Timbers forwardJeremy Ebobisse and the U.S. U-20 Men’s National Team returned home after a hard-fought 2-1 loss to Venezuela in the quarterfinals of the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup on Sunday.
Ebobisse, who played 149 minutes over the course of three games, logged two goals in the tournament, including the lone U.S. goal in Sunday’s match against Venezuela.
In a special journal for Timbers.com, Ebobisse reflected on his experience during his trip to Korea and the battles fought on the pitch.
“We came up short. We’re proud, but we came up shorter than our heightened goals and expectations. Venezuela was just better on the day and although we fought until the last second, it just wasn’t meant to be. We’ll watch the semis and final with pride knowing we could play with those teams, while also wondering what could’ve been.
On the back of a 6-0 thumping in the Round of 16 [against New Zealand], we felt like we could beat anyone in front of us. That game was as complete a performance as we’d had, and our spirits were higher than ever. In a game where we had three suspensions on top of a tournament ending injury, we proved why we could be so confident. Our depth came out that game and we’d have some rested players in key positions for the quarters.
We’ll have some lingering questions as we self-reflect on our run. Could we have scored that counter-punch goal to send us through to a historic semifinal? Where could we have defended better? Regardless of “what if's,” we leave the World Cup on a high note, proud of our efforts and everything we’ve accomplished. We’ll also candidly be asking ourselves how to get through that barrier to becoming champions on a world stage. We’ll need that killer instinct as we turn our attention the 2020 Olympic Games.
I’m thankful to have been a part of such a beautiful journey. I’m grateful to the coaching staff for bringing me along, everyone with the Timbers for encouraging me to take this opportunity and finally my teammates on the U-20 National Team. We went through a lot together in such a short period of time, forming tight, special bonds through it all. Though the next time I see most of them, I will be lining up as their rival, I can’t wait for our paths to cross again soon.
I’m officially checking out from South Korea but thank you to everyone who followed along our journey!”
