The U.S. men’s U-20s fell to Ghana 1-0 in their final first-round match on June 22 in Alor Setar. Peter Ofori-Quaye’s 33rd minute goal was the only tally of the match. The U.S., which finished third in Group C with three points, still has a decent chance to advance to the second round, but must wait until the conclusion of first-round play June 23 to find out whether it will keep playing. Ghana pushed the U.S. back into its own half early on, relentlessly pressuring the Americans. Nine minutes of dangerous Ghanaian attacks were rewarded in the 33rd minute, when Ofori-Quaye leaped to meet a cross from the right and flicked the ball over U.S. defender Matt Chulis and the onrushing American keeper, Andy Kirk. Despite allowing the goal, Kirk played superbly for the U.S. In one ten minute stretch of the second half he stopped three point-blank shots and charged out of the box to clear the ball from an unmarked attacker. The U.S. started to find its own rhythm as the second half progressed, and had several good scoring chances late in the match. Sasha Victorine’s 78th minute header off a Joey DiGiamarino free kick just missed, while Chad McCarty saw a close-range blast fly just high moments later. “Ghana put us under a lot of pressure,” said U.S. coach Jay Hoffman. “Later in the game, we found our rhythm but our finishing wasn’t as good as we wanted.” Notes: Brian Dunseth, recovered from a bout of the flu, returned to the U.S. lineup, while Esmundo Rodriguez started in midfield in place of Ben Olsen…. Ramiro Corrales will miss the remainder of the tournament after suffering a badly sprained left ankle in the first minute of the game. June 22 in Alor Setar USA 0 Ghana 1. Goal: Ofori-Quaye 33. USA — Kirk, Chulis, Dunseth, Corrales (Parra), Rodriguez, O’Brien, Flores (Olsen, 82), DiGiamarino, Victorine, Wolff (West, 66). Ghana — Asamoah, Gyan, Lawson, Sule, Ansah, Adams, Appiah, Ackon (Amoudou, 68), Kamara, Ofori-Quaye (Al-Hassan, 74), Gambo. Yellow cards: USA — Dunseth 45, Flores 51; Ghana — Sule 36. Referee: Manei (Kuwait). Att.: 4,000.
Final Group C Standings
| TEAM | GP | W | T | L | GF | GA | P |
| *Ghana | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 7 |
| *Ireland | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| USA | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| China | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 |