Top scorers of the tournament
©TM/IMAGO
Who will succeed Germany as winner of the U17 World Cup? This question will be answered on Thursday from 5 p.m. when Austria and Portugal meet in the final. Two players who have shaped the tournament for their teams so far are Johannes Moser for the ÖFB youngsters and Anísio for the Portuguese. With eight and six goals respectively, they occupy the top two places in the top scorers list.
Player comparison
FC Liefering
Benfica Lisbon U19
Offensive midfield
position
Center forward
For the complete player comparison
“It’s a very nice feeling when you can help the team. I didn’t have any plans before the World Cup, but it’s nice that things are going so well,” Moser, who also leads the scorers list with two assists, recently said modestly. The attacking midfielder from Salzburg farm team FC Liefering has scored at least one goal in every game so far. Only in the group game against New Zealand did the 17-year-old fail to score anything, but he only played 19 minutes. Otherwise there are two double packs in the semi-finals against Italy (2-0) and in the round of 16 against England (4-0), plus a goal each in the group phase against Saudi Arabia (1-0) and Mali (3-0) as well as in the round of 16 against Tunisia (2-0) and in the quarter-finals against Japan (1-0).
“The boy is a big surprise,” says Dorian Schuster from Transfermarkt in Austria, assessing Moser’s tournament so far: “He destroyed the U16 league back then, but then didn’t stand out as much in the U18 and Youth League. In April he made his professional debut in the 2nd league and has done quite well so far. He had his greatest moment so far in the derby against Austria Salzburg, when he scored his first professional goal with a fantastic free kick and at the same time secured Liefering’s victory initiated.” With his direct free kick in the World Cup semi-final, the teenager created another memorable moment in his young career. “Nobody expected such a breakthrough,” says expert Schuster.
In 2023 at a youth tournament, his strengths were described as follows: “Moser has a very good feel for the space. He knows where he has to move on the field in order to create danger – either with a dribble himself, or with a pass for a teammate. With the ball at his feet, he is very self-confident and courageous. (…) His movements are natural and fluid. Because of his physique, it is difficult to separate him from the ball. The Carinthian can initiate attacks with both his right and left or finish in promising positions.”
Moser almost tried his luck in another sport. At the age of twelve, however, he decided on football and against skiing and a short time later ended up at the Salzburg Academy, where he was trained from the U15 level onwards. However, the Carinthian was previously unable to match his goal rate at the World Cup in the club – but there he also has to compete with mostly much older players. In 13 professional games so far he has scored one goal and one assist.
Now being in the final is “an incredible feeling,” emphasized the Klagenfurt native. Never before has a youth team from Austria reached a World Cup final. ÖFB team boss Ralf Rangnick will also be keeping his fingers crossed: “If they give it their all and exploit their potential, then they can win the final and bring Austrian football a historic success.”
Anísio “the type of striker who can decide a final with just one moment”
But Portugal also wants to take home the trophy for the first time and Anísio Cláudio Fernandes Reis Cabral, or Anísio for short, may also have an eye on the title of top scorer. Similar to Moser, the center forward from Benfica’s U19 was able to celebrate a goal or an assist in almost every game, with the exceptions being the group game against Japan (1:2) and the dramatic semi-final against Brazil (6:5 nE). Anísio also scored two braces: against New Caledonia (6:1) and Belgium (2:1). The Lisbon-born attacker scored a goal against Morocco (6-0) and in the round of 16 against Mexico (5-0). He then failed to score twice. In the quarter-finals against Switzerland (2-0), he prepared the important 1-0 goal for Mateus Mide, who is also playing a strong World Cup.
“Anísio is a physically strong striker who constantly puts defenders under pressure. His header strength makes him a great threat from crosses and set pieces. He is the type of striker who can decide a final with just a moment in the penalty area,” says Gonçalo Tristão Santos, Content Manager at Transfermarkt in Portugal, highlighting the attacker’s advantages.
Not surprisingly, national icon Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the 17-year-old’s role models. “I really like Cristiano Ronaldo and his mentality, but I also really like Ronaldo’s style of play,” Anísio, who has both Portuguese and Guinea-Bissau citizenship, once said. But at the tournament in Qatar he proudly represents the colors of the Seleção das Quinas. “It’s very important to play for Portugal. It’s a small nation, but we have a very big heart. And it’s about continuing to make the Portuguese proud and honor our nation.”
Anísio has been active for Benfica at club level since 2016, but so far it hasn’t been enough for him to play for the professionals. But for two games in the U23, although he is still assigned to the U19 team. The club obviously thinks highly of the striker, and it’s not for nothing that they gave him a professional contract last year at the age of 16. And Anísio himself is self-confident and believes in a promising future. For Benfica he wants to “win many titles” and become “a great player”.
Before that, he could be crowned U17 world champion – and close a circle for his coach Bino. Portugal’s best participation in a U17 World Cup was third place in 1989, back then with a certain Bino in midfield. Now both of them could make history together.