Uruguay will go into short rest and get two days off after beating Gambia on Thursday in the Round of 16. They also played throughout the second half after striker Luciano Rodriguez was red-carded, only for striker Anderson Duarte to grab the 65th-minute winner.
Heavy feet may work in the USA’s favor, but they certainly won’t overlook this Uruguayan side that has mirrored the strength of their senior team in recent years. La Celeste finished second in South America’s U-20 qualifiers, as well as reaching six U-20 World Cup semi-finals and twice finishing as runners-up (as recently as 2013). This year they finished second in Group E.
The majority of Uruguay’s squad is domestic, led by Liverpool Montevideo captain and midfielder Fabricio Díaz. Genoa defender Alan Matturro and Valencia defender Facundