Nigeria emerged champions of the Bayern Munich Youth Global Cup at the conclusion tournament, Nigeriasoccernet.com has gathered.

The Nigeria team defeated their Japanese opponent by three goals to one in the finals played on Saturday at the Olympia Stadion Munchen, Germany.

Nigeria team had qualified top of group B with seven points in the eight-nation tournament.

They defeated group mates Singapore and Japan before playing a draw against Mexico.

In the semi final encounter against Argentina, the Nigerian boys were too hot to handle as they eased pass the South African nation four goals to nil.

Before beating Japan to emerge winners of the competition.

The FIFA U-17 World Cup enters its crucial stages as the battle for places in the quarter finals begins today.

Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets will battle with their Australian counterpart to secure a place in the knock-out rounds of the competition.

The game which is slated for the early hours of Thursday is expected to be an easy game for the Nigerians but coach Emmanuel Amunike has highlighted the fighting spirits of the Australians and stated that his team cannot afford to underrate them.

History favors Nigeria going into this one as the Golden Eaglets are yet to lose against Australia at this level in 5 previous meetings.

“We have to keep working hard and prepare our players physically and psychologically for the match against Australia especially after losing our last group match to Croatia.

We have to let the players realize that the stage we are in now is crucial and it needs high level of concentration from them. We would evaluate our players and see their state of mind but hopefully, all of them would be ready to play on Wednesday,” Amuneke assured.

The Golden Eaglets finished top of their group with six points courtesy of goals from Victor Osimhen whose 4 goals see him topping the scores chart in the tournament.

No doubt coach Emmanuel Amunike would be looking to him Osimhen to carry the Eaglets with his goals as he looks to become only the third Nigerian to win the golden boot at this level.

Nigeria U17 coach Emmanuel Amuneke says his decision to stop Chile from dominating the midfield resulted in their emphatic victory over the hosts on Tuesday night.

The Flying Eaglets booked a place in the second round of the FIFA U17 World Cup after they thrashed the South Americans 5-1 in the game in Santiago.

Nigeria now have six points from two games after Samuel Chukwueze and Victor Osimhen scored twice each while Kelechi Nwakali grabbed the other.

Chile captain Allende scored his side's consolation goal in the 81st minute.

Amuneke says the decision to block the Chileans from dominating the midfield resulted in their massive victory over the home side.

"It is true we were effective up front, but we also knew how to block their passing game, forcing them to play uncomfortably in the midfield," Emmanuel Amuneke, Nigeria coach.

"My players understood the transition game, that is when to attack, when to defend. We also prepared them mentally, it is not easy to play against the host.

"Chile has a god team, but today they lost against the best team. I believe they can qualify for the next round."

Nigeria will play their last group match on Friday.

[caption id="attachment_314851" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Nigeria U17 defeated Chile 5-1[/caption]

Holders Nigeria progressed to the knockout stages of the FIFA U-17 World Cup after completing a comprehensive 5-1 victory over hosts Chile on Tuesday night.

Two goals each from Samuel Chukwueze and Victor Osinhem as well as another strike by Kelechi Nwakali  ensured that the Flying Eaglets have six points from two games.

A goal within 30 seconds by star man Samuel Chukwueze set the tone for a straightforward win, with the diminutive No8 grabbing a second in the second half after he had earlier been fouled for Kelechi Nwakali's to score from the spot, and before he was felled for Victor Osimhen's successful spot kick conversion.

Chile grabbed a consolation, before Funsho Bamgboye saw his marching orders, with Osimhen's late header adding some gloss to the win, despite Nwakali missing his second penalty of the match after Chukwueze had been fouled in the penalty area for a third time.

The African side were remarkably quick out of the blocks, opening the scoring after 22 seconds. Victor Osimhen, fresh from his goal in the opening game against USA, sprinted down the Nigerian left and slid the ball across the Chilean penalty area. The onrushing midfielder slammed home with ease.

