Nathan Trott and his West Ham United teammates could not duplicate their 2016 performance when they reached the Blue Stars/FIFA Youth Cup Tournament Final, however Olympique Lyonnais of France won the 79th Blue Stars/FIFA Youth Cup Tournament in their first-ever appearance, defeating Belgian representatives Anderlecht 1-0 in the final.
For the past two years, Swiss teams had managed to keep the trophy on home soil, but none of the four domestic clubs managed to make it into the final this year. Nevertheless, there was a Zurich derby in the third-place play-off, with FC Zurich defeating last year’s winners Grasshoppers 1-0 in a tight match.
The ninth-place play-off was also an all-Swiss affair, with FC St. Gallen recording a 4-0 win over FC Blue Stars. The seventh-place match went all the way to penalties, with Mainz 05 edging Independiente Santa Fe from Colombia 8-7 in a battle of two Blue Stars debutants. London outfit West Ham United defeated Benfica 3-1 to secure fifth spot.
In terms of individual awards, two Lyon players picked up some more silverware to take back to France. Alan Dzabana won the adidas Golden Ball as the player of the tournament, while Anthony Racioppi was voted the adidas Golden Glove, as the tournament’s best goalkeeper. Anderlecht, meanwhile, won the FIFA Fair Play Award.
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