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26 février 2017
CONCACAF U20 : Costa Rica qualified for the next round, Mexico extend their winning run
Twelve nations from North America, Central America and the Caribbean region are currently taking part in the CONCACAF U20 which is held in Costa Rica from 18 February to 5 March. During the Matchday 3, Costa Rica earned a narrow win to secure their spot for the next round while Mexico claimed a third win in a row.
Group A : Mexico 9 pts, Honduras 6 pts, Canada 3 pts, Antigua-and-Barbuda 0 pt.Mexico claimed a 1-0 win over Honduras to finish atop of the group. The Hondurans were close to take the lead in the first half but Rembrandt Florres missed a penalty. Finally, Ronaldo Cisneros scored the winner for Mexico in the second half with a perfect header. The Santos Laguna striker is the tournament’s top scorer with 5 goals.
Few hours later, Canada beat Antigua-and-Barbuda (2-0) thanks to goals from Kristopher Twardek and Shaan Hundal.
Group B : Panama 9 pts, United States 6 pts, Haïti 3 pts, Saint-Kitts-and-Nevis 0 pt.
Panama maintained a perfect record as they earned their third successive win against Haiti (3-1). Ricardo Avila netted two penalties while Leandro Avila added another goal with two minutes remaining. Jonel Desire got his name on the scoresheet too for Haiti. It should be noted that the Caribbean side ended the game with 8 men after the dismissals of Yvenet Noel, Stevenson Guillaume and Ronando Damus !
In the other game, United Stated easily beat de Saint-Kitts-et-Nevis (4-1). After his treble in the previous game, Brooks Lennon distinguished himself as he scored the opener. Then, Sebastian Saucedo netted a brace and Jonathan Lewis scored too in the first half. Romario Martin reduced the deficit Saint-Kitts-et-Nevis.
Group C : Salvador 6 pts (+2), Costa Rica 6 pts (+1), Trinidad-and-Tobago 4 pts, Bermuda 1 pt,
Already qualified for the next round, Salvador were beaten by Trinidad-and-Tobago (1-2). Jabari Mtichell scored the opening goal after a fine solo run. Few minutes later, Jose Contreras scored the equalizer but Katho St-Hilaire came off the bench to score the winning goal with 18 minutes remaining.
Costa Rica were under pressure as they needed a win to secure a spot for the next round. The hosts eventually claimed a 2-1 win over Bermuda. The Bermudians took the lead early thanks to Oneko Lowe but the Costa Ricans equalized before the half-time as Tehvan Tyrell scored an unlucky own goal. In the second half, Randall Leal netted the winner for the hosts with a shot from close-range.
Teams qualified for the next round : Mexico, Honduras, Panama, United States, Salvador and Costa Rica
REMINDER : the top four teams of the final tournament will qualify for the 2017 FIFA U20 World Cup
Amayes Brahmi - Follow @AmayesB
Credits Photo : CONCACAF