He then played a big part in the second Nigeria goal, sprinting onto a long upfield clearance and tapping the ball past the sliding Juan Jose Soriano in the penalty area. The Chilean defender’s challenge brought down the Nigeria No8 and Nwakali doubled his side's lead.

Chukwueze then grabbed his second of the game thanks to sheer determination on the hour mark. He worked his way into the Chilean penalty area, performed a couple of stepovers and, after seeing an initial shot blocked, slammed a left-footed strike past Lopez.

Chile's defence will be glad to see the back of the Nigerian No8, as he burst into the Chilean penalty area once more moments later and was felled again, this time by substitute Brian Leiva. For the second spot kick, it was Osimhen who stepped up, and he matched Nwakali's first effort by firing home.

Substitute Funsho Bamgboye later hit the post before Chile's consolation came courtesy of Marcelo Allende, who slammed past Akpan Udoh from Luciano Diaz's cross.

Despite Bamgboye's late dismissal, for a rash challenge, Nigeria rallied and Osimhen grabbed his third of the tournament in two games. Nwakali then missed his chance to double his own tally for the game from the penalty spot, after Chukwueze had been fouled for a third time.

It did not matter though, as Nigeria join Korea Republic in the last 16, with Chile set to face USA in a pivotal final clash back at the Estadio Sausalito on Friday.

West Ham have joined English Premier League rivals Manchester City in the race for Nigeria Under 17 international Kelechi Nwakali, allnigeriasoccer.com reports.

The Golden Eaglets star displayed his wares at the 2015 Africa U-17 Cup of Nations, scoring three goals which helped Nigeria qualify for the semi - finals of the competition and the ongoing FIFA U17s in Chile.

The Hammers suits were aware that Manchester City were a major contender for the signature of Nwakali and invited the midfielder and his intermediary, Klay Ekeocha, to London after the tournament in Niger Republic in their bid to see off interest from The Citizens.

West Ham had wanted Kelechi Nwakali to take a look at the club’s facilities prior to penning a preliminary contract which will become activated when he clocks 18 next summer, but national team duties with the Golden Eaglets prevented him from honouring the invitation.

As it is, it is right to say the Londoners have overtaken Manchester City in the scramble for the highly - rated teenager but a deal is far from being reached due to red - tape, or to put it another way, the work permit requirements recently introduced for the Premier League.

The transfer fee being discussed with West Ham is in the region of four million pounds.

Nigeria's U-20 women's team, Falconets, are planning 'operation sweep' against the Basetsana of South Africa in the final leg of the 2016 World Cup holding in Papua New Guinea.

The Falconets defeated Congo DR 2-0 in Abuja last weekend to qualify on 4-1 goals aggregate after hitting the Congolese 2-1 in the first leg played to Kinshasa.

The Nigerians who finished second at the 2014 edition of the FIFA Women's U-20 World Cup in Canada, losing 1-0 to Germany in the final, will face their South African opponents in Abuja on October 24 in the first leg of the encounter. The South Africans stopped Zambia to qualify.

Speaking with The Guardian yesterday, the head of women football committee on the board of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Mrs. Dilichukwu Onyedinma, said that the Falconets would pick the ticket because the girls are working very hard ahead the game.

"Our girls have vowed that it is the World Cup ticket or nothing. So I don't see South Africa stopping them in this final qualifying match," Onyeadinma said.

Ghanaian youngster Franics Apelete Amuzu has signed a professional contract with Belgian giants Anderlecht.

The 16-year-old penned a three-year deal last month until June 2018.

Amuzu has been tagged a promising prospect due to his versatility as a right-winger, centre forward and left-winger.

He was born in Accra but has a permanent Belgian residence permit.

Ghana U17 striker Issah Abbas and his Asokwa Deportivo teammate Annan Mensah are on trial at Dutch Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar, GHANASoccernet.com can exclusively report.

The duo were part of the AZ side which played in Thursday’s 4-3 win over Oss.

