Japanese 3-0 defeat at Under-17 World Cup has South African midfielder Emile Witbooi preaching teamwork as a way to go

Emil Witbooi seems to be coming of age.

The South African youth international is in awe of what may have caused them at the Under-17 World Cup over the weekend.

Witbooi, a highly individual player, said exiting the tournament in Qatar left him with a better understanding of how team play should be.

“Coming out from this tournament, what I learnt is if you don’t play as a team, you won’t make it,” he told Safa Media.

The Under-17 were thumped 3-0 by their Japanese counterparts which ended their fairy-tale run in this tournament, having made history by reaching the last 32 round.

“So, yeah, we have to do more [of that], it’s not about individual players, it’s about the team,” he said.

“We have to give our all and fight for the badge, but unfortunately, especially against Japan, it was not enough, not at all.

“Japan for 90 minutes, they played as a team, they ran as a team. And as for us, we can see, we played in quarters. We can see it was not enough.”

Having boarded a flight back too OR Tambo, the Cape Town City midfielder said he enjoyed the experience of being at the global showpiece.

“It’s a big experience to come play here against the best players in the world,” Witbooi concluded.