Mali’s No 9 Malle, battle with a Croatian defender for the ball

Mali the African U-17 champions have booked a semi-final ticket in the FIFA World Cup competition in Chile, edging out Croatia 1-0.

Croatia, the only team that beat Nigeria in the tournament at the group stage, had more possession of the ball, but the Malians were more decisive up-front, making 19 shots at goal, with nine of them on target. Croatia only made four attempts at goal, but they were all off-target.

Forward Sekou Koita did the ultimate damage to Croatia in the 20th minute, when he found the net.

Mali have now joined their West African brothers in the semi-final. Like Nigeria, their opponents will become clear  after the last quarter-final match between Belgium and Costa Rica on Monday.