Abass, 16, is a striker but has played for all of Ghana’s youth national teams but he can only be registered by AZ Alkmaar when he turns 18.

"Although he is only 16, he is already out for the national team under 20 and under 23," said agent Jan Streuer.

Mensah, who is 19, is a defensive midfielder and has been linked with Dutch legend Clarence Seedorf.

"Often these type of guys from small clubs now and have them in the morning an hour's walk before they get to the club," said Streuer.

"I do this for fun. These are guys who have a tremendous drive and are very grateful to you what you do for them. The pity is that it is difficult in the Netherlands to cover in such talents. It's done in Belgium much easier in terms of regulations. "

On Tuesday evening, Joe Dodoo became only the third ever Leicester City player to score a hat-trick on his debut for the club.

The tricky wideman helped the Foxes to a 4-1 victory in the second round of the Capital One Cup over Bury at Gigg Lane with three well taken strikes.

Dodoo first volleyed in off the crossbar, before two neat finishes late on saw the winger take the match ball home, and in turn entered Leicester City’s history books.

Now, we take a look at all three players that have managed to kick-off their Foxes career with a treble.

Archie Gardiner vs. Portsmouth – 21 February, 1934 

The first ever City player to score a hat-trick on his debut for the Club was centre forward Archie Gardiner.

Archie played for Leicester City between February 1934 and October 1934 after signing from Scottish outfit Hearts.

On his first appearance in a City shirt, he scored four goals in a 5-3 win against Portsmouth on 21 February, 1934, netting the first goal after just 90 seconds.

Two games later, Archie continued his goalscoring exploits with another hat-trick, this time on his home debut against Arsenal.

He only played 19 times for the Club, scoring 11 goals in the process before moving to Wrexham in October 1934.

Jeffrey Schlupp vs. Rotherham United – 9 August, 2011

Ghana international Jeffrey Schlupp marked his first ever appearance in a City shirt with a stunning performance in a 4-1 win over Rotherham United back in 2011.

His three goals against the Millers proved to be a suitable introduction for the Academy graduate, who made his 100th appearance for City in their victory over West Ham United earlier this month.

Jeff scored his first Barclays Premier League goal for the Foxes against Burnley last season, eventually taking his tally to four goals in the 2014/15 campaign.

At City’s Academy since the age of 11, the German-born winger was only the second player in the Club’s history to score a hat-trick on his debut.

Joe Dodoo vs. Bury – 25 August, 2015 

 Having already scored a treble in front of Claudio Ranieri in pre-season for the Development Squad against Loughborough Dynamo, Joe Dodoo was handed his first team debut for the Club by the City boss in the Capital One Cup Second Round Fixture at Bury’s Gigg Lane on Tuesday.

A bright start saw Joe rattle in a superb volley off the underside of the bar with 25 minutes on the clock, before Andrej Kramari? added a second goal for his side shortly after.

Another smart finish from Joe came just four minutes from time, while he scored his third in injury time courtesy of a pass from who else but Jeffrey Schlupp – the Academy graduate who also scored a hat-trick on his debut.

It was certainly a night to remember for Joe, who proudly took home the match ball, in turn thanking the manager, players and fans for their tremendous support.

Cagliari have rejected an offer from Fiorentina to take highly-rated central midfielder Godfred Donsah on loan.

The Viola have been looking to sign another midfielder to accompany Mario Suarez in the centre of the pitch and have already missed out on Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who has signed for Lazio.

According to Tuttomercatoweb, the Rossoblu are only interested in letting the Ghanaian go for around €7 million and would preferably like to have him for one more season on loan in Serie B.

The 19 year-old made 21 appearances for Cagliari last season, scoring two goals in the process, but was unable to halt the their relegation to Serie B.

Donsah moved to Italy in 2012 as he underwent trials at Roma, however he was snapped up by Palermo.

He failed to make an appearance for the Rosanero and eventually moved to Sardinia in 2014.

