USA Youth: U-17 World Cup Preview

By Noah Davis

Who: U-17 United States Men's National Team vs. Spain, Malawi, and United Arab Emirates
What: Group E play, U-17 World Cup
Where: Oct. 26 and 29 at Sani Abacha Stadium; Nov. 2 at Gateway International Stadium
When: Oct. 26, 2 p.m. EST; Oct. 19, 11:00 a.m. EST; November 2, 10 a.m. EST
TV: ESPNU and ESPN360.com

Exactly a month after the United States Men's National U-20 squad kicked off their unsuccessful run at their age group World Cup, the U-17 team will take the pitch against Spain in Kano, Nigeria's Sani Abacha Stadium. For Wilmer Cabrera's talented side, the tournament represents a chance to show the world how far the Stars and Stripes have come as a soccer-playing nation. The Americans, who dominated play during the aborted U-17 CONCACAF Championship that doubled as a qualifier for the World Cup, will compete with La Roja for the top spot in Group E and should easily advance to their fourth straight knockout round.  

The missing threesome

One of the big pre-tournament storylines coming out of the American camp involved three players -- Sebastian Lletget, Charles Renken, and Joseph Gyau -- who didn't make the U.S. roster. While Renken is still recovering from a knee injury and Gyau might not be good enough to crack the Starting XI, the absence of West Ham's Lletget raises some eyebrows. He was a force during the qualifying cycle, scoring goals against Canada and Cuba while helping to anchor the central midfield. Brent Latham at Yanks Abroad thinks the 17-year-old didn't want to leave his club side and Cabrera has said he would only include players who were willing to join the team. Back in May, however, Lletget expressed some dissatisfaction with the U.S. youth system as well as a desire to play for Italy if they came calling. It remains to be seen if he ever suits up for the Red, White, and Blue again.  

Let's talk about who's here, shall we?

Even without the trio, the U.S roster boasts a wealth of talent. Jack McInerney netted five goals and assisted on three others during the American's three matches at the CONCACAF Championship in Tijuana. Stefan Jerome is another potent attacker, and the improvement of Victor Chavez and Andrew Craven helped push Gyau out the door. Midfield dynamo Luis Gil tallied a goal and three assists in just two matches in Mexico. At the back of the American formation stands imposing netminder Earl Edwards, who helped the USA allow less than a goal a game during the qualifying process. Team captain Perry Kitchen and Zachary Herold will keep the central defense intact as the U.S. looks to match its best finish ever, a 4th place showing during the 1999 tournament.  

And a bit about their opponents...

The toughest test for Cabrera's cohort comes in their first match against Spain, runners-up in the 2007 U-17 World Cup. The two squads are familiar with each other, having played a friendly in February. La Roja won with a stoppage time goal. After battling the Spaniards, the road gets easier for the Americans as they play a Malawi squad that's playing in its first ever FIFA tournament and only qualified after Zambia was disqualified from the U-17 African Championship. Although the U.S. features just 2-6-1 record against African teams in the tournament, they should post a victory in their second game. The same can be said of the final group match, as UAE has neither the athleticism nor the organization to contend with the Stars and Stripes for 90 minutes.  

Projected Starting Lineup

----------------Edwards---------------

Zavaleta--Herold--Kitchen--Polak

Shinsky---Duran---Gil---Martinez

-------McInerney-----Jerome-------

Prediction

United States 2-2 Spain
United States 2-0 Malawi
United States 1-0 United Arab Emirates

Roster By Position

GOALKEEPERS (3): Keith Cardona, Earl Edwards, Spencer Richey
DEFENDERS (6): Zachary Herold, Perry Kitchen, Boyd Okwuonu, Tyler Polak, Jared Watts, Eriq Zavaleta
MIDFIELDERS (6): Marlon Duran, Luis Gil, Carlos Martinez, William Packwood, Nick Palodichuk, Alex Shinsky
FORWARDS (6): Juan Agudelo, Victor Chavez, Andrew Craven, Stefan Jerome, Jack McInerney, Dominick Sarle  

Noah Davis covers the United States National Team for Goal.com.

Visit the U.S. national team page on Goal.com for more