US U20s hit Poles for six behind Adu hat trick

Behind a hat trick from captain Freddy Adu, the U.S. Under-20 Men's National Team earned a dominating 6-1 victory against Poland in front of a sold-out Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Canada, to climb to the top of Group D at the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. Along with Adu’s three goals, Danny Szetela added two goals and Josmer Altidore added one to tie the highest goal output by a U.S. team in a U-20 World Cup.

With the victory, the U.S. sits atop the group with four points and will next face Brazil on July 6 at Frank Clair Stadium in Ottawa. The match will kick off at 7:45 p.m. ET and will be live on ESPNU and Galavision. Fans can also follow the match live on ussoccer.com’s MatchTracker.

With a draw or victory over Brazil, who sits in second place after a 3-2 victory against South Korea in tonight’s second match, the U.S. will win the group for their third consecutive time at the FIFA U-20 World Cup. The U.S. would also go undefeated for the second straight time with a win or a draw in their final group match, after pulling off the feat for the first time ever in 2005 in the Netherlands.

The U.S. has lost all three previous meetings against Brazil in the U-20 World Cup, falling to the four-time champions twice in 1989 (3-1 in group play and 2-0 in the third place match) and in 1993 (3-0 in group play).

“I think we all knew that we were capable of playing much better than we showed in the first game,” said U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team head coach Thomas Rongen. “We felt in this game that we could demonstrate some of the things that we’ve done so well over the past year and a half to get here. We moved the ball well, used our athleticism and speed today. Our key guys played well today and that’s important for us.”

Adu and Szetela are tied for the tournament lead in goals with three apiece through two games, as Adu scored his second career World Cup hat trick. His first came in the opening match of the 2003 FIFA Under-17 World Cup against South Korea, also a 6-1 win for the United States. The goals were Adu’s first in three FIFA U-20 World Cup appearances.

After Poland opened the scoring in the fifth minute with a goal from Dawid Janczyk, the United States began their relentless attack. Just four minutes after Poland stuck, Szetela answered back, getting on the end of a Tony Beltran cross and redirecting it perfectly into the upper right corner with his head from about 15 yards out.

The second goal for the U.S. was the first on the day for the hat trick hero. Sal Zizzo beat his defender on the wing and played a cheeky pass that got through to Adu down the sideline. The midfielder then beat one defender to get into the box and made a spin move on another before hitting a left-footed shot that curled just inside the far post to give the U.S. a lead it would not relinquish.

With the U.S. holding possession for much of the second part of the half, Zizzo made another move down his right wing, beating three defenders and getting a lucky bounce to get inside the Poland box. The midfielder looked up and slotted the ball to a wide open Adu at the top of the box, and the captain did the rest, taking a touch and firing a spectacular shot into the upper corner of the far post from 18 yards. Adu’s shot was the final kick as the halftime whistle blew directly after the ensuing tap.

Szetela’s second goal of the night came in the 51st minute when Anthony Wallace made a run from his left fullback position and played a through ball past the Polish backline for Szetela, who ran onto the ball and beat Polish goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski.

Altidore made it 5-1 in the 70th minute when he buried a Robbie Rogers cross. Rogers raced down the left wing and cut back on his defender before playing the ball across the goal line, where it was deflected by Bialkowski right into the past of Altidore, who tapped it into the open net.

Adu earned his hat trick when he capped off the scoring for the U.S. in the 85th minute. Rogers won a ball in the midfield and cut towards the middle of the field. The Columbus Crew midfielder played a ball that got through for Adu, and he was able to get a touch before the onrushing Bialkowski could get to it. Adu then held off a challenge from behind from the Poland captain and played the ball into the open net.

- U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team Game Report -

Participants: USA vs. Poland
Competition: FIFA Under-20 World Cup
Location: Olympic Stadium - Montreal, Canada
Date: July 3, 2007
Attendance: 35,801

Scoring Summary:
           1     2    F
USA   3     3    6 
POL   1     0    1

POL - Dawid Janczyk (Patrik Malecki)          5th minute 
USA – Danny Szetela (Tony Beltran)            9.
USA –. Freddy Adu (Sal Zizzo)                       20.
USA – Freddy Adu (Sal Zizzo)                       48+
USA - Danny Szetela (Anthony Wallace)     51.
USA - Josmer Altidore (Robbie Rogers)     70.
USA - Freddy Adu (Robbie Rogers)             85.