WAFA U16 beat Red Bull Brasil 6-5 on penalties to set up a semi-final clash with Borussia Dortmund at the 2015 Next Generation tournament.

The teams were tied at 1-1 after regulation time and the winner had to be decided from the spot.

The Academy boys made a superb start to the game, taking control right from the word go and dominating.

The Red Bull Brasil boys had real difficulty trying to handle WAFA’s strike trio.

Aminu Mohammed put them ahead, cleanly converting a penalty after being fouled. Shortly afterwards, Mayron Trista was able to equalise with a superb solo move.

The West African Football Academy also dictated proceedings in the second half, without being able to add another goal.

The Africans then shaded a dramatic penalty shoot-out to become the last team to qualify for the semi-finals.

Other Quarter-finals results:

FC Red Bull Salzburg 2-1 SPORTING LISBON

BORUSSIA DORTMUND 2-0 Juventus

MANCHESTER CITY 5-4 VALENCIA CF (penalties)

Ghana have named a 26-man provisional squad dominated by players from top-flight side WAFA and Right to Dream Academy for the WAFU U17 Championship to be played in Burkina Faso next month.

WAFA and Right to Dream Academy have four players each in the squad which is full of players who played in the qualifiers for the World Cup.

The players who have received call ups are expected to report to the Ghanaman Soccer Centre of Excellence, Prampram at 16:00pm on Monday August 10, 2015

The Black Starlets will represent Ghana at the upcoming WAFU U-17 tournament which will be played in Burkina Faso from September 3-13, 2015.

Below are the list of players who have been invited into the squad as they begin preparations for next month's tournament:

(Players are expected to report to the camp with two passport pictures and their original birth certificate and Passports)

1. Yuisu Kaisan – (State Envoy)

2. Paintsil Joseph – (Tema Youth)

3. Baidoo Ishmael – (Aspire Academy)

4. Fobi Kingsley – (Right To Dream Academy)

5. Dankyi Ntori William – (Charity FC)

6. Adu Enoch – (Right To Dream Academy)

7. Nyamador Ebenezer – (Aspire Academy)

8. Osabutey Jonah – (Tema Youth)

9. Tanor Collins – (Right To Dream Academy)

10. Cann Francis – (Charity FC)

11. Agyiri Ernest – (Right To Dream Academy)

12. Owusu Jones – (Mandela Academy)

13. Medarious Henry – (Platini)

14. Sowah Emmanuel Adjei – (Dream FC)

15. Nurudeen Abdul Manaf – (Aspire FC Academy)

16. Baidoo Michael – (Vision FC)

17. Issah Abass – (Asokwa Deportivo)

18. Asiedu Benjamin Kwesi – (Mobile Phone People)

19. Ampiah Cliford – (Tema Youth)

20. Ntow Abednego – (Vision FC)

21. Owusu Bismark Terry – ( Mandela FC)

22. Seidu Issaka – (WAFA SC)

23. Abdul Wahab Ibrahim – (WAFA SC)

24. Ofori Lawrence – (WAFA SC)

25. Owusu Prince Jude – (WAFA SC)

26. Ohene Adjei-Appiah (Tudu Mighty Jets)

Ghanaian side Right to Dream produced an outstanding display in the Milk Cup Junior final to beat Southampton 7-0 at a rain-lashed Ballymena Showgrounds in Northern Ireland on Friday.

Isaac Atanga's right-foot shot was diverted into his own net by Saints skipper Joe Tomlinson on three minutes.

Ibrahim Abu Sadiq fired in the second and Ernest Boahene found the top corner with an impressive 25-yard free-kick.

Emmanuel Duku made it 4-0, Atanga was on target twice and Mohammed Diomande scored with another fine free-kick.

The Ghanaian Academy were in charge throughout and did not take long to stamp their authority on the game as Atanga turned in the area and saw his shot deflect off Tomlinson and into the net.

