Sporting Kansas City midfielder Gianluca Busio started his third straight match at the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup on Saturday as the United States fell 4-0 to the Netherlands at Estádio da Serrinha in Goiânia, Brazil.
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Sontje Hansen, a Best XI selection at the 2019 UEFA European Under-17 Championship in May, struck twice -- first in the 42nd minute and again in the 51st minute -- before Mohamed Taabouni and Jayden Braaf closed out the scoring with goals in the final 20 minutes for the European champions.
With the defeat, the United States finishes in fourth place in Group D. Senegal and Japan automatically advance to the Knockout Round while the Netherlands await Sunday's results from Group E and Group F to determine the four third-place teams that will advance to the Round of 16.
- Japan, 7 points
- Senegal, 6 points
- Netherlands, 3 points
- United States, 1 point
Busio played every minute for the U.S. at the competition, scoring the United States' only goal of the competition in a 4-1 loss to Senegal and captaining his country in a scoreless draw against group winners Japan for the United States' only point of the tournament.
The 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup caps off a momentous year for the 17-year-old Sporting KC Academy product in 2019. Busio featured in 26 matches for Sporting KC across all competitions, in addition to five appearances for the Swope Park Rangers in the USL Championship and a starting spot in the 2019 MLS Homegrown Game.
Internationally, Busio was selected to the Best XI at the 2019 Concacaf U-17 Championship with five goals and three assists at the tournament. Earlier this month, Busio was named to The Guardian's Next Generation list showcasing 60 of the best young talents in world soccer.
Busio signed with Sporting as a Homegrown Player in August 2017, becoming the second-youngest signing in MLS history at the time (15 years and 89 days) before becoming the second-youngest player in MLS history to score a goal and record an assist in the second half of the 2018 MLS campaign.
