6915_isi_usu20s_usmntu20sw060515126 Shane Wenzlick/Photosport.co.nz/isiphotos.com
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U.S. U-20s Face Colombia in Do or Die World Cup Match

A victory early Wednesday over Colombia will send the United States under-20 team to the World Cup quarterfinals. A loss, on the other hand, would be a major disappointment.
BY Josh Deaver Posted
June 09, 2015
7:30 PM

UNDER HEAD COACH CARLOS RESTREPO, Colombia's under-20 men’s national team finds itself in New Zealand after surviving a brutal CONMEBOL qualifying jaunt, including two levels of regional competition during which the team went 4-3-2 to earn its third consecutive U-20 World Cup appearance.

Since finishing third in 2003 and subsequently missing out on the World Cup in 2007 and 2009, the Colombian program has advanced passed the group stage in each of the last two tournaments. In 2011, Los Cafeteros made a strong semifinal run with an impressive roster that included FC Dallas attacker Fabian Castillo and Real Madrid’s James Rodriguez.

The program hasn’t shown any sign of slowing down in recent years. Winners of the 2013 South American Youth Championships, the squad finished second to Argentina in 2015, earning wins over Chile and Brazil in the process.

In the run up to the World Cup, the Colombians battled in the standard series of friendlies, but began to lose some of their luster in recent months. After a warm-up loss to Ghana and barely squeaking past Fiji and North Korea in late May, Restrepo’s squad has no doubt dropped in form.

The team’s woes appear to have carried over into the World Cup. After a nervy win over Qatar in the opening match of Group C, Colombia earned only a narrow draw with Senegal before being blown out by Portugal in Saturday's group match finale. Despite the uneven showing, Colombia finished in second  in Group C.

Hoping to book a place in the quarterfinals, Colombia will line up against the U.S. in a Round of 16 clash late tonight or early tomorrow, depending on your temperament (3:30am ET, Fox Sports 1).

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM COLOMBIA

Restrepo rolled into New Zealand with a very similar roster to the one he took to CONMEBOL qualifying, with 17 players returning to the fold. The majority of the 21-man roster features for domestic clubs with a select few earning regular professional minutes. The foreign-based contingent—including players under contract with Juventus, Udinese, and Chelsea—are still attempting to break through to first-team European glory.

What’s obvious: this team is athletic, fast, and very technical on the ball. Although Colombia failed to blow the competition off the field, it still out-possessed both Senegal and Qatar during the group stage. Colombian goalkeeper Alvaro Montero hasn’t been doing his squad any favors in New Zealand, and his shoddy play contributed to the disappointing result against Senegal.

Qatar, however, gave the Colombians an unexpected test. Playing through counter attacks, the Middle Eastern challengers were able to carve out the best chances of the afternoon and with some more precise finishing should have taken the points. If that had happened, Colombia would likely be watching the rest of the tournament on TV.

Colombia's squad does include some special players. Right winger Andres Tello, on loan from Juventus, will be a force on the wing and does not hesitate to go forward on the attack. Whoever is deployed at left back for the Americans—a weak spot in Ramos’ defensive lineup—will need to contend with that threat.

The real star of the team, however, is midfielder Joao Rodriguez. Currently on loan in Portugal from Chelsea, the wide playmaker has scored two of the three goals for Colombia in the tournament, including a gutsy chipped penalty that provided the equalizer against Senegal.

Working from the left side of midfield, Rodriguez’s goals—including those in qualifying—typically originate from deep midfield runs. His quick second step is very hard to mark and will give a defensive line fits if he is given an opportunity to run between the centerbacks.

And Rodriguez is not the only one to worry about. The Colombians boast a well-rounded scoring attack, with four players netting at least four goals in 16 total matches this year. Defender Jeison Lucimi and Jarlan Barrera each have four, while Rodriguez and Rafael Borre—who scored the consolation goal in the 3-1 loss to Portugal—have six each in 2015.

Coming off a bad loss in the final group match—much like the United States—the Colombians should return to a familiar game plan against the Yanks. Despite some uneven all-around performances, the Colombians have won the possession battle in every match so far and have created more than enough chances to give Ramos nightmares.

Against an American squad that has struggled to play well without the ball, Los Cafeteros could very well pass the U.S. into oblivion, making the Americans chase the game until a scoring chance can present itself.

Also: Did I mention they are very fast?

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE U.S.

First, check out Brian Sciaretta’s thoughts on tonight’s match. Yes, the U.S. roster is limited and yes there are real concerns as to whether the Americans can handle knock-out level competition.

For me, the Americans will need to do two simple things in order to make this match interesting. They must be able to keep and cycle possession through the backline and midfield, and they must be able to finish their chances.

Score goals, win game. Crazy, right?

Easier said than done.

Colombia's advantage in the possession game could prevent the Americans from seeing many clear opportunities. If the Yanks have any designs on the quarterfinals, they must be more efficient. Against Ukraine, midfield engines Gedion Zelalem and Emerson Hyndman were marked out of the game, exposing an already-shaky backline that has been struggling to play the ball forward.

Also disconcerting is the team's tendency to revert to that special brand of American soccer panic: kick it really long and see what happens.

One plus for Ramos is that the ambitious-but-not-always-efficient attack of Colombia may invariably lead to a situation the Americans are most equipped for—absorbing pressure and breaking on the counterattack. Regardless, testing shaky keeper Montero is a must.

Despite Ramos’ own defensive concerns, the Colombia defense was easily carved up by Portugal and taken to the absolute limits by Qatar. If the U.S can get biting wide play and deliver good service, as it did against New Zealand, the team should be able to unlock a Colombian backline that looked undisciplined and rattled after going down early to Portugal.

This is the situation Ramos and company have been working toward for the past 18 months. It’s all well and good to run through CONCACAF and beat up on Myanmar and New Zealand, but tough matches against Ukraine and knockout round contests with Colombia are how U.S. Soccer and the public at large will measure progress.

Unfair though it may seem, a loss at this point turns this tournament into yet another youth national team failure. A win, on the other hand, probably translates into a qualified success.

STARTING LINEUP

After the loss to Ukraine, Ramos conceded that he was strategically resting players who were on yellow cards from earlier in the round, which may have contributed to the disjointed performance.

“Obviously we wanted to win the game,” Ramos said on U.S. Soccer's PR site. “But we wanted to get to the second round with our full squad ready to go, and I think we ended the game with everyone available, and everyone’s healthy for the next game so I think we’re in good shape.”

Jockeying for position in the Round of 16 appeared to be a total nonfactor for the gameplan versus Ukraine. “At this point any team we play is going to be a good one,” the coach said.

Ramos also revealed his game plan for the loss, which sought to keep the game from “opening up.” Going against a possession-oriented group in Colombia, Ramos may try to duplicate this strategy but with slightly upgraded personnel. The returns of Miazga and Payne should give the backline a boost.

The big question is whether Marky Delgado reprises his role as a holding midfielder. Kellyn Acosta is another option, but his performances in CONCACAF qualifying could give Ramos enough pause to leave him at left back for the time being.

PROJECTED XI

Zack Steffen; Acosta, Miazga, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Desevio Payne; Delgado, Zelalem, Hyndman, Paul Arriola; Bradford Jamieson, Rubio Rubin.

Thoughts? Expectations? Comments? Go!

ASN Contributing Editor Josh Deaver is a former academic turned soccer obsessive. Follow him on Twitter. 

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