Right to Dream skipper Ernest Boahene scored with a spectacular free-kick

Ibrahim Abu Sadiq then missed when well placed in front of goal and Southampton's defensive frailties were exposed again when Sadiq shot home after a short backpass from Cameron Langan.

Atanga failed to find the target after yet another careless backpass but captain Boahene soon added his side's third with a perfectly executed free-kick a minute befor the interval.

Nine minutes into the second half, Duku sidefooted into the top corner from the edge of the box, before Atanga rifled a left-foot drive low into the bottom corner.

With one minute of added time on the clock, Diomande delivered an exquisite free-kick and a minute later Atanga completed a nightmare night for Southampton by dribbling through the defence and calmly slotting home.

Right to Dream ended County Antrim's hopes of reaching the final of the Dale Farm Milk Cup junior section, setting up an Friday night's final showdown with Southampton.

The Africans and the Saints will go head-to-head at the Ballymena Showgrounds (6pm), thanks to impressive semi-final performances.

Ghana side Right to Dream defeated Stefan Seaton's boys 2-0 at Portstewart's Seahaven ground, while Southampton beat Liverpool 3-1 at the Coleraine Showgrounds.

Right to Dream grabbed the lead 12 minutes into the first half thanks to a fine finish from Isaac Atanga, who found the net from 15 yards. Abusi Sirdu added a second late in the game.

The African school of football will be hoping to add the Milk Cup to the Gothia Cup in Sweden and the Premier Cup in Manchester, which they have already lifted this summer.

Antrim can count themselves unlucky. The county side have impressed all week.

In Coleraine, Southampton opened the scoring in the 15th minute when Jake Volkins' cross was turned into the net by unfortunate Liverpool defender Andrew Jackson.

Southampton went 2-0 up in the 24th minute, thanks to a powerful header from Jonathan Afalabi.

The tall forward rose high in the box before heading a corner-kick home from the edge of the six-yard box.

Cameron Langan almost made it three on the half-hour mark when his 12-yard volley went just over the crossbar.

It was 3-0 three minutes into the second half.

Liverpool defender Abdi Sharif lost the ball on the edge of the box, allowing the hugely impressive Jake Volkins to skip into the box and fire the ball into the net from an acute angle.

Liverpool pulled a goal back in eighth minute of the second half, when Neco Williams turned the ball home after a penalty box scramble. Unfortunately for Reds fans, it proved to be a mere consolation goal.

Although Liverpool arguably had the better of the last 20 minutes of the game they can have no complaints about the eventual winners.

Southampton will be keen to win the competition in honour of their 13-year-old goalkeeper Jack Bycroft, who broke his leg in the tournament's opening game on Monday.

In the subsidiary trophy games, County Down will face Rangers in Friday's Globe final at the Riada in Ballymoney (11am).

David Bryson's Down boys beat AS Roma USA 2-0 Broughshane while Rangers beat Sydney United by the same scoreline at Rugby Avenue.

A win for Down would go along way to towards making up for the disappointment of missing out on the last four of the Milk Cup proper by one point.

Sheffield United will play Brentford in the Vase final today. United beat Plymouth 2-1 while Brentford beat Donegal 1-0.

Both Bowl semi-final games went to penalty shoot-outs. GPS Bayern defeated Armagh on spot kicks after a 1-1 draw, while Londonderry beat Derry schools on penalties after their game also finished 1-1.

In the Salver last four there were defeats for both Fermanagh and Tyrone. Fermanagh lost 3-1 to Strikers, while Tyrone lost to Zacatepec on penalties after a 1-1 draw.

In the Shield semi-finals, Dundalk Schools defeated Colina on penalties, while Swindon Town beat Orange County Blues by the same method. OC Blues and Colina will be fighting to avoid the wooden spoon at Broughshane (11am) today.

Ghana side Right To Dream's U17 side continued to build a formidable reputation by easing 3-1 past Newcastle United at the Milk Cup tournament in Northern Ireland on Wednesday.

