Canada have booked their spot in the knock-out phase of the 2019 Concacaf Men’s Under-17 Championship after a 4:0 win over Barbados. After back-to-back wins and six points to finish second in Group F, Canada will next face Curaçao in a Round of 16 match on Thursday 9 May.
Canada won 4:2 over Guatemala on Saturday and 4:0 over Barbados on Monday after an initial 2:3 loss to USA last Thursday. USA won the group perfect with nine points while Canada finished second with six points.
“We are certainly pleased as we met our objective and secured top-two in the group phase,” said Andrew Olivieri, Men’s EXCEL U-14 to U-17 Program Director. “We are on track and the boys have been progressing throughout the three games. We need these games to learn from experience, from managing the different types of matches to managing the different types of oppositions.”
Canada scored 10 goals across three matches and finished the group phase with a clean sheet against Barbados. All 20 players were featured across the three matches. Canada’s goals were scored by Jérémie Omeonga (two), Jacen Russell-Rowe (two), Jayden Nelson (three), Kamron Habibullah (two), and an own goal by Barbados.
“After those first two matches, we knew it was time that we needed a clean sheet and we wanted to make sure we kept things tight at the back,” said Olivieri. “I thought we controlled the match, we were quite wise, we were able to keep the ball, and keep the pressure off of us.”
Road to the FIFA U-17 World Cup 2019
The 2019 Concacaf Men’s Under-17 Championship runs 1-16 May in Bradenton, FL, USA. From the group stage, 12 of 16 nations will advance to the Round of 16 along with four previously-qualified nations through March and April qualifying stages. The Round of 16 matches are 8-9 May followed by the Quarter-finals on 12 May, the Semi-finals on 14 May, and the Championship Final on 16 May.
The four nations that win their Concacaf Quarter-finals match on 12 May will also qualify for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Brazil 2019, to be played later this year.
“The Concacaf Men’s Under-17 Championship is an exciting next step to the NEX-PRO integration strategies we have launched with our MLS academies, but also represents the type of pinnacle event where success in meaningful matches will put us among Concacaf’s top nations,” said Andrew Olivieri, Men’s EXCEL U-14 to U-17 Program Director. “Knowing how to navigate tournament play is integral to your success on the international stage and these events are critical to a youth player’s development. Qualifying for the FIFA U-17 World Cup will allow us to accelerate the development for the players in this age group.”
. Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Youth Teams have won two CONCACAF titles: both the 1986 and 1996 CONCACAF Men’s Youth Championships. Canada have qualified for eight editions of the FIFA U-20 World Cup and six editions of the FIFA U-17 World Cup.
