SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras – There were many big moments that occurred during the 2022 Concacaf Men’s Under-20 Championship in Honduras, yet these five were among the most memorable.
Aaronson comes through in clutch
You would be hard-pressed to find a better performance from a player throughout the entire knockout round than Paxten Aaronson’s for the United States. Aaronson enjoyed a solid performance in the 5-0 Round of 16 win versus Nicaragua, but really started firing in the 2-0 quarterfinal win versus Costa Rica, scoring both goals for the North Americans to help secure a place in the 2023 FIFA Men’s Under-20 World Cup. He then followed that up by tallying the opening goal for the U.S. in their 3-0 semifinal win against Honduras, which clinched the first Olympic berth for the U.S. since Beijing 2008. The exclamation point was a brace in the 6-0 triumph over the Dominican Republic in the Final, earning Aaronson not only the Top Scorer Award, but also Best Player honors.
Moreno's legendary penalty saves
He may be just 17, but Guatemala GK Jorge Moreno has already carved his name into footballing lore in his country. Moreno’s heroics began in the Round of 16 when he saved a penalty during regulation against Canada, who Guatemala eventually eliminated in a penalty shootout, 4-3. Moreno then made another penalty save, denying Mexico’s Esteban Lozano in the 88th minute of their quarterfinal with the score tied 1-1. Moreno backed that up by making another three saves in the shootout, leading his side to a 2-1 shootout win and a spot in next year’s U20 World Cup.
Dominican Republic make history twice
There was no shortage of history made by the Dominican Republic. After surviving a wild 5-4 affair with El Salvador in the Round of 16, the Caribbean side qualified for their first World Cup at any age level by downing Jamaica 1-0 in the quarterfinals. They then followed that up with a second half comeback from 2-0 down in the semifinal against Guatemala, scoring twice to force a shootout that they won 4-2, qualifying the Dominican Republic for their first ever Olympics and first ever Concacaf Final.
Guatemala make World Cup return
It had been 11 long years since Guatemala had qualified for a World Cup at any age level. The last time was in 2011 when a 2-1 quarterfinal win over the United States in Guatemala City qualified the Chapines for the 2011 U20 World Cup. But once again Guatemala will be on the biggest U20 stage after eliminating Mexico 2-1 in a penalty shootout in the quarterfinals. GK Jorge Moreno was one of the heroes, as was FW Arquimides Ordonez, who was the only player in the entire tournament to have scored in all three group stage matches, and then scored in both the quarterfinals and semifinals, giving him five for the tournament. While they fell just shy of an Olympics berth, a qualification for a World Cup once again is a great step forward for the Guatemala program.
El Salvador-Dominican Republic, a game for the ages
Everyone once and a while a game happens that leaves viewers and onlookers amazed. The 2022 CMU20 already had produced a 4-4 group stage thriller between Haiti and Trinidad and Tobago, but the Round of 16 contest between El Salvador and the Dominican Republic took things to another level. Each side held the lead at least twice in the match, including El Salvador being ahead on two occasions in the second half. But at each time of asking, the Dominican Republic responded and after overcoming those two second half deficits, the Caribbean side took the lead for good, 5-4, in the 78th minute on a goal from Edison Azcona to complete one of the most amazing Concacaf matches ever.
