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U.S. Under-20s vs. Mexico: Your Running Commentary

The U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team takes on Mexico today in the CONCACAF Under-20 Championship Final in Puebla, Mexico (7pm, Fox Soccer Channel).

Both teams have already qualified for the Under-20 World Cup in Turkey this summer, but bragging rights are on the line today as the Americans look to build on their unbeaten run through the tournament. Mexico also enters unbeaten and will have the home-field advantage behind them.

If you will be watching today’s CONCACAF Under-20 Championship Final, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.

Enjoy the action.

Comments

  1. Tough result as the US dictated more of the game than Mexico. The inexperienced defense unfortunately cost us. Would have been nice to have Gil & Cuevas for the final, but it’s not worth arguing since Trapp and Lopez really picked it up.

    What finally separated the teams was finishing, and a little bit of gamesmanship. When you’re bossing a game, you can’t bring in subs to change the tempo. Mexico, however, was able to get back in by doing that.

    As much as we’d like to talk about missed calls, we have to realize that the ref wasn’t that bad. Sometimes you miss calls. It’s part of the game for as long as there’s no instant replay (which will be forever). Consider this… the guy awarded the US a PK in Mexico. Period. You would never have seen that a decade ago. And they called back a potentially onside goal for Mexico.

    Considering…

    -US started the tourney poorly

    -Several definite starters didn’t even come to the tourney (Brooks, Packwood, Pelosi)

    -The refs finally called a USA-Mexico match in Mexico both ways

    -There are some definite prospects in the B+ U20 team (Joya, Cuevas, Gil, Villareal, and after tonight I might even add Trapp)

    …I’m not crying too bad. I’ll sleep easy with the belief that the U.S. takes this match if it were played at a neutral site.

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  2. It will def be interesting to see if guys like JAB and Henley accept a call up to the world cup squad.Henley esp since it supposedly cap ties him to the US.

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  3. Wow this team had heart, They ripped mexico to shreds in the first

    35 minutes. we shoulda had 2 clear penalties and a red card in the first half, but thats what happens when the mexicans pay the ref. And benji joya is just the man, what a player, what personality, he gave everthing he had out on the field today. Really look forward to him being a future u.s. senior team player

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  4. Congrats to Mexico for barely beating oh wait for it a depleted US team that was without most of their best players due to injury, players leaving, and players that weren’t released.

    This US team will be something to watch at the WC when they have their best players.

    And yes the ref was poo, but we all should know that refs from CONCACAF are crap.

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  5. Could not be more proud of the kids from USA!!! Absolutely fantastic game by everyone. My kids (4 and 6) love playing soccer but before this game they were not really interested in watching it. It was really fun to see them screaming for the USA. Kudos to the team and Tab Ramos. I need to rest my voice . . .

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  6. I liked this team spirit, but they play some dirty football I’ve never seen from the US before. The elbow to the face O’Neill threw to the Mex player, and the tackle by Cropper on the Mex after he scored. Who does he think he is, Oswaldo Sanchez?

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    • Honestly from my point of view it looked as if Cropper was already on the ground and the Mex player didn’t see him and tripped over him, no malice intended. But it was quick and I wasn’t paying that much attention, so I could be wrong. But gotta love the way the US played this tourney, gives me hope.

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  7. First u.s pk was mot a penalty, second was and third was not.

    Brisueno should have gotten a red.

    Joya should have gotten a yellow.

    The fourth Mexico goal was not off sides.

    Intense match and concaf will be very well represented

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    • Oh, they’ll be paid off. It’s FIFA after all.

      However, it probably won’t so greatly benefit our immediate neighbors to the south.

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  8. Why is no one complaining about the first pk? ahh i see when the ref makes a mistake in our favor he’s a good ref? Game over, we lost. Mex was better.

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    • Mexico won, you’re correct. However, “…but Mexico is a lot better.” as you said earlier. You’re incredibly incorrect.

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      • Just saying that every call can be questioned. At the end of the day mex didnt lose a game scored 13 goals and was scored against once. But lets be realistic. Mex was better the whole tournament. A lot better.

    • nope. the region jobs the US always, and in Mexico the worst. it’s not complaining or blaming, it’s recognizing reality Art

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    • Being a casual observer of the American team, I have to admit that the game was pretty balance when it came to the ref’s decisions. However, with the start of the second half alot of fouling of the U.S. players in and around the penalty box.

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    • I agree, we should have scored regardless of penalties. And that penalty in OT was merited, if our defense wasn’t so flat footed that wouldn’t have happened.

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      • Finally someone makes sense, if the US was so superior like many people on here claim they would’ve scored legit goals and put the Mexicans away in 90 without relying on pk calls from the ref.

      • One cannot score a goal when one is about to shoot and is fouled and taken down from behind the moment a goal is inevitable.

        See PK no call on our beautifully taken set piece- the US player had just started his shooting motion and certainly would have scored (he was only a few yards from goal, perfect chance, just him and the keeper) when the Mexican player trips him. That directly took a goal off the scoreboard for us, and we got no PK to show for it.

      • Regardless of what players got fouled and where, the US did have some good chances, should’ve taken them instead of hoping to get pks called.

  9. You won’t see a team work that hard for a long time. They must have been absolutely exhausted but didn’t let it show. They just kept running and runnin and running. I’m proud of them especially since we didn’t have nearly a full squad. They’re gunna be a group to watch come the the World Cup in Turkey. Joya was my man of the match. USA!

