Two players with strong African connections are poised to star at the Fifa Under-20 World Cup starting in Poland on Thursday.
They are Timothy Weah, son of Liberian legend George Weah and the Brit Tom Dele-Bashiru who plays for Nigeria.
Twenty-four teams will play in the World Cup from Thursday until June 15. They will be drawn into six groups and 52 matches will take place with the opening game between hosts Poland and Colombia at the Lodz Stadium.
The tournament will feature ‘heavyweight’ favourite teams, dark horses and new champions will be crowned as 2017 winners England failed to qualify.
The USA striker Weah is one of two starlets with an African connection expected to shine at Poland and beyond.
He was loaned to Celtic by Paris Saint-Germain at the beginning of the year, the 19-year-old became a super-sub for the Scottish Premiership winners, scoring three times and adding an assist in 11 league appearances.
He is also the son of 1995 Fifa World Player of the Year George Weah. His father was a three-time African Footballer of the Year, and in 1996, was named African Player of the Century.
His son was born in New York, United States.
The Nigerian midfielder Dele-Bashiru was born in Manchester. After a few years at the Manchester Youth Academy, he went on to represent England Under-16 but will now be pulling the strings for the Flying Eagles at Poland 2019.
Tom Dele Bashiru of Manchester City in action during Carabao Cup clash against Leicester
He earned his first appearance for Manchester City during a League Cup match against Leicester City in 2017.
Although he has represented England at youth level he remains eligible for Nigeria.
In partnership with ANA and Mediapix
