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United States U-20 national team was eliminated by Ecuador 2-1 in U-20 World Cup quarter-final at Gdynia Stadium in Gdynia, Poland . Tab Ramos's team failed to beat two goals in the first half and repeat the magic of the previous round's win over France.
The starting lineup had some changes, with David Ochoa taking the place of Brady Scott at goalkeeper. Alex Mendez and Chris Durkin also made their return to the midfield. The first half was fast and the referee allowed the physical football counter-attacker. Both teams had their chances, but it was Ecuador who hit first.
The defending South American champions took advantage in the 30th minute, thanks to a superb long-term effort from José Cifuentes. The América de Quito striker infiltrated the left wing and managed to shoot Ochoa.
The United States would even score six minutes later. Timothy Weah jumped on a deflected corner and skillfully stole the ball into the goal. It was the second goal of the tournament for the Paris Saint-Germain striker.
Ecuador regained the advantage in the 43rd minute. Jhon Espinoza redirected the pass centered on Leonardo Campana. The call was originally offside, but it was canceled by the video assistant referee who showed the scorer before the last defender but behind the ball.
Both teams insisted during the second half, but none of them could provide the necessary quality in the last third. The United States continued to send players forward and make attack-oriented substitutions, but the final whistle sounded, signaling the premature end of their World Cup dreams.
Ecuador advance to the semi-finals and face South Korea's winner against Senegal on Tuesday (June 11th) in Lublin. The United States is returning home, after being moved in the previous round, but below expectations. There may have been unfulfilled potential for this group because of the line-up choices and the decision to keep Joshua Sargent out of the competition despite his exclusion from the Gold Cup. In the end, the United States came up against a very strong Ecuadorian team that could most likely lift the cup.
The U-20 World Cup is one of the biggest milestones for young players to demonstrate their abilities. The true judgment of the performance of the players will thus be revealed during the next transfer windows. Some American players – Weah, Sebastian Soto and Paxton Pomykal – have shown their abilities and would make attractive targets for transfer, but others have not met their expectations and will return to their clubs by missing the missed opportunity .
The next U-20 World Cup will take place in just two years, which means that some of the players on this team could come back with reinforcements from the incredible under-17 team. Ramos has led the team since 2011 and, despite recurring rumors from professional clubs, it would probably be best served to continue guiding this age group.
It was the third appearance in the quarter-finals of the U-20, but they once again moved away, having neither equaled nor exceeded their best result (fourth place in 1989). Nevertheless, there is something to be optimistic about this group of players. Senior national team manager Gregg Berhalter may start integrating some of the players in the near future or later, once their development is advanced, but that will be sooner. This is the well-known history of American football: the talented players did not win the Cup, but showed just enough so that the quality can feed the slot machine for the years to come.
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