By RYAN TOLMICH
It was far from a vintage performance, but the U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team did just enough to stay on course for a place in the Under-20 World Cup.
After a lackluster 77 minutes, forward Bradford Jamieson IV finally gave the U.S. the breakthrough the team needed, as the Americans topped Trinidad and Tobago, 1-0. The victory puts the U.S. through to a one-game playoff for the chance to play in the Under-20 World Cup.
Jamieson IV’s breakthrough came in the 78th minute when the U.S. finally caught T&T with a counter attack. Set up by substitute Paul Arriola, Jamieson provided the finish that the U.S. had been lacking to seal the U.S. victory.
Much like a majority of their recent performances, the U.S. stuttered through the opening half, as the team as a whole struggled to combine on less-than-ideal field conditions. After weathering an early T&T storm that saw a few scares, the U.S. dominated a majority of the half with little to show for it.
Led by Emerson Hyndman and Romain Gall, the U.S. created a few legitimate chances in the opening stanza, but failed to put together anything of note. Gall fired wide on a chance to give the U.S. the lead in the 31st, while Hyndman’s dancing effort was parried away by goalkeeper Johan Welch.
The vast majority of the second half was much of the same, although Jamieson nearly provided the U.S. with a spark in the 50th minute. With a wide open net, the LA Galaxy forward’s shot was cleared off the line by T&T’s Neveal Irwin Hackshaw.
T&T responded with a series of chances leading up to Jamieson’s finish, the best of which resulted in a shot that was claimed by U.S goalkeeper Zack Steffen.
While a draw wold have been a suitable result, Jamieson’s late finish left no doubt, as theU.S. finished second place in the group.
As a result of Wednesday’s victory, the U.S. will play the later game Saturday against either Honduras, El Salvador or Cuba.
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What did you think of Wednesday’s performance? Which players stood out to you? Which changes, if any, do you expect to be made for Saturday?
Share your thoughts below.
I think El Salvador or Honduras will be one of our toughest challenges yet.. TBH I’m looking forward to see how Panama or Guatemala will fare against Mexico.
I think they are playing 2 games per day on the same field. (So far it looks to me like the same field) That would be 22 games in about 2 weeks. The field was not pristine to begin with, but it looks worse every game as the tourney wears on.
What is up with the fields in this tourney?!?!
Not a pretty win, for sure, but they got the job done. Lots of gaps in talent on this team: Hyndman and Gall were a cut above but most of the U.S.’s players seemed lost against a largely ineffective T&T team. I was impressed with the second half though, particularly the play of Shaq Moore and Arriola. Clever finish too by Jamieson 4 on the goal. Some bright spots but too many holes on this team.
Hey Ives. Something is wrong with your site. When I try to open sbisoccer.com using Google Chrome, the site automatically redirects to an ad. It happens every time, making the website literally unviewable. Very annoying. I am using Internet Explorer right now.
I am having the same issue.
You guys using the latest version?
I’m using Chrome and website is fine.
Working fine for me on my chromebook
Yep, it was doing it to me too on Safari.
Messy pitch, messy match. We generated some good chances but again lacked the final touch. Thompson and Gall really struggled especially considering how they’ve stood out in the other matches. Possible issues with legs as Thompson was active but lacked his typical burst and Gall simply disappeared after the first few minutes. Jamieson, Moore, and Requero had great motors. Hyndman had some moments of absolute magic but made more mistakes than usual. Junior and Arriola provided good spark off the bench
I thought this and the first game were Gall’s weakest. He has a good shot and great speed, but he does seem to struggle a bit when his defender can’t be beat with speed. Some more games where his speed does not work as well and I hope he will develop other aspects that keep him in the game more. Thompson had 4 very good games and was a bit blaah in the last, maybe tired legs? Junior and Arriola were fresh and looked it. It was a nice pass by Arriola, but he still needs to work on his first touch, something that was evident in the first game where he started. Junior simply looked better all-around than he did in the first game.
They are mostly teenagers, it is not too surprising that they suffer ups and downs from game-to-game It is hard even for seasoned professionals to play 5 games in such a short span and look sharp in all of them.
USA!
Galaxy!