Panama sealed their place at the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025™ after a flawless Concacaf qualifying campaign. Racking up nine points along the way, and buoyed by their home support, they capped off their perfect campaign with a win over the Dominican Republic.
Striker Mikel Prado was one of the standout performers, topping the Canaleros’ scoring charts with four goals in qualifying. The striker sat down with FIFA to discuss his side’s journey to the World Cup and what we can expect to see from them in Qatar.
Mikel Prado: I’ve got very fond memories of those qualifiers. Playing on home soil is all about being with our fans, our people, and everyone cheering us on. We were in high spirits, we felt good, and we knew we would give it our all to qualify. And that’s exactly what happened.
There were jitters, anxiety, tension, a whirlwind of emotions. We weren’t just fighting for our spot at the World Cup, but for our future and so much more. We had the chance to change our families’ lives for the better, and we were all on tenterhooks before the game got underway.
I’d been working on that finish. I’d already pulled it off twice in training, but when the chance came in the match, the goal was covered, and it was the best way for me to get my shot off. It’s no mean feat to pull off that kind of finish, so you need to practise it a lot. The best players keep trying these things over and over until they come off, and that’s exactly what I did. And I managed to pull it off.
I remember it like it was yesterday. Even though a draw would have seen us qualify, we were determined to go for all three points. We wanted to make the whole country proud of us and our families, and when that goal went in, a wave of emotion came over me that I’ve never experienced before in my life. As I wheeled away towards the crowd, I felt like I was part of one big family with everyone cheering us on.
On an individual level, I wanted to stand out and make a difference. Also because I knew that scouts from many different countries were watching, I wanted to get myself on the scoresheet three times and provide two assists, which I thought was a realistic target. However, I also wanted the team to succeed and make it through. We win together, we qualify together, and if we’d gone out, we’d have all been knocked out together as well. But it’s no secret that I also worked hard on my individual game, with the aim of making a difference on the pitch, and finishing as the top scorer in our group, something that I managed to achieve.
I’m happy with who we’ve been drawn against. Our group is very competitive, and we’ll give it our best shot to make it through to the next stage. I can’t wait for our opening match (against Ireland) in Qatar. But I’m also feeling the nerves. It’s always on my mind, because having the chance to play at the World Cup is a dream come true. A dream to experience, a dream to belt out the national anthem and to play on the biggest stage. I’m raring to go, and I give it my all every day in training, willing that day to come as soon as possible.
We’re fully focused on our first game. It’s always important to hit the ground running. After that, we’ll turn our focus to the second and third matches, with the ultimate aim of making it out of the group.
We work hard on improving our intensity in every training session. That’s what the coach (Leonardo Pipino) demands of us. We like to press high up the pitch. Our style of play allows us to compete at our best and give it our all to take Panama as far as we possibly can.
I have nothing but positive things to say about my time working under him. He’s got bags of experience, including at the U-20 World Cup in New Zealand in 2015 with Panama. He always reminds us that he’s been there before and now he wants to experience it with us. He’s got a really positive feeling about this group of players. He’s always full of positivity, and that rubs off on us.
