UAE-based CF Football Academy did the Emirates proud as they reached the quarter-finals of the inaugural Gothia Cup China.

The CF’s Under-18 boys team enjoyed a decent run in the competition, eventually exiting at the hands of Consadole, from Japan. They were the only team from the UAE to participate at the Gothia Cup, held from August 13-19 in Shenyang, China.

They qualified for the knockout stages at Shenyang Gothia Football Park with two impressive wins from their opening two games. Led by captain Mehdi Ali Baba and vice skipper Jephin Alex, they put home team Ares to the sword 7-0 on August 14, before brushing aside another Chinese side, SY28, 5-1 the following day.

They lost an eight-goal thriller 5-3 to Hong Kong’s Freeman, but qualified for the last eight by finishing second in Group 2. That is where the fairytale ended though, with the UAE side thrashed 17-0 by Consadole.

The Japanese side made it all the way to the final where they were beaten 12-11 by Spanish side CSKH. More than 230 teams from nearly 30 countries across the globe took part in the Gothia Cup, including teams from Brazil, Germany, Portugal, South Africa and Russia.

Gothia Cup has a 40-year-old tradition and has been termed as the World Youth Cup by FIFA in 2007.