The Sporting Kansas City Academy U16's bounced back from consecutive defeats in the 2014-15 Generation adidas Cup on Thursday with a 1-0 win over Real Salt Lake in Frisco, Texas. Will Little scored the game-winner in the 34th minute and Steve Tekesky posted the shutout at the Toyota Soccer Center, giving the U16's their second victory in the tournament's Champions Division.
Wednesday's loss to River Plate (Argentina) dropped the U16's to third place in Group A with a 1-2 record. While the three group stage winners and the best overall second place finisher met in Thursday night's semifinals, Sporting KC was in action against a Real Salt Lake side that finished second in Group B. It was the first of two placement matches for the U16's, who conclude the competition Saturday at 2 p.m. against an opponent to be determined.
Held annually since 2007, the Generation adidas Cup serves as Major League Soccer's Under-17 national championship. In Thursday's semifinal round, River Plate (Argentina) beat Palmeiras (Brazil) 1-0 and Eintracht Frankfurt defeated host FC Dallas in a penalty kick shootout following a scoreless draw. River Plate and Eintracht Frankfurt will meet in the final on Saturday at Toyota Stadium.
This year's Generation adidas Cup is held in conjunction with the league's inaugural under-12 tournament. Led by head coach Matt Trumpp, Sporting KC's U-12 Academy squad kicked off their Cup campaign Thursday with a 3-2 loss to D.C. United.
The U12's are one of eight MLS academies participating, along with youth sides from Mexico's Queretaro FC and Club America USA. The U-12 competition features 30-minute matches of 7-on-7 action and will culminate with Saturday's championship match featuring the winner of each six-team group.
Visit MLSsoccer.com for full scores, standings and schedules throughout the Generation adidas Cup. In addition, follow @SKCAcademy on Twitter and Instagram for all the latest updates.
