The US Under-20 men’s national team learned their group-stage fate for the upcoming U-20 World Cup in South Korea on Wednesday. And advancing to the knockout round won't be easy, that's for sure.
The Americans were drawn into Group F with Ecuador, Senegal and Saudi Arabia. They will open against Ecuador on May 22, followed by Senegal on May 25 and Saudi Arabia on May 28. The first two matches will be played in Incheon, while the final group stage match will be played in Daejeon.
"We are proud to have earned a group top seed for the 2017 U-20 World Cup,” US U-20 head coach Tab Ramos said in a statement released by US Soccer. “As CONCACAF champions and 2015 U-20 World Cup quarterfinalists, we have put ourselves in a great position for this tournament. Our youth national team program has been on an upward trend and we need to continue to push forward. This was a difficult draw, but we are ready for the challenge. Our plan is to treat each game like a final, so our preparation now shifts to Ecuador."
Ecuador enter the tournament after finishing 2nd at the 2017 South American U-20 Championship. They were led by forward Bryan Cabezas, who plays for Serie A side Atalanta. Saudi Arabia finished as runners-up in the 2016 AFC U-19 Championship, losing in the final to winners Japan on penalties. Senegal finished second at the 2017 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations, falling to Zambia in the final.
The US qualified for the U-20 World Cup by winning the CONCACAF U-20 Championship earlier this month, their first time winning the tournament. The title netted the US a group top seed at the U-20 World Cup, which will run from May 20-June 11 and includes six groups of four teams, with the top two teams from each group and the four best third-place finishers advancing to the Knockout Stage.
Eleven MLS players suited up for the US in qualifying: defenders Justen Glad (Real Salt Lake), Erik Palmer-Brown (Sporting Kansas City), Tommy Redding (Orlando City) and Auston Trusty (Philadelphia Union), midfielders Danny Acosta (Real Salt Lake), Tyler Adams (New York Red Bulls), Coy Craft (FC Dallas), Jonathan Lewis (New York City FC) and Sebastian Saucedo (Real Salt Lake) and forwards Jeremy Ebobisse (Portland Timbers) and Brooks Lennon (Real Salt Lake). Glad, Palmer-Brown and Lennon all earned CONCACAF U-20 Championship Best XI honors, with Palmer-Brown earning the Golden Ball award as the best player at the tournament.
The US had a successful run at the last U-20 World Cup in 2015, finishing second in their group of hosts New Zealand, Ukraine and Myanmar and defeating Colombia in the Round of 16 before losing to eventual champions Serbia in a shootout following a scoreless draw in the quarterfinals.
2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup:
Group A: Korea Republic (host), Guinea, Argentina, England
Group B: Venezuela, Germany, Vanuatu, Mexico
Group C: Zambia, Portugal, Iran, Costa Rica
Group D: South Africa, Japan, Italy, Uruguay
Group E: France, Honduras, Vietnam, New Zealand
Group F: Ecuador, USA, Saudi Arabia, Senegal
US U-20 Group F Schedule:
May 22, 4 am ET: Ecuador vs. USA; Incheon Stadium, Incheon
May 25, 7 am ET: Senegal vs. USA; Incheon Stadium, Incheon
May 28, 5 am ET: USA vs. Saudi Arabia; Daejeon World Cup Stadium, Daejeon
