US Under 17s open World Cup qualifying beating Cuba 3-1

The US is looking to continue its streak of being the only nation to have qualified for every edition of the FIFA U17 World Cup. It participated in the 2009 event for the 13th consecutive time.  On Monday the US Under 17s opened CONCACAF qualifying with a 3-1 win over Cuba in Montego Bay, Jamaica.  The Americans are in a group with Cuba and Panama.  The top two advance to the quarterfinal rounds and winners there earn a World Cup berth.

The US opened the scoring in the 27th minute of play with Alfred Komora tapping home a rebound after Andrew Oliver’s shot was denied by Cuban goalkeeper Sandy Sanchez. Oliver had received a fantastic pass from Esteban Rodriguez and blew past his mark, firing a low drive that was blocked by Sanchez and fell perfectly for Koroma to calmly finish.  Cuba almost tied the match just before halftime, but saw their shot hit the crossbar and fly out.

The second half opened with the Americans on the front foot as they notched two goals in the first five minutes of play to put the game away.  Andrew Oliver was on the receiving end of a through pass from Mario Rodriguez, and once again he used his pace to create space and placed a low slotted shot past Sanchez.  The goal sparked a renewed vigor to the US attack, and four minutes later they struck again when Esteban Rodriguez rewarded a great pass from Dillon Serna with a far-post finish.

Cuba grabbed one back in the 68th minute and the game ended 3-1 to the US.  The win extends the US record against Cuba to 4-0-2 in six games.  Next up for the Americans is Panama on Friday afternoon.