The United States U-17 national team fell to Germany in the Round of 16 after a hard-fought 3-2 result Tuesday morning. Germany’s Bilal Yalcinkaya scored an 87th-minute winner to knock the Americans out of the competition.
The U.S. used goals from two MLS NEXT Pro players earlier in the match from Columbus Crew 2’s Taha Habroune and Philadelphia Union II’s David Vazquez, but it wasn't enough to keep their strong campaign alive.
In the 24th minute, Habroune found the net after collecting the rebound of a blocked shot to equalize after Germany opened the scoring in the 14th minute.
Germany scored again to lead 2-1 at halftime, but Vazquez found an answer 20 minutes after entering the match as a substitute. Vazquez drove a free kick low into the opposite side netting to score in the 80th minute.
MLS NEXT Pro featured prominently in the Americans’ U-17 World Cup campaign, with all but one U.S. goal scored by league regulars.
Crown Legacy FC’s Nimfasha Berchimas will go down as one of the most memorable players to feature in the U-17 World Cup campaign. Berchimas, the youngest player on the U.S. team, scored three goals. He became the youngest player to score for the U.S. in a U-17 World Cup since Freddy Adu in 2003.
The U.S. U-17 group can take confidence from another qualification to the knockout stage. The Americans have made the knockout stage in nine of the previous 17 tournaments.
