The U.S. U-20 National Team made a good run of it in the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup in South Korea, but ultimately, red-hot Venezuela proved too much against the American kids in the Quarterfinal Round and the Stars-and-Stripes had to settle for an early exit on Sunday morning.
With five players from Real Salt Lake’s Academy represented on the roster, the attention of the RSL staffs at all levels was on Korea, as Brooks Lennon, Justen Glad, Danilo Acosta, Sebastian Saucedo and Aaron Herrera were central figures for U.S. U-20 coach Tab Ramos.
With high expectations, Lennon proved equal to the task as one of the leaders in the attack, netting two goals and three assists while starting all five matches in the World Cup. Acosta started all five matches at left back as well. Herrera started the first three matches, but was replaced in the lineup once Glad returned to health after suffering a knee injury in the final match of the CONCACAF Championships back in March. Glad started in both knockout round matches, going the distance against New Zealand and Venezuela and finishing the tournament with one goal and one assist. Saucedo started one match and finished with an assist against New Zealand to round out RSL’s representation in the tournament.
RSL’s four players – Acosta, Glad, Lennon and Saucedo – will return to Sandy where they will continue to compete for playing time after the grueling tournament. Herrera is entering his junior season at the University of New Mexico.
Below are the statistics from RSL’s five players in the U-20 World Cup.
Acosta 5 GP, 5 GS, 466 min.
Glad 4 GP, 2 GS, 261 min., 1 G, 1 A
Lennon 5 GP, 5 GS, 469 min., 2 G, 3 A
Saucedo 3 GP, 1 GS, 61 min., 1 A
Herrera 3 GP, 3 GS, 270 min.