After a tight first half ended with teams deadlocked at 1-1, the Africans turned on the style in the second half at the Ballymena Showgrounds.

A Newcastle own goal followed by a wonderful finish from defender Ibrahim Sadiq sealed a 3-1 win for the Akosombo-based side.

Although, the highlight of the match was a remarkable second-half save from Right To Dream goalkeeper Clinton Bannerman when the score was 2-1.

Lusaka Academy's week went from bad to worse yesterday. After their hellish experience on Sunday that saw them spend a night on the floor of Copenhagen airport, the Zambian side lost their second match of the tournament.

CSKA Moscow beat the African side 1-0 at Clough, which means the Russian side have two wins from two difficult games.

Spanish side Malaga recovered from an opening day defeat to CSKA Moscow by hammering Partick Thistle 5-0 while fellow Spanish side Real Sociedad drew 0-0 with New Zealand side Otago in Limavady.

Last year's beaten finalists Vendee have struggled this year.

The French club followed up their opening day defeat yesterday, by going down 4-1 to Mexican side Club America in the afternoon game in Portstewart.

County Armagh’s Junior players produced a memorable 0-0 draw against free-scoring Right To Dream in Coleraine.

The visitors from Ghana entered the final match of the first fixtures run having scored 13 goals in the previous two games.

However, a determined display by the Orchard County boys led to a well-earned scoreless draw.

“We had 13-year-old Adam McAlpine making his Milk Cup debut in nets and was superb,” said Dean McCullough, the County Armagh Milk Cup Association chairman. “It was a brilliant team performance and we were worth the draw.

 “You have to be realistic and cut your cloth to suit the circumstances so a decision was made to go 4-5-1 having watched Right To Dream in the first two games.

“We worked hard to close down space and double up out wide, but also managed to cause a few problems in the second half at the other end.

“It shows that you can get your reward with hard work.

“This tournament is all about developing players so, from that viewpoint, it was impressive how they followed instructions and displayed real tactical awareness.”

McAlpine is from the area - along with Sam Murphy, Darragh Gray, Luke Wilson and Tom Weir. Loughgall Youth’s Mark Lucas started the match - with Barney McKeown, Josh Megoran and Alberto Balde on show from Portadown Youth.

COUNTY ARMAGH JUNIOR: Adam McAlpine, Sean Toman, Cathal McGinty, Daniel McKeown, Sam Murphy, Darragh Gray, Luke Wilson, Barney McKeown, Mark Lucas, Josh Megoran, Tom Weir. Subs (used): Oisin Smyth, Alberto Blade, Robbie McAteer.

Spanish second-tier side UD Almeria have reached a loan agreement with Granada for the transfer of Ghanaian midfielder Fatau Mohammed.

Last season, he played on loan at La Liga outfit Rayo Vallecano where injuries restricted him to only 10 appearances.

He said: "Before coming, the coach of Almeria Paco Jemez spoke with [loan at Rayo] and the game plan is the same. It will not be difficult for me because I was with him and I can provide the same."

Almeria hope his experience can help them return to the Spanish top-flight.

In the 2013/2014 season, Fatau was talked about after breaking into the Granada first team where he made nine appearances.

The 22-year-old has represented lower division sides Cádiz and San Roque de Lepe.

Right to Dream began their Milk Cup journey with an impressive performance. Both teams played their part in a cagey opening 10 minutes. There was little to choose between the two sides; Right to Dream dominating possession, but GPS FC Bayern looking threatening on the counter attack.

Right to Dream were having most joy on the right hand side, Isaac Atanga a constant threat.

In the early exchanges, GPS left back Tobias McKay Jnr was more than able to extinguish that threat, managing to have a few surging runs forward himself.

The first chance fell to Right to Dream’s central midfielder, Modibo Diarrasouba who saw his good strike saved by GPS keeper Ryan Manning.

