The U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team looks to rebound from its opening loss when it faces France on Monday, June 24, in the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Istanbul, Turkey. The USA’s second Group A game at Ali Sami Yen Arena kicks off at 6 p.m. local (11 a.m. ET) and will be broadcast live on ESPN2, WatchESPN and Univision Deportes.
“We realize we’re playing against great players and we have to make them uncomfortable,” U-20 MNT head coach Tab Ramos said of France. “At the same time, we have to figure out when we make them uncomfortable and we’re getting some turnovers how we can cash in on those. Certainly we have all the goals that other teams have (in this tournament), and we just have to go a little bit at a time.”
GROUP A ROUNDUP: The U.S. is coming off a 4-1 loss to Spain on Friday, June 21. Despite the USA’s strong possession in the first half, France was able to capitalize on its scoring chances to build a 3-0 lead. Jese scored two first-half goals and Gerard Deulofeu had a goal in each half. Trailing 4-0, U.S. midfielder Luis Gil got his side on the score sheet with a 77th-minute strike buried in the upper right corner. France opened the tournament with a 3-1 victory against Ghana. Following a scoreless first half, France rattled off three goals in a 14-minute span. Geoffrey Kondogbia, Yaya Sanogo and Jean Christophe Bahebeck each tallied a goal to take a 3-0 lead before conceding a Ghanaian goal by Yiadom Boakye in the closing minutes.
The U.S. lost the tournament opener for the sixth time in its FIFA World Youth Championship and FIFA U-20 World Cup history. Only once in its previous five first-game tournament losses has the U.S. advanced through to the group stage – the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship, when the USA dropped a 1-0 decision to China PR but won and tied its next matches against Chile and Ukraine, respectively, to advance to the Round of 16.
The USA has won four times following a first-game tournament loss.
The four goals allowed to Spain ties for the most ever by the U.S. in a World Youth Championship or U-20 World Cup game. The other instance came in the USA’s first participation in the 1981 FIFA World Youth Championship. The U.S. lost 4-0 to Poland on Oct. 8 and was eliminated in the group stage.
The U-20 MNT is 18-25-6 all-time in FIFA World Youth Championship and FIFA U-20 World Cup competition.
2013 FIFA U-20 WORLD CUP GROUP A STANDINGS
Team
GP
W
L
T
GF
GA
GD
Pts.
Spain
1
1
0
0
4
1
+3
3
France
1
1
0
0
3
1
+2
3
Ghana
1
0
1
0
1
3
-2
0
USA
1
0
1
0
1
4
-3
0
June 21
France 3, Ghana 1
Spain 4, USA 1
June 24
France vs. USA
Spain vs. Ghana
June 27
Spain vs. France
Ghana vs. USA
U.S. U-20 MNT 2013 FIFA U-20 WORLD CUP LEADERS
Goals: 1. Luis Gil (1)
Assists: 1. Wil Trapp (1)
Minutes played: 1. Cody Cropper, Luis Gil, Benji Joya, Juan Pablo Ocegueda, Caleb Stanko, Javan Torre, Wil Trapp and DeAndre Yedlin (90); 9. Jose Villarreal (71), 10. Danny Garcia (55)
Wins: –
For full USA stats at the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup, visit ussoccer.com .
ROSTER BY POSITION – DETAILED ROSTER
GOALKEEPERS (3) : 1-Cody Cropper (Southampton FC; Maple Grove, Minn.), 12-Kendall McIntosh (Santa Clara; Santa Rosa, Calif.), 21-Zach Steffen (FC DELCO; Downington, Pa.)
DEFENDERS (7) : 13-Eric Miller (Creighton; Woodbury, Minn.), 3-Juan Pablo Ocegueda (Guadalajara; Riverside, Calif.), 5-Shane O’Neill (Colorado Rapids; Boulder, Colo.), 18-Oscar Sorto (LA Galaxy; Los Angeles, Calif.), 4-Caleb Stanko (SC Freiburg; Holly, Mich.), 14-Javan Torre (UCLA; Santa Monica, Calif.), 2-DeAndre Yedlin (Seattle Sounders; Seattle, Wash.)
