The United States U-20 Men's National Team earned an impressive 2-0 win against Mexico on Wednesday night in Bradenton, Florida, to secure their second straight Concacaf U-20 Championship title.
Sporting Kansas City defender Jaylin Lindsey was part of the team that went a perfect 8-0-0 at the three-week tournament, punching their ticket to the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup as a top-four finisher in addition to ousting their regional rivals for the Concacaf crown.
Lindsey started in three of the group stage victories as the Americans outscored their opponents 45-2 over the course of eight games. The 18-year-old outside back went the full 90 minutes in a 7-1 win over Puerto Rico on Nov. 1, a 6-0 win versus Saint Vincent and the Grenadines on Nov. 7, and a 7-0 defeat of Suriname on Nov. 9.
The United States is unbeaten in its last 13 Concacaf U-20 Championship matches dating back to the opener of 2017, when the won their first of two consecutive regional championships. Head coach Tab Ramos' side will now mark the calendar for the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup, which will take place from May 23 - June 15 in Poland and feature 24 participating nations.
With a successful stay in Florida under his belt, Lindsey will now return to Kansas City ahead of Sporting KC’s Western Conference Championship series against the Portland Timbers. The first leg will take place at 6:30 p.m. CT Sunday at Providence Park in Portland, airing live on FS1, FOX Deportes, Sports Radio 810 WHB and ESPN Deportes KC 1480 AM.
The decisive second leg at Children’s Mercy Park is slated for next Thursday, Nov. 29, at 8:30 p.m. CT. A limited number of tickets for the highly anticipated matchup, Sporting KC’s final home game of 2018, remain available at SeatGeek.com. ESPN and ESPN Deportes will televise the game live from Kansas City.
Lindsey has enjoyed a breakthrough 2018 season with Sporting KC and USL affiliate Swope Park Rangers. The outside back has started nine of 10 appearances for Sporting KC in all competitions, becoming the youngest player in Kansas City history to play at least 10 matches for the club.
A product of the Sporting KC Academy, Lindsey also logged six USL appearances for the Rangers, who made their third straight trip to the USL Cup Playoffs. Featuring primarily as a right back, Lindsey boasted a 4-0-2 record as a Rangers starter in 2018.
As a result of his strong performances over the course of 2018, Lindsey was named to MLSsoccer.com’s 22 Under 22 rankings last month, coming in at No. 20 in a series highlighting Major League Soccer’s best young players. Shortly thereafter, he was named the No. 11 player on the United Soccer League’s 20 Under 20.
