Football is often about more than just 22 players on a pitch. At times, matches are won long before kick-off and often in the face of mounting pressure. Colombia knew that to earn their qualification to the Round of 32 at the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025™, only a victory against Korea DPR would suffice.
The victory came, but it owed as much to what happened behind the scenes as to their performance on Pitch 1 at the Aspire Zone. It all goes back to the team’s return to the hotel following their 0-0 draw with El Salvador, as head coach Freddy Hurtado explains.
“At the hotel, we have a psychologist with us. We, along with my assistant, stayed close to the team, drawing on our experience to lift their spirits. We held talks, motivated them, and prepared them for what they had to do today. Fortunately, it worked. They’ve done us proud by qualifying and now it’s time to think about the next round.”
The scoring was opened by Miguel Solarte, a left-back who had never previously found the net for Colombia. “I was following the play closely, and when I saw Catano with the ball, I expected him to shoot, but he held off. I waited for it and called for the pass. My first thought was to go for goal, simple as that. It took a touch off one of their players and went in. It’s my first ever goal for Colombia”, said the No15.
Another squad member who understood the importance of the mental side of things was Santiago Londono. The striker, who scored five goals at the South American U-17 Championship to help secure Colombia’s ticket to Qatar, had yet to open his account in this tournament until he converted a 33rd-minute penalty to make it 2-0.
“The support I get from the team is crucial. Scoring five goals at the South American Championship and then not finding the net in the first two games here really pushes you to stay motivated. In other teams, maybe you wouldn’t get that same support, but here they backed me all the way and believed in me. That’s what allowed me to keep my confidence up and score my first goal.”
The promising Envigado striker again highlighted the importance of mental strength. Conquering that battle enabled them to win their crucial match. “We’re a squad that’s honest with each other, we talk things through, and we’re like a family. The psychological support we get always motivates us and helps us to keep moving forward,” Londono explained.
Having navigated their way through the group stage, Colombia can now look forward to the most exciting part of their Doha adventure, the fight for the title. “We said that if we qualified, we’d keep chasing the dream we’ve set for ourselves. We’ll give our all against our next opponent. We’re taking it one match at a time. We’ve played three matches and have five more to go. “We’re clear about what we want to achieve,” said the coach firmly.
Captain Cristian Orozco echoes that message to the letter. “We’ve worked hard on motivation. In our minds, we’re here to play eight finals. Going out in the group stage was never on our agenda.” And Solarte himself drives the point home. “We want to keep winning, we’re going for the title.”
Everything changes when you approach your goals with the right mindset. 72 hours after a frustrating 1-1 draw with El Salvador, the Colombian team headed back to their hotel knowing that Monday’s match was no farewell. With renewed minds, they’ll return to the pitch at the Aspire Zone to continue their bid for the World Cup when the Round of 32 gets underway this week in the Qatari capital.
