BRADENTON, Florida - The 2015 Nike International Friendlies kicked off on Wednesday with a pair of games from the pristine fields at the Premier Sports Campus. The annual event features boys national teams, which are eligible for the next U17 World Cup. This year’s event was the first of a two-year cycle for the 2000/2001 age groups.

The U.S. last won the event in 2013, which was the first year of the two-year cycle for the 1998/1999 age groups. Brazil won the competition in 2014. 

U.S. U17 Men’s National Team 2-3 England 

England dominated the opening half but a quick interchange in the opening moments nearly gave the home team the lead. The U.S. was off to the races shortly after the first whistle when Christopher Goslin played in a ball for Joshua Sargent with only one defender to beat 20 yards from goal but the ball got stuck in his feet and he was dispossessed. 

England went on the attack following the early hiccup. England had the majority of chances in the opening 40 minutes. Nya Kirby hit the crossbar on a shot from inside the 18-yard box nine minutes into the game. 

Jadon Sancho should’ve put England up after 11 minutes when he had a chance from inside the six-yard box, but the ball skipped past him as the U.S. struggled to keep England at bay during the first half. 

Kirby and Daniel Loader combined inside of the 18-yard box to set up a chance in the 18th minute, but a U.S. defender blocked the shot. 

Sancho tried to amend for his earlier miss with an ambitious shot from the top of the box, but his effort hit off the crossbar. 

Loader gave England the advantage in the 25th minute when Sessegnon got past the right side of the U.S. defense and then whipped in a cross that the forward tapped into the goal. 

The U.S. had three chance at the end of the half to get back on level terms. Carleton was included in all of the chances, but none of them found the back of the net. 

To start the second half, head coach John Hackworth went to his bench and brought on forward Ayo Akinola for Rayshaun McGann. The substitution forced the U.S. to move into a 3-5-2 formation after starting the game in a 4-3-3. 

The move nearly paid off immediately. Akinola broke through the England defense two minutes into the half. On the breakaway, the Toronto FC forward pulled the trigger early and the England goalkeeper pushed the shot wide of the goal. 

The U.S. equalized in the 46th minute when Durkin, who was the captain in the second half, drew a free kick in a great spot 25 yards from goal. Goslin stepped up and put the free kick into the upper corner of the net at the near post. 

The U.S. broke the deadlock five minutes later when the home side was awarded a penalty kick. Carleton converted the shot from the spot. 

The formation change and new look from the U.S. in the second half confused England for the opening 20 minutes of the half. However, England began to find pockets of space and took control of the game again in the later stages of the contest. 

England bounced back when Loader dribbled through four defenders before being chopped down at the top of the box. The referee awarded a penalty kick. Sancho converted the shot to make it 2-2. 

Carleton had another look at trying to give the U.S. the lead with 10 minutes left when he pulled the trigger from the top of the box. His first shot was blocked, but the rebound fell kindly. He tried his luck on the second, but it went just wide of the near post. 

England stole the win in the dying moments when Sancho finished off a nice movement with a tap in from only a couple of yards out. The play started with the U.S. cheaply giving up possession in the defensive third. Sancho made the home team regret the error with his second goal of the game. Marc Guehi provided the assist for the game-winning goal. 

The U.S. takes on the Netherlands on Wednesday at 6 p.m. in the second day of action from the 2015 Nike International Friendlies. 

U.S. U17 MNT Starting XI (4-3-3, right to left): Alexander Budnik (Sockers FC); Bryan Perez (LA Premier FC), Rayshaun McGann (Philadelphia Union), Jaylin Lindsey (Sporting KC) Kelee Cornfield-Saunders (LA Galaxy),; Christopher Durkin (DC United), Christopher Goslin (Georgia United), George Acosta (Weston FC); Timothy Weah (Paris Saint-Germain FC), Joshua Sargent (Scott Gallagher Missouri), Andrew Carleton (Georgia United)

Substitutes: Ayo Akinola (for McGann 41’)

Adrian Villegas (for Acosta 65’)

Tonny Temple (for Weah 65’)

James Sands (for Goslin 75’)

 

Netherlands 3-0 Brazil

Daishawn Redan (Ajax) came off the bench in the second half and scored three goals for the Netherlands in a 3-0 win over Brazil in the first game of the day. Brazil ended the game with 10 players after bringing on all of its substitutes and then having a few players suffer from cramps.