GPS had started strongly, but were starting to give the ball away cheaply; Right to Dream striker Kelvin Owusu Boateng, applying good pressure from the front.

The African side began dominating possession, captain Firas Kora always assured in possession and providing a foundation for attack, bringing the ball out from the centre of defence.

The breakthrough came when the impressive Atanga played a sublime through ball to Sammed Bawa who cooly slotted home. Bawa almost made it two on the stroke of half time when he shot over from close range.

GPS’s only real chance of the first half fell to striker Jonathan Rodrigues who blazed over the bar.

The Ghanaian’s picked up the tempo in the second half, adding a second early on. A beautiful move started by Boateng on the left, was flicked on by Emmanuel Bam before Bawa placed the ball home for his second of the game. Right to Dream quickly made it three when Bawa picked up on a loose throw-in before executing a mazy run and squaring to Diarrasouba, who finished emphatically.

By now Right to Dream were rampant, Diarrasouba orchestrating play from the middle of the park and the side enjoying almost total possession. They scored a fourth when Atanga picked-up a loose ball from the GPS goalkeeper, playing a pass to Boateng who was left with an easy finish. The result was compounded when the African side scored their fifth following a good run by Bam on the left hand side.

A fantastic performance, which will no doubt prove ominous to the rest of the teams in the Junior section.

Man of the match – Isaac Atanga. The right winger’s pace and skill was a constant threat.

The Ghana academy team Right to Dream are being tipped to become the first outfit to land the double in the 33-year history of the Milk Cup tournament which starts in Northern Ireland on Monday.

Having conquered the Gothia Cup tournament in Sweden just last week, the Ghanaians are tipped as the team to beat in this year's competition in Northern Ireland

Crewe Alexandra, Middlesbrough, West Ham United and Manchester City have all come close to achieving success in both Premier and Junior competitions.

In 1987 Crewe beat Liverpool in the Premier final but their Juniors lost out to Hibernian. ‘Boro defeated Manchester United in the Premier showdown in 1997 only to lose to West Ham in the Junior showpiece.

The Hammers went down to Chile in the Premier age group in 1998 and their Juniors fell to Crewe.

The last time a club featured in both deciders was at the beginning of the century when Manchester City suffered double heartbreak, failing at the final hurdle against Turkey (Premier) and Charlton Athletic (Junior).

“It’s a tough challenge but by all accounts the Right to Dream squads are world class,” says the tournament secretary and founding father Jim Weir.

“We have charted their progress over the past couple of years and it has been impressive. I reckon our supporters are in for a treat this year in both age groups.”

The Junior title has been won by overseas teams only six times in 30 years. Twelve months ago SC Corinthians from Brazil triumphed against County Antrim.

Before that it was Mexico’s Guadalajara (2000), Danish side Lyngby Boldklub (2005), Israel’s Maccabi Haifa (2004), Racing Club of Argentina (2003) and Slovakia’s national squad (1993).

Mexican newcomers Zacatepec will hope to emulate Guadalajara’s success but they face a test against Southampton in their opening game this afternoon.

Meanwhile, with six-time winner Everton’s failure to return for the first time in some years, the door is wide open.

The Toffees had only missed out on the final twice in the past seven years and County Antrim, beaten finalists in 2014 and 2013, will be hoping to go one better this time.

Western Region produced a sterling show of focus and aggression to win this year's the 2015 Airtel Rising Stars zonal competition. 

[caption id="attachment_303676" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Airtel Rising Star in Takoradi[/caption]

Playing four matches over just two days, Western Region's Team B beat Central Region's Team A by just one point in the league standings with five points as against four.

[caption id="attachment_303677" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Airtel Rising Star in Takoradi.[/caption]

Western region has therefore qualified to the national finals of Ghana's most presigious and comprehensive talent competition.

[caption id="attachment_303678" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Airtel Rising Star ianTakoradi.[/caption]

To ice their celebrations, the region's female team also won in the ladies category.