MIDFIELDERS (5) : 16-Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas; Plano, Texas), 10-Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake; Garden Grove, Calif.), 8-Benji Joya (Santos Laguna; San Jose, Calif.), 15-Mikey Lopez (Sporting Kansas City; Mission, Texas), 6-Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew; Gahanna, Ohio)
FORWARDS (6) : 20-Daniel Cuevas (Santos Laguna; Sacramento, Calif.), 17-Danny Garcia (FC Dallas; Dallas, Texas), 7-Victor Pineda (Chicago Fire; Bolingbrook, Ill.), 19-Alonso Hernandez (C.F. Monterrey; El Paso, Texas), 9-Mario Rodriguez (1. FC Kaiserslautern; North Hollywood, Calif.), 11-Jose Villarreal (LA Galaxy; Inglewood, Calif.)
2013 FIFA U-20 WORLD CUP GROUP PAIRINGS AND SCHEDULE
Group A
Date
Matchup
Time/Result (local/ET)
TV
Arena
June 21
France vs. Ghana
3-1
ESPN3, Univision Deportes
Ali Sami Yen Arena;
Istanbul
June 21
USA vs. Spain
1-4
ESPN2, WatchESPN, Univision Deportes
Ali Sami Yen Arena;
Istanbul
June 24
France vs. USA
6 p.m. / 11 a.m. ET
ESPN2, WatchESPN, Univision Deportes
Ali Sami Yen Arena ;
Istanbul
June 24
Spain vs. Ghana
9 p.m. / 2 p.m. ET
ESPNU, WatchESPN, Univision Deportes
Ali Sami Yen Arena;
Istanbul
June 27
Spain vs. France
8 p.m. / 1 p.m. ET
WatchESPN (live), ESPNU (at 7 p.m. ET)
Ali Sami Yen Arena;
Istanbul
June 27
Ghana vs. USA
8 p.m. / 1 p.m. ET
ESPNU, WatchESPN
Kadir Has Stadium; Kayseri
U.S. U-20 MNT 2013 RESULTS
Date
Opponent
Result/
Time (ET)
U.S. goal scorers
Venue
Jan. 19
Panama
2-2 T
Cuevas, Allen
Estadio Olímpico; Puebla, Mexico
Jan. 21
Panama
1-2 L
Villarreal (PK)
La Noria FC; Puebla, Mexico
Feb. 18^
Haiti
2-1 W
Gil (PK), Cuevas
Estadio Olímpico; Puebla, Mexico
Feb. 22^
Costa Rica
1-0 W
Villarreal
Estadio Olímpico; Puebla, Mexico
Feb. 26^
Canada
4-2 W
Gil, Villarreal (2), Trapp
Estadio Olímpico; Puebla, Mexico
March 1^
Cuba
2-0 W
Rodriguez, Cuevas
Estadio Cuauhtémoc; Puebla, Mexico
March 3^
Mexico
1-3 L (ot)
Joya (PK)
Estadio Cuauhtémoc; Puebla, Mexico
May 28**
France
1-4 L
Joya
Stade Léo Lagrange; Toulon, France
May 30**
Colombia
1-2 L
Garcia
Stade des Costieres, Nimes, France
June 1**
Congo DR
1-0 W
Cuevas
Stade du Ray; Nice, France
June 5**
Korea Republic
0-1 L
–
Stade Louis Hon; Saint-Raphael, France
June 14
Portugal
3-1 W
Villarreal, O’Neill, Hernandez
Municipal Stadium; Vila Real Santo Antonio, Portugal
June 21*
Spain
1-4 L
Gil
Ali Sami Yen Arena; Istanbul, Turkey
*2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup
^CONCACAF U-20 Championship
**Toulon Tournament (games featured 40-minute halves)
Visit ussoccer.com for the full FIFA U-20 World Cup group standings and results
ROSTER NOTES
Midfielder Luis Gil scored his third goal of the year and fifth career U-20 MNT goal with his tally against Spain in the opening 4-1 loss at the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup on June 21. Gil is tied with Daniel Cuevas for second on the team in goals this year.
Jose Villarreal is the leading scorer among this U.S. U-20 group with eight career goals in 12 U-20 MNT matches. He also leads the squad with five goals in 2013 and had a two-goal performance to pace the U.S. to a 4-2 victory against Canada in the quarterfinals of the 2013 CONCACAF U-20 Championship to officially qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey.
Midfielder Wil Trapp notched his first assist this year in setting up Gil’s goal against Spain. Trapp leads the team having played in all 13 games this year with 12 starts and 1,045 minutes.
