Flamengo and PSV through to under-16 semis in Dubai
dubai — The steaming CR Flamengo juggernaut is through to the semifinals of the 8th Hamdan Bin Mohammed U16 International Football Championship with three emphatic wins in the group stage.
Opening their Group A campaign with a 5-1 win over Al Wasl at the Dubai Police Officers’ Club on Tuesday, the Brazil U16 champions stepped it up in their second match against Al Ahly, routing the Egyptians 8-0 before completing their group engagements with a 3-0 over PSV Eindhoven.
Reinier Jesus Carvalho scored twice in the win over PSV to take his tally to six goals from three matches and move to the top of the goal-scoring charts for the tournament. His two teammates — Pedro Arthur Bitencourt and Lazaro Vinicius Marques — share the second spot with four goals apiece.
Riding on their attacking trio’s exploits, Flamengo finished their group engagements with 16 goals, but their defence did a mean job as well, conceding only once in three matches. PSV clinched the second semifinal spot from Group A thanks to their victories in the first two matches. The Dutch had edged Al Ahly 2-1 in their opening matches, thanks to Fode Fofana’s winner in the third minute of added time. Fofana then scored twice in PSV’s 7-2 win over Al Wasl in their second match.