Kenya national women’s Under-17 team will have three top-notch friendly matches in Spain, as part of their preparations ahead of next month’s FIFA World in the Dominican Republic.
Junior Starlets, which is coached by Mildred Cheche, will begin their test matches against La Liga’s Valencia CF Women tomorrow in the coastal city of Alicante. Kenya will be in action again on Friday and will tackle European heavyweights Portugal at the same venue.
The last build-up game for buzzing Junior Starlets will be against Intercity on September 30 as they endeavour to hone their skills in readiness for the big stage.
Kenya, which will be making its FIFA World Cup debut is camping in Spain for 11 days, will travel to the Dominican Republic immediately after their friendly game against Intercity.
Midfielder Pearl Olesi says all is well in their camp in southern Spain, fully charged for the top engagements ahead.
“The camp is joyful and we are all in high spirits and the training is going on well. We want to do well and gauge ourselves in the three friendlies matches. We want to see where we are in terms of levels,” Olesi stated.
Her words were echoed by left-back Diana Anyango who noted the importance of the friendly matches.
“The training is going on very well and we are enjoying each moment. We are giving our all in the training, fully focused on our first friendly game against Valencia. We want to push ourselves so as to register wins in the matches because they will be a reflection on how we are going to play at the World Cup.”
The eighth edition of the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup is slated for the Dominican Republic from October 16 to November 3 and Junior Starlets will begin its quest for football glory against England on November 18. Kenya will then face two-time champions Korea DPR on October 20 and conclude Group C assignment against Mexico on October 24.
Meanwhile. next week Choe Il-son will return to Pyongyang with a hell of a story to tell, and perhaps a dance to perform. While many of her friends were just returning to school after a long, hot, summer break the 17-year-old was busy lighting up the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup™ in Colombia.
The pint-sized forward was a remarkable presence in Colombia, winning both the Adidas Golden Boot and Golden Ball, and it was fitting that she was the player who settled the final with a goal of sumptuous quality.
A gold medal, two trophies and plenty of memories heading home with the teenage predator who, over the past month, has shown that she can develop into a striker of the highest calibre.
There’s been something of an unexpected love affair between locals in the South American nation and this superb collection of mostly teenage footballers from a distant land that is largely unknown. It’s an infatuation that runs both ways, with Choe telling FIFA that Colombia – and their music – will always have a special place in her heart.
