The U.S. Under-17 men’s national team finished its group stage schedule on Wednesday with its second shutout victory of the Concacaf U-17 Championship.
Keyrol Figueroa needed only three minutes as a substitute to deliver the eventual winning goal for Gonzalo Segares’ squad in a 1-0 victory over Canada. The USMNT U-17’s had ample opportunities to score but had to settle for a one-goal victory against the Canadians.
David Vazquez’s shot in the 23rd minute struck the crossbar, putting Canada under early pressure against the Americans. Cruz Medina also came close to breaking the deadlock only two minutes later, but Canada goalkeeper Nathaniel Abraham denied the in-form San Jose Earthquakes attacker.
Abraham also denied Ezekiel Soto’s shot just before halftime, keeping the score level at 0-0 heading into halftime.
Figueroa came off the bench in the 61st minute and would have an instant impact only three minutes later. His header off a Medina corner kick beat an onrushing Abraham into the bottom-right corner.
Duran Ferree’s lone save of the match came at a crucial moment for the USMNT U-17’s, as the goalkeeper denied Erik Pop from tying things up in the 65th minute.
The Americans would hang on to book their spot in the quarterfinals, finishing 3-0-0 in group stage play and conceding only one goal in 270 minutes.
Thought the U-17s looked very good. Game not as close as the score suggests – USA were clearly the superior team. It was an enjoyable watch.