U.S. U-20 Men’s National Team blanks Scotland 2-0 in international friendly

U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team forward Jose Villarreal scored twice in a nine-minute span in the first half to help lead the team to a 2-0 win against Scotland’s Under-21 Men on Friday in an international friendly at the 2012 Marbella Cup in Spain.

The U.S. controlled the match with solid possession and combination play, holding Scotland to just three shots and zero corner kicks to earn the clean sheet – the USA’s second in its past four international matches.

Villarreal, a forward for the LA Galaxy of Major League Soccer and a former member of the club’s U.S. Soccer Development Academy side, opened the scoring for the U.S. in the 22^nd minute as he alertly capitalized on a loose ball after Scotland goalkeeper Jordan Archer, who plays for Tottenham Hotspur in the English Premier League Academy, mishandled a long throw-in from Javan Torre.

A quick tap in gave the U.S. a 1-0 advantage and Villarreal scored his second of the match under extremely similar circumstances in the 31^st minute. Torre, who plays at UCLA and is a former member of the LA Galaxy U-17/18 Academy team, took another throw-in deep in Scotland’s zone and launched the ball into the six-yard box where Villarreal met the throw and strongly headed the ball into the goal for a 2-0 lead.

Kendall McIntosh, who plays at Santa Clara and previously suited up for the San Jose Earthquakes Academy, made two saves to preserve the shutout for the U-20s.

The U.S. plays its final international friendly at the 2012 Marbella Cup on Tuesday, Oct. 16 at 11 a.m. ET against Azerbaijan.

-U.S. U-20 Men’s National Team Match Report-

Match: U.S. U-20 MNT v. Scotland U-21 MNT
Date: Friday, Oct. 12, 2012
Competition: 2012 Marbella Cup
Venue: Marbella Football Center; Marbella, Spain
Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. local (9:30 a.m. ET)
Attendance: 200
Weather: 80 degrees

Scoring Summary:                 1              2              F
USA                                        2              0              2
SCO                                        0              0              0

USA – Jose Villarreal                                          22^nd minute
USA – Jose Villarreal (Javan Torre)                      31

Lineups:
USA: 1-Kendall McIntosh; 2-Boyd Okwuonu (13-Eric Miller, 63), 4-Caleb Stanko (capt.), 5-Will Packwood, 3-Javan Torre; 6-Marc Pelosi, 10-Luis Gil (16-Mikey Lopez, 80), 8-Benji Joya; 7-Jose Villarreal (17-Walker Zimmerman, 88), 9-Mario Rodriguez, 11-Daniel Cuevas (14-Jerome Kiesewetter, 73)
Subs not used: 12-Ethan Horvath
Head Coach: Tab Ramos

SCO: 1-Jordan Archer; 2-Ryan Jack (14-Kiran Duffie, 55), 4-Fraser Kerr, 5-Murray Wallace, 3-Clark Robertson; 6-Fraser Fyvie, 10-Stuart Armstrong (16-Jason Holt, 69), 8-Kenneth McLean (17-David Smith, 79); 7-Dylan McGeouch, 9-Anthony Watt, 11-Stefan Scougall
Subs not used: 12-Christopher Kettings, 15-Kevin McHattie, 18-Dale Carrick
Head Coach: Billy Stark

Stats Summary: USA / SCO
Shots: 11 / 3
Shots on Goal: 3 / 2
Saves: 2 / 1
Corner Kicks: 5 / 0
Fouls: 17 / 12
Offside: 2 / 2

Misconduct Summary:
None