Young Yanks Beat Jamaica 2-0 As Gall Nails Penalties

JOB DONE. FOR NOW.

Badly needing a win to salvage its already-precarious World Cup qualification campaign, the United States under-20 men’s national team secured a vital three points in a 2-0 win over tournament hosts Jamaica on Sunday evening. Two penalty kicks from Romain Gall, the tournament’s top scorer, powered the Yanks to a less-than-convincing win, an Tab Ramos’ team now awaits a must-not-lose match against Trinidad and Tobago to close out group play on Wednesday.

Gall converted the first of his two spot kick tries in the 30th minute and put the final result beyond doubt 20 minutes before the final whistle.

The win leaves the Americans with seven points, but does not provide an outright advantage in preparation for Wednesday’s matchup with Trinidad and Tobago (5:30pm ET, Fox Sports 2). With the first tie-breaker being head-to-head results, the Yanks must pick up at least one point to secure third place in Group A. With four points, tie-breaker scenarios would mean Trinidad and Tobago could still advance with a win over the Americans.

“The team made a great effort and I’m very happy with the performance,” Ramos said after the match. “I wish that with all the chances we create that we could score a few more goals and put games away early. But overall this was a very difficult match. Obviously the home team, when they’re on the verge of getting eliminated, they’re always very tough. So it was a difficult match and I’m glad that we came out on top.”

Fresh off a dominant 8-0 win over Aruba, Ramos deployed a similar lineup and tactical approach against the Reggae Boyz on Sunday, utilizing the tidy midfield combination of Emerson Hyndman and Russell Canouse with Gall and Tommy Thompson once again on the wing. Shaq Moore and Matt Miazga likewise returned to their familiar roles on the backline, after starting on the bench against Aruba.

Despite the continuity, finishing continued to haunt the Americans for a majority of the match, with chances going to waste off of nearly every American attacker. Gall and Hyndman both had strikes saved inside the opening 20 minutes—to go along with several promising movements being squandered by a poor final pass. With the U.S. controlling the tempo of the match, chances came frequently and the contest looked like a carbon copy of the opening match against Guatemala that eventually led to a draw.

“We fought hard together,” Canouse said. “We got the three points, which were important, and I think we can use this moving into the next game—and hopefully the next two games. The team worked well defensively, and offensively we countered quickly, and the ref called two penalties that we were able to convert.

“Hopefully we can keep the momentum going into the next game.”

The first penalty came off an inspired pass from Gall, who threaded a through ball past four Jamaican defenders to the feet of Thompson who was felled with a WWF-style clothesline by defender Allando Brown for the penalty. Gall calmly converted with a stutter-step penalty kick.

Since Brown was the last defender on the play, he should have received a red card. But referee Marlon Mejia only gave the defender a yellow, infuriating the U.S. bench.

In the 67th minute, another clear red card was ignored when Jamaican goalkeeper Nicholas Nelson leveled Bradford Jameison after the Los Angeles Galaxy striker intercepted a poor back pass. Jamieson spent several minutes sprawled out on the exquisitely poor turf of the Montego Bay Sports Complex—where the final will be played—before Gall stepped and delivered his second PK on the contest.

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