extended to 22 matches on Friday when graceful Spain beat them 2-0 in the tournament opener for both teams.

Barcelona’s Marc Guyot and Kim Junint scored for Spain, which dominated the match, beating Canada 28-1 (9-0 on penalties) and possessing 63 percent of the ball. Spain completed 667 passes compared to 147 for Canada.

Goalkeeper Nathaniel Abraham, one of five Toronto FC players in Canada’s starting lineup, had a busy night and it was probably a morale-boosting victory as Canada only conceded twice against such a talented opponent.

Spain have been runners-up in the U-17 Men’s Championship four times (1991, 2003, 2007 and 2017) and finished third twice (1997, 2009). The Spanish starting XI is made up of six players from Barcelona’s system and one from Real Madrid.

It was a one-sided match and Canada attacked from the start, reduced to 10 in the 38th minute when co-captain Alessandro Bello was sent off for an altercation with Spain captain Pau Brim late in the match.

After play was stopped on a Canada free kick in a rare attack in the Spanish half, the ball rolled to Prem, who cleared it. Bello collided with Prem’s leg during play in a seemingly unnecessary move, and Peruvian referee Roberto Perez punished him with a red card after reviewing the play on a pitchside screen.

Bello, the son of Canada’s interim coach Mauro Bello, will miss at least Canada’s next game.

The Spanish side took the lead in the 21st minute when Goyo rose to head home a magnificent cross from Pablo Lopez.

Goyo, who joined Barcelona’s U-8 team in the 2013-14 season, made headlines last month when he scored in the 23rd minute of his first-team debut to give Barcelona a 1-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao. At 17 years and 291 days old, he became the youngest player to score on his debut for Barcelona.

Guiu stepped in as passer in the 76th minute with the final pass of a magnificent passing play that ended with Junyent behind the Canadian defense.

Canada, in its eighth appearance at the U-17 World Cup, saw its record drop to 0-18-4. Canada’s junior team lost all three games in 2019 in Brazil, the last time the competition was held (the 2021 edition was canceled due to the pandemic).

Canada scored just 10 goals – including an Argentina own goal – while conceding 62 goals in the youth tournament.

Mamadou Doumbia scored all three goals as Mali beat Uzbekistan 3-0 on Friday in their other Group B match, beating the Asian side 19-3 (6-1 on penalties).

Team Canada faces Uzbekistan on Monday, also at Manahan Stadium, before heading 215 kilometers east to conclude Group B play against Mali at Gelora Bung Tomo Stadium in the coastal city of Surabaya.

The tournament continues until December. 2 with Jakarta and Bandung also hosting the match. The top two teams from each of the six groups, plus the top four third-placed teams, advance to the round of 16.

Spain kept Canada under pressure from the start on a 28 degree Celsius night, hitting the ball elegantly all over the field. Problem almost occurred in the 18th minute, when Pau Cobarci, one of Barcelona’s players, sent his header straight over the crossbar from a free kick.

By the time both teams had a quiet break in the 30th minute, Spain had 66 percent possession and outscored Canada 8-0 (1-0 on penalties).

Vancouver midfielder Tariq Tahid fired wide of the goal in the 51st minute in Canada’s first real attack. Three minutes later, Spaniard Junient’s shot hit the crossbar.

Spain introduced substitute Igor Oyono, 15, a Villarreal player, in the second half.

Co-captain Lazar Stefanovic, a 17-year-old central defender who played first team with Toronto FC, wore the captain’s armband for Canada whose starting lineup consisted of two academy players from CF Montreal and from one of the Whitecaps. “Academy.

The Canadian Premier League is represented by Tahid and Forge FC forward Kevaughn Tavernier. Striker Antoni Klukowski, who plays in Poland for Pojon Szczecin, is the son of former Canadian international Mike Klukowski.

Canada qualified by reaching the semifinals of the CONCACAF U-17 Championship in February in Guatemala, where it lost 2–0 to semifinal runners-up the United States. Mexico won the CONCACAF title and Panama also qualified for the FIFA finals.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published November 10, 2023.

The Canadian Press