sport24h England U20s World Cup final opponents Venezuela profiled Sportivo

England booked their place in the FIFA U20 World Cup final with landmark3-1 semi-final victory over Italy in South Korea.
Dominic Solanke and Ademola Lookman were the heroes for Paul Simpson's men, scoring the goals as the Young Lions progressed to the final against Venezuela.
With relatively little known about Sunday's South American opponents, here's the lowdown on the men standing between England and World Cup glory...
While the likes of Brazil and Argentina pride themselves on flair and individual brilliance, Venezuela have become known for their well-organised and dogged displays.
Not blessed with the endless stream of technically-adept players their South American counterparts enjoy, Rafael Dudamel has assembled a squad of players whose team ethic stands out.
Nowhere was this more evident than in their semi-final triumph against Uruguay, where they equalised deep into stoppage-time before completing the turnaround against their much-fancied opponents on penalties.
Imposing in stature, Venezuela will go about intimidating England at every opportunity, whether that be physically or with the tenacious will to win that runs through the team.
Grouped with Germany, Vanuatu and Mexico in Group B, Dudamel's side breezed into the last 16 with three consecutive victories, the highlight of which was a 7-0 thumping of the South Pacific minnows.
Things, however, were not as easy in the knockout stages as Venezuela required extra-time in each round to reach the semi-finals, where it took a dramatic penalty shootout victory South American champions Uruguay to seal their nation's first ever appearance in the final of a FIFA tournament, youth or senior.
It would be a disservice to Venezuela to simply cast them aside as mere brutes, after all, they've achieved history in becoming the first Venezuelan team to reach the final of a FIFA tournament.
Key to that historic run to a maiden final has been the goals of Sergio Cordova. Two of his four strikes came in the thrashing of Vanuatu but he notched the decisive goals against Mexico and Germany.
What's more, Cordova currently sits joint-second in the race for the tournament's Golden Boot, how fitting would it be for the 19-year-old score the winning goals that secure accolades for both himself and his nation.
Venezuela looked dead and buried heading into stoppage-time of their semi-final against Uruguay. Trailing to a contentious penalty, awarded with the help of video technology, the sun looked to be setting on their impressive campaign.
Step forward Sosa; rising to the occasion when his country needed him most with an exquisite free-kick which forced extra-time. It knocked the wind out of Uruguay, who eventually succumbed on penalties, and serves a clear warning to England not to give away free-kick within striking range in the final third.
There's no getting away from the fact that Venezuela have failed to put any of their knockout stage opponents to bed in normal time.
It means Dudamel's men have played a staggering 90 minutes more than England on their way to the final, opening the door for fatigue to potentially play a part.
It also raises question over the Venezuelans' ability to be clinical when it matters most, something Simpson's England have proven time and again.

dan

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