USA U23s come to life late to beat DR

by Travis Clark

March 21, 2021

Four goals in the final 30 minutes of Sunday's group match against the Dominican Republic secured a second straight win at Olympic qualifying for the U.S. Under-23 Men's National Team.

Jackson Yueill opened the scoring, followed by a brace from Hassani Dotson, before Djordje Mihailovic rounded out the scoring for the United States.

Prior to Yueill's goal, it was a frustrating hour for the United States. Head coach Jason Kreis made six changes from the Group A opening win over Costa Rica, but the U.S. lacked the final ball and was ponderous in possession during the opening stanza.

There were chances before the break for the U.S. to grab a lead. Jonathan Lewis found joy down the right flank on more than one occasion. But he was unable to pick out a teammate with his crossing to create dangerous scoring chances.

Midfielder Johnny Cardoso had the best chance of the first half. In the 27th minute, left back Sam Vines and Sebastian Saucedo played a tidy combination play on the left channel. Vines hit a high, looping cross to the back post, where Cardoso and Jesus Fereira queued up to score. However, Cardoso's header went straight to Johan Guzman, who was able to fist away the effort.

A brighter start in the second half saw Saucedo flash a 51st minute chance wide. Just under 10 minutes later, the U.S. finally scored.

On a move that originated down the right flank, a cross from Julian Araujo made its way into the path of Cardoso. Looking to atone for his earlier miss, he neatly controlled a bouncing ball and lashed the shot off the crossbar. Andreas Perea made a nice play to head the ball back towards the penalty area, where Saucedo controlled the ball, turned his defender and cross the ball into the path of Yueill, who deflected the ball nicely into the back of the net.

⚽️ Goal! Jackson Yueill!

🇺🇸 @USYNT takes the lead after a beautiful finish by Yueill! | #CMOQ pic.twitter.com/tdOmFv91Uz
— Concacaf (@Concacaf) March 22, 2021

Dotson, a 62nd minute sub, scored twice in a five-minute span to put the result out of reach for the United States. The first came as a result of a mazy run from Milhailovic. Collecting a pass from Yueill out on the left, the CF Montreal man essentially dribbled into the box with little resistance from the DR defense, stabbing the ball into the path of Dotson, who finished well from the top of the box.

Mihailovic was the provider on the second Dotson strike as well. A Vines cross found the feet of Soto, who had his back to the DR goal. He passed the ball to Mihailovic just outside the top of the box, who hit a one-time effort to Dotson. A firm touch took it past the defender, and Dotson whipped in a far-post finish for the game's third goal.

⚽️ Goal! 🇺🇸

Hassani Dotson scores a brace for @USYNT! 3-0 lead! | #CMOQ pic.twitter.com/gzidWj3AEH
— Concacaf (@Concacaf) March 22, 2021

Heading into stoppage time, Mihailovic finished the scoring off a far-post tap-in off a cross from Benji Michel. At that point, the substitutes had made their mark and the second win already locked up for the U.S. U23s.

The U.S. officially advanced to Sunday's semifinal after Mexico beat Costa Rica by a 3-0 score, as both the USA and El Tri have six points in Group A. The two sides play on Wednesday night, with Kreis' side needing a win to top the group.

Related Topics: Youth National Teams