Tournament Day 3

The third and final day at the World Finals of the Manchester United Premier Cup in Carrington, was one of exceptional highs and heartbreaking lows as matches continued in a bid to find the best under-15 football team in the world.

The morning session kicked off with the Quarter Finals - when a strong performance from Mexican team Pachuca ended the hopes and aspirations of of MUPC African Champions Right to Dream Academy from Ghana; whilst host team Manchester United lost out on penalties to FC Porto after a goalless draw. Chile's MUPC Champions Colo Colo finished UK ambitions when a draw with high scoring Newcastle United was converted to 4:3 after penalty kicks and, in the most anticipated match of the morning session, Brazilian side Internacional were knocked out in a thrilling 2:3 match against FC Barcelona.

Tense encounters continued to be the order of the day when penalty kicks also had to separate tournament stalwarts Paris Saint-Germain and an impressive team from Changchun Yatai FC - and also in the Malaysia -v- Korea match when MSS Kedah finally won out over Ulsan Hyundai 9:8!

Paris Saint-Germain Coach Cedric Cattenoy was obviously disappointed with the result, but not his team's performance: "The team showed some good creativity and a great team spirit.  I am quite pleased with their efforts, happy with their strong teamwork and I think that they did everything they could. As I expected, some of the teams were much more physical, and that caused us one or two problems."

MSS Kedah have impressed many with their level of skills throughout and Coach Barkis was positive about the impact participation at this level would have for his young players: "It has been an amazing experience for the team to play against the likes of Manchester United, FC Barcelone and Alta Loma Arsenal. The experience alone is a valuable takeaway as we return home to prepare for next year's tournament."

A testing tournament format saw the afternoon session start with the Semi-finals. Both South America -v- Europe head-to-heads were close and very little separated the teams. A surprisingly defensive masterclass from both Pachuca -v- FC Porto resulted in a 0:0 draw, and the youngsters from Porto had to face the prospect of penalty kicks deciding their fate once again, this time losing out 5:4.

FC Barcelona were leading 2:0 and in control throughout most of their semi-final match against Colo Colo until five minutes before the end when a break forward by the Chilean team resulted in a goal and lifted their spirits for a last gasp effort to claw their way back into the match. Barcelona responded by lifting their performance level even further and ran out worthy winners 2:1.

Indian Champions Shillong Lajong showed skill throughout the tournament but their small stature told in the end as they were unable to find the net throughout. Without key players, Turkish MUPC Champions Bucaspor struggled to find the form that saw them steamroller their way through the European Qualification Tournament in Denmark earlier this year and Italian MUPC Champions Torino FC beat Australia's Sutherland Sharks for 15^th place.

Last year's finalists SV Werder Bremen were beaten into 14^th place by South Africa's Orlando Pirates, whose Coach Augusto Palacios remained positive about the benefit for his youngsters: "When you consider the experience that the young Pirates players are gaining from playing against the best teams in world, and also being a part of the coaching clinics, this is exposing them at an early age to international levels of football.  There are a couple of players who certainly have the opportunity to make it to professional levels.  I've always regarded the MUPC tournament as one of the most important development programmes in the world, and I'm glad that we have the opportunity to experience it."

US team Alta Loma Arsenal beat Paris Saint Germain to give them 11^th place while China's Changchun Yatai FC beat Japan's Kyoto Sanga to finish 9^th.  Right to Dream Academy from Ghana turned in another creditable performance against UK Champions Newcastle United to finish in 7^th position and Host team Manchester United narrowly lost out to the Brazilian Champions Internacional for 5^th place.

FC Porto returned to winning ways with a fine 2:0 performance against Chile's Colo Colo to end their tournament campaign in 3^rd place.

For many of the youngsters participating in MUPC, one of the highlights of the competition was the chance to train alongside some of the Manchester United first team in the player workshop, images in photo gallery.

Saturday 7^th August, Old Trafford, 12.30pm - and Mexican Champions Pachuca FC will face Spain's FC Barcelona at the "Theatre of Dreams" in a bid to prove they are the best under-15 football team in the world; The boys from Barcelona intend to stop them - and become the first team ever to lift the Manchester United Premier Cup title for the third time.

Over 9,000 teams started out on this journey and now only the final two remain. Who will become the Manchester United Premier Cup Champions of the world? MUPC's young stars of the future will decide...