European powerhouse France united from a goal down to hand a 5-1 drubbing on Honduras and set for next opponent ahead to their goal. France had qualified for the knock-out stage as group toppers in the FIFA U-17 World Cup on Saturday. France had already booked a Round of 16 berths before today's game but they now go into the knock-out stage with an all-win record (nine points) in Group E. They will face Group D runners-up Spain who is European qualifying tournament winners in their Round of 16 matches in Guwahati on October 17. Despite the loss, Honduras also qualified for the knock-outs as one of the four best third-placed teams. They finished third in the group with three points.
Japan also in this group who qualify for the next stage. Japan finished second in the group with four points after being held by minnows New Caledonia in another match in Kolkata. New Caledonia finished last in the group with one point and was eliminated. France dominated the exchanges with 66 percent possession and had 10 shots on target as compared to just three by Honduras. Honduras took a surprise lead in the 10th minute through Carlos Mejia but France rallied and then outplayed the Central American rivals with five goals, three of them coming in the second half. As till the halftime score was France leading 2-1.
Alexis Flips struck twice in the 23rd and 64th minutes while Wilson Isidor (14th), Amine Gouiri (86th) and Yacine Adli (90+6) were the other France scorers. With his fifth goal in three matches, Gouiri maintained his status as the top scorer of the tournament so far.
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