Benfica target stars in Ireland Under-16s defeat to Turkiye
Ireland’s Under-16 fell to a 3-1 defeat to hosts Turkiye on Monday in their Aegean Cup opener, but there were some positives for manager Paul Osam to take from the tie.
Benfica target Jaden Umeh starred for the young Irish side, with a highlight being his classy assist for St Patrick’s Athletic striker Michael Noonan.
Noonan’s goal cancelled out Turkiye’s opener shortly after the half-time break. He made an excellent run into the box to get onto the end of Umeh’s low centre, after the Cork City man dribbled down the left wing.
The hosts bounced back with two more goals to seal the win, while next up for Osam’s side is Wednesday’s match against Czechia (9.30am Irish time).
The squad contains 17 League of Ireland based players, one Spanish based youngster (Ramon Martos, UD Almeria), Vancouver FC midfielder Grady McDonnell and Burnley prospect Kian McMahon Brown.
Portuguese giants Benfica want to sign Umeh when he turns 16 in March, although they could yet face competition from Serie A.