Defender Shane O’Neill returns after serving a red card suspension, which he was issued in overtime of the USA’s 3-1 loss to Mexico in the final of the 2013 CONCACAF U-20 Championship on March 3 in Puebla, Mexico.
Ten players on the U-20 World Cup roster play professionally for Major League Soccer teams. Most recently, Danny Garcia signed a homegrown contract with FC Dallas on June 18, 2013. Other MLS ties include Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas), Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake), Mikey Lopez (Sporting Kansas City), O’Neill (Colorado Rapids), Victor Pineda (Chicago Fire), Oscar Sorto (LA Galaxy), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew), Villarreal (LA Galaxy) and DeAndre Yedlin (Seattle Sounders).
Seventeen players have ties to the U.S. Soccer Development Academy, including three Academy players who have competed during the 2012-13 season: Acosta (FC Dallas), Sorto (LA Galaxy) and goalkeeper Zach Steffen (FC DELCO).
Six players on this U-20 World Cup roster have won Development Academy titles: Acosta and Garcia of FC Dallas’ 2011-12 FC Dallas U-17/18 team; Javan Torre and Villarreal of the 2010-11 Pateadores U-17/18 team; Pineda with the 2009-10 Chicago Fire U-15/16 squad; and Caleb Stanko for the 2009-10 Vardar U-17/18 team.
Four players have represented the U.S. in a World Cup. Gil was a member of the USA’s 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup team, while Kendall McIntosh, Rodriguez and Acosta played for the 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup squad.
CAUTION SITUATION
Four U.S. players were issued yellow cards in the team’s 4-1 loss to Spain on June 21: Jose Villarreal, Benji Joya, Juan Pablo Ocegueda and Mikey Lopez. Should any of those players pick up a yellow card against France, they would be ineligible for the third Group A game against Ghana on Thursday, June 27.
France’s Paul Pogba was shown a yellow card in his team’s 3-1 win against Ghana on June 21.
Single yellow card infractions expire after the quarterfinal stage.
USA’S U-20 WORLD CUP HISTORY
The 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup marks the USA’s 13th appearance in this tournament. ( 13 for ’13: A Retrospective Look at the USA’s U-20 World Cup History )
The U.S. has advanced through the group stage of the tournament eight times.
In 1981, the USA debuted in the FIFA World Youth Championship, playing 1981 runner-up Qatar to a 1-1 draw but dropping its other games to Uruguay and Poland. Mark Devey became the first U.S. player to score in the tournament during the Qatar draw on Oct. 6.
Thirty years ago, current U-20 MNT head coach Tab Ramos and U-20 assistant coach Hugo Perez suited up for the U.S. in the 1983 FIFA World Youth Championship. Perez scored one of the U.S. goals during the team’s opening 3-2 loss to Uruguay on June 3. Ramos was only 16 years old in that competition.
The U.S. earned its most lopsided victory in a FIFA World Youth Championship or FIFA U-20 World Cup against Turkey on March 7, 1993, a 6-0 victory in Group C play. Chris Faklaris scored three goals, Miles Joseph added two and Imad Baba opened the scoring.
In the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship, Taylor Twellman set a U.S. record with four goals in the tournament. He scored two goals during a 3-1 victory against Cameroon on April 11, followed by another brace during a 3-2 loss to eventual tournament winner Spain in the Round of 16.
Twellman, Eddie Johnson (2003) and Jozy Altidore (2007) are tied for the most goals scored in a U-20 World Cup or World Youth Championship with four apiece.
The USA’s 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship team posted three shutouts in Group D play to win that stage of the tournament in the Netherlands. Goalkeeper Quentin Westberg manned the net for those three clean sheets.
The best offensive performance in the FIFA U-20 World Cup came in 2007, when the USA outscored its opponents 12-6 for the tournament and won Group D. Altidore had four tallies, including two goals during a 2-1 victory against Brazil on July 6.