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  10. A red, two uncalled penaltes, Mexico is not a lot better, they are just lucky, I wish we could witness a freaking change at the referees in the region!!!

    We are beating them at the Azteca!!1

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  11. What did you all expect? We had 3 clear penalties, but this is Mexico at home, there is always guaranteed funny business.

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  12. Why do you think Mexico Used all 3 changes? I’m not sure of what Dellacamera meant when he kept going on about the players not tired and a change not necessary in his commentary, that was hogwash. They players were tired and disillusioned! Ramos keeps the players on the field too long.

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    • JP Dellacamera, however you spell his name, is a garbage soccer announcer and should go back to Hockey.

      I’ve been saying this for years, when he was on ESPN.

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  13. There was a great deal of exciting soccer in this game. The US U20s played with style and passion and made some good chances. As has been previously mentioned, this looks good for our future!

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    • I don’t know about a lot. The game was pretty even. Should have been a red. But yes when you are playing a team that is short many players they can be ‘a lot’ better’.

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    • Except that’s not true.

      Even without our best players we were the better team. They should have had a player ejected and we did what he had to to earn two penalties in the first that were inexplicably not given to us.

      We also had a completely legitimate goal taken away and they were gifted an OT penalty. We dominated them, and it isn’t blaming the ref when the ref doesn’t do his job.

      We won in OT. The ref decided otherwise.

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      • This is CONCACAF. If you want to insure winning, make it so the ref is not relevant.

        Otherwise, stop crying and STFU. That is the lesson for the Under 20s. They will see worse before they are done if they keep playing international ball.

  14. F”! Mexico, always cheating and the referees helping them, Mexico wouldn´t have won, a penalty changes things, a goal for the USA and the are done, always the same crap against the US.

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  15. I don’t know why you guys are crying, the first PK was total b.s.. Taking that into account Mexico still would have won. If the U.S. was so much better tonight they should have scored the goals

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  16. This US U-20 team player their heart out, they will be fun to watch at the World Cup at full strenght, I hope they meet Mexico at the World Cup and avenge this atrocity. Go USA.

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  17. It’s a shame this tournament was won by refs.

    The USA is the true champion. They showed heart and skill.

    The Mexicans… well, they showed they can pay off the ref.

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  18. well they really had to get some help tonight did Mexico. that free kick the USA executed and fooled the crap out of Mexico was a thing of beauty ended with a buther’s play and a yellow zebra

    it’s cowardly, but that’s our region. lots of bravado and chest thumping, and always the help from the officials to support it

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  19. Everyone who has played soccer at the highest level knows that by the middle of the second half, your legs feels like lead. You’d have to look to other means to motivate your team. That is why you are allowed 3 changes…to add some pep to your offence and to inject some energy into the team and perhaps bring in a new play. Having these young men play over 100 mins of play is unbelievable. I have no idea what Ramos was thinking.

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    • He only had 2 field players to sub in and one of them was a defenseman. Only 16 dressed (3 were gk and Cuevas was hurt).

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    • We didn’t have subs. 5 subs. 2 goalies. Cuevas injured. A center back and Allen who came on for a defender. What else could we have done?

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    • robert,

      You got one thing right. You have no idea.

      How is it that guys like you always assume you are smarter than a guy like Ramos?

      It’s an overtime game. And a FINAL. No reason to save players. If Ramos didn’t sub enough there was probably an excellent reason.

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  20. I’m a Mexican NT fan but I gotta say I’m impressed with the US U-20. If they continue to develop the US will have more players unafraid to play Mexico in Mexico.

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    • And the rivalry just gets better. These teams are going to have bad blood for awhile after this match….all the better for a great continuity of one of the best rivalries in sports.

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    • ***mexico+refs in Mexico. If we’d just played against Mexico, game would’ve ended in penalties at worst. Haha but thanks for the sentiments and agree, this bunch looks good

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    • The US is not afraid to play Mexico in Mexico.

      For one thing, a number of them now play in Mexico.

      The USMNT may lose in Azteca but they certainly won’t be afraid.

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      • Certainly not afraid to ‘miss kick’ a pass into a mexican player in coed soccer and make sure it hits hard.

  21. The announcers in English lose whatever shred of credibility they had by stating “the ref has missed a couple for both sides”.

    Sorry. No.

    The ref missed one that might have been tough to see in the first half, and missed a clear PK in the second half. I haven’t seen anything close to a PK for Mexico called or not.

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  22. Even at the u-20’s, it’s amusing to see the rehearsed feigned broken ankles and legs that magically occur with a lead/minutes left in a match and magically heal only seconds later.

    It’s disgusting.

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  23. I would say Mexico has had the better of the play overall by a slight margin, but the US absolutely could have won this in regulation. Even if the US can’t come back, this was a really impressive performance in Mexico with a short bench/missing starters.

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  24. So sad that the US players didn’t get their just win in regulation with BOTH stonecold penalties not given to them.

    Welcome to the rigged world of CONCACAF kids!

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      • I said “refs in Mexico”. Last I checked, this game was in Mexico. Wake up, bro. And I came to the conclusion after watching MANY games played in Mexico by US teams.

    • Piss off!

      The US dived plenty of times, and not just in this game but throughout the tourney, a lot of people that aren’t wearing fanboy goggles noticed it.

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