The young American trio of Andrew Carleton, Chris Goslin and Justin Garces aren’t the only Atlanta United prospects representing their nations at the ongoing FIFA U-17 World Cup in India. Two other members of the ATL UTD Academy, Alessandro Castro and Alexander Bahr, have been sporting the blue and white national colors of Honduras as they advanced from group stage and qualified for the Round of 16.
Both Castro and Bahr received a start each in the first two group stage matches against Japan and New Caledonia, with Castro also appearing as a sub in their third contest against France. Despite frustrating losses against Japan (1-6) and France (1-5), their emphatic 5-0 win over New Caledonia was enough to place them third in the group, earning a spot in the knockout stage. Bahr and Castro can be proud to be part of a squad with historical significance as the victory marked the largest win ever for Honduras in the FIFA U-17 World Cup since their first tournament appearance in 2007.
Honduras will take the field in India again Wednesday as they face Brazil in the knockout stage, a side who topped their group with three wins over Spain, Korea DPR and Niger.
Just qualifying for the World Cup is a major achievement, and to then advance out of the group stage is an even more impressive feat. Bahr and Castro are gaining valuable experience playing against the best of the best, and could see their contributions make history once again as Honduras looks to match its best finish ever in the tournament (quarterfinals in 2013). To cheer on Atlanta United’s own as they compete at the world stage, you can watch the match between Honduras and Brazil kicking off at 10:30 a.m. EST on FS2 or via FOX Sports GO.