HOW U.S. ADVANCED TO TURKEY: The U.S. U-20 MNT grew throughout the CONCACAF U-20 Championship in Puebla, Mexico, culminating with an impressive second-place showing at the tournament. The team had a somewhat sluggish start to the tournament in holding off Haiti for a 2-1 victory in the Group A opener on Feb. 18, but the USA responded with a 1-0 victory against Costa Rica on Feb. 22 to win the group and advance to the all-important quarterfinals as the four CONCACAF semifinalists moved on to the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup. That set the stage for a Feb. 26 match against its neighbor to the north, Canada, and the U.S. offense scored four goals in a 25-minute span en route to a 4-2 victory and a spot in the World Cup in Turkey. With the main task accomplished, several players returned to their respective professional club teams, but the U-20s kept the run going with a 2-0 victory against Cuba in the March 1 semifinal. The USA-Mexico final on March 3 drew more than 40,000 spectators at Estadio Cuauhtemoc, and despite falling down a goal early, the U.S. played host Mexico to a 1-1 score through regulation. Benji Joya scored a clutch penalty kick in the 10th minute – the only goal that Mexico allowed throughout this year’s CONCACAF U-20 Championship. However, Mexico scored two overtime goals and captured the title with a 3-1 victory.
2013 U-20 WORLD CUP FIELD: The 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup features 24 teams (full schedule): Turkey automatically qualified as the host and plays alongside six fellow UEFA qualifiers in Croatia, England, France, Greece, Portugal and Spain. Four teams qualified from CONCACAF – the USA, Cuba, El Salvador and Mexico. The remainder of the field features four CONMEBOL (South America) nations in Chile, Colombia, Paraguay and Uruguay; four Asian teams in Australia, Iraq, Korea Republic (South Korea) and Uzbekistan; African nations Egypt, Ghana, Mali and Nigeria; and Oceania’s New Zealand. The tournament field has some noteworthy changes from the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia. Fourteen of the 2011 U-20 World Cup teams are returning to this year’s event, but two regular fixtures in the tournament did not advance to Turkey. Defending U-20 champion Brazil, a five-time winner of the event, and six-time U-20 World Cup champion Argentina are missing from the field. Those two countries by far are the most successful as Portugal (1989 and 1991 champion) is the only other country to win more than one title.
U.S. U-20 MNT vs. FRANCE
The U.S. U-20 MNT has never faced France in a FIFA World Youth Championship or FIFA U-20 World Cup.
In preparation for the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup, the USA faced France’s U-21 MNT to open the 2013 Toulon Tournament on May 28. France won the match 4-1, with Benji Joya scoring the lone goal for the U.S. None of the France players from that match are on the U-20 World Cup roster.
TAB RAMOS FACT FILE: Tab Ramos was named head coach of the U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team in October of 2011. As a former U.S. National Team midfielder and U-20 MNT assistant and interim head coach, Ramos brings a wealth of experience to the U.S. National Team program. Here are some of his accomplishments as both a coach and player:
Ramos has been a member of the U.S. Soccer Federation Technical Board since 2006, and after receiving his “A” coaching license in 2007, became the U.S. U-20 MNT assistant coach two years later. Ramos served as interim head coach in late 2011, guiding the U-20 Men through training camp and two friendlies in France.
Ramos’s first coaching experience came with the New Jersey Soccer Academy (NJSA 04), a U.S. Soccer Development Academy club, which he founded in 2004. He is currently the Executive Director of the program and has won four New Jersey state championships and a national championship, the only U.S. Youth Soccer National Championship for a N.J. boys’ club in more than two decades.
Ramos first earned international playing experience with the U-20 Men when he scored two goals for the U.S. in FIFA U-20 World Cup qualifying. He played for the U.S. in the 1983 U-20 World Cup and was also a member of the U.S. team that competed in the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea.
His first appearance with the full team came on Jan. 10, 1988, against Guatemala, and Ramos went on to play in the 1990 World Cup, where his performance earned him the title of U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year. By the time he retired from international duty in 2000, Ramos had played in three World Cups, earned 81 caps and scored eight goals, becoming the only U.S. player to score at least one World Cup qualifying goal in three different decades.
A 2001 graduate of North Carolina State University, Ramos studied foreign language and literature while becoming a three-time All-American in his four years playing for the school’s men’s soccer team. He joined American Soccer League side New Jersey Eagles in 1998 before moving to fellow ASL club Miami Sharks the next season.
In 1990, Ramos had a contract to play exclusively for the U.S. MNT as it prepared for the 1990 World Cup, but Spanish Second Division club Figueres took him on loan later that year, before eventually signing him. Ramos was sold to Real Betis in 1992 and helped the team win promotion to La Liga, but a skull fracture suffered in the 1994 World Cup kept him from making any La Liga appearances.
