France maintained their hundred percent win record in Group E of the 2017 FIFA U17 World Cup after they beat Honduras 5-1 at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on Saturday.
Having already qualified for the next round, France continued with only three members from their previous starting eleven. 'Keeper Yahia Fofana, defender William Bianda and playmaker Maxence Caqueret were retained. Andy Pelmard and Willem Geubbels were brought in after they warmed the bench against Japan.
Jose Valladares had to give Gustavo Vallecillo and David Cardona tournament debuts as Alexander Bahr and Joshua Canales were not a hundred percent fit.
It took only ten minutes to break the deadlock. A neat one-two with Patrick Palacios and midfield star Carlos Mejia lodged the ball into Yahia Fofana's net against the run of play, setting favourites France on the backfoot.
Wilson Isidor pulled one back a while later for the boys in blue. Alan Kerouedan released the ball for his Stade Rennais teammate and his shot had too much quality for Alex Rivera to pull off a save.
Lille LOSC's Alexis Flips helped the Europeans take the lead well before the half-hour mark and France began dominating the game, forgetting the early setback.
Kerouedan missed a sitter from close range on the stroke of half-time. After the break, Honduras ushered in fresh legs but France kept the momentum going.
Geubbels hit the woodwork in the 55th-minute as he aimed at his far post. Flips brought up his second of the night as latched onto a Claudio Gomes through ball to nudge it into an empty net.
Yacine Adli and Amine Gouiri were brought in and they combined to bring up the Olympique de Lyon striker's fifth of the tournament. The striker who led the goal-scoring charts of the tournament displayed pure quality from Adli's looping ball from the centre to leave Rivera for dead.
Adli then converted from a freekick from 19 yards, four minuted into added time - the PSG man scoring and assisting a goal after being on the pitch for only 15 minutes.
France topped the group with nine points as Honduras finished third and set up a Round-of-16 game with Kochi on 18 October. Spain will come down to the same venue to play France on 17 October in the pre-quarters.
Having already qualified for the next round, France continued with only three members from their previous starting eleven. 'Keeper Yahia Fofana, defender William Bianda and playmaker Maxence Caqueret were retained. Andy Pelmard and Willem Geubbels were brought in after they warmed the bench against Japan.
Jose Valladares had to give Gustavo Vallecillo and David Cardona tournament debuts as Alexander Bahr and Joshua Canales were not a hundred percent fit.
It took only ten minutes to break the deadlock. A neat one-two with Patrick Palacios and midfield star Carlos Mejia lodged the ball into Yahia Fofana's net against the run of play, setting favourites France on the backfoot.
Wilson Isidor pulled one back a while later for the boys in blue. Alan Kerouedan released the ball for his Stade Rennais teammate and his shot had too much quality for Alex Rivera to pull off a save.
Lille LOSC's Alexis Flips helped the Europeans take the lead well before the half-hour mark and France began dominating the game, forgetting the early setback.
Kerouedan missed a sitter from close range on the stroke of half-time. After the break, Honduras ushered in fresh legs but France kept the momentum going.
Geubbels hit the woodwork in the 55th-minute as he aimed at his far post. Flips brought up his second of the night as latched onto a Claudio Gomes through ball to nudge it into an empty net.
Yacine Adli and Amine Gouiri were brought in and they combined to bring up the Olympique de Lyon striker's fifth of the tournament. The striker who led the goal-scoring charts of the tournament displayed pure quality from Adli's looping ball from the centre to leave Rivera for dead.
Adli then converted from a freekick from 19 yards, four minuted into added time - the PSG man scoring and assisting a goal after being on the pitch for only 15 minutes.
France topped the group with nine points as Honduras finished third and set up a Round-of-16 game with Kochi on 18 October. Spain will come down to the same venue to play France on 17 October in the pre-quarters.