Ramos was the first player signed to Major League Soccer in 1995 (Centennial 100 Moments), and before being allocated to the New York/New Jersey MetroStars, MLS loaned him to UANL Tigres in Mexico, where his team was 1996 Mexico Cup champion. In his seven seasons with the MetroStars, Ramos tallied eight goals and 36 assists before retiring in 2002.
IN FOCUS: FRANCE
French Football Federation
(Fédération Française de Football)
Founded: 1919 (Joined FIFA in 1907)
Head Coach: Pierre Mankowski
Best FIFA U-20 World Cup Finish: Fourth place (2011)
FRANCE UPDATE
France is coming off its best showing at the FIFA U-20 World Cup, advancing to the semifinal round of the 2011 tournament. France took second in Group A with a 2-1-0 record, garnered wins against Ecuador and Nigeria in the round of 16 and quarterfinals, respectively, but fell to eventual runner-up Portugal in the semifinals.
The 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup is France’s fifth appearance in the tournament.
France advanced to the semifinals of the 2012 UEFA Under-19 Championship –Europe’s U-20 World Cup qualifying competition – to qualify for Turkey.
France took second in Group B with a 2-1-0 record and then ran into Spain in the semifinal on July 12, 2012. After a 3-3 draw through regulation and extra time, Spain earned the victory with a 4-2 shootout decision. Samuel Umtiti had two goals in that exciting semifinal against Spain, scoring an equalizer in second-half stoppage time.
FRANCE ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (3): 1-Alphonse Areola (Paris Saint-Germain), 16-Maxime Dupe (FC Nantes), 21-Paul Charruau (Valenciennes)
DEFENDERS (8): 2-Dimitri Foulquier (Stade Rennais), 3-Pierre Yves Polomat (AS Saint-Etienne), 4-Kurt Zouma (AS Saint-Etienne), 5-Samuel Umtiti (Olympique Lyonnais), 12-Lucas Digne (LOSC Lille), 14-Mouhamadou Sarr (Olympique Lyonnais), 18-Youssouf Sabaly (Paris Saint-Germain), 19-Christopher Jullien (AJ Auxerre)
MIDFIELDERS (5): 6-Paul Pogba (Juventus), 8-Geoffrey Kondogbia (Sevilla), 10-Axel Ngando (Stade Rennais), 13-Mario Lemina (FC Lorient), 17-Jordan Veretout (FC Nantes)
FORWARDS (5): 7-Thibaut Vion (FC Porto), 9-Yaya Sanogo (AJ Auxerre), 11-Jean Christophe Bahebeck (ES Troyes), 15-Alexy Bosetti (OGC Nice), 20-Florian Thauvin (SC Bastia)
LAST TIME
On the field for USA:
June 21, 2013 – Ali Sami Yen Arena – Istanbul, Turkey
2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup – Group A
USA 1 Jese 5, 44; Gerard Deulofeu 42, 61
ESP 4 Luis Gil 77
Lineups:
USA: 1-Cody Cropper; 2-DeAndre Yedlin, 4-Caleb Stanko (capt.), 14-Javan Torre, 3-Juan Pablo Ocegueda; 8-Benji Joya, 6-Wil Trapp; 17-Danny Garcia (20-Daniel Cuevas, 56), 10-Luis Gil, 11-Jose Villarreal (15-Mikey Lopez, 72); 19-Alonso Hernandez (9-Mario Rodriguez, 46)
Subs Not Used: 7-Victor Pineda, 12-Kendall McIntosh, 13-Eric Miller, 16-Kellyn Acosta, 18-Oscar Sorto, 21-Zack Steffen
Unavailable (red card suspension): 5-Shane O’Neill
Head Coach: Tab Ramos
ESP: 1-Daniel Sotres; 2-Javier Manquillo, 4-Derik (12-Diego Llorente, 74), 5-Israel Puerto, 6-Jose Campana (capt.) (7-Ruben, 70), 8-Suso, 10-Jese (9-Paco Alcacer, 76), 11-Juan Bernat, 15-Saul, 16-Oliver, 17-Gerard Deulofeu
Subs Not Used: 3-Jose Luis Gaya, 13-Adrian Ortola, 14-Ager Aketxe, 18-Denis Suarez, 19-Jairo, 20-Jonatan Otto, 21-Ruben Yanez
Head Coach: Julen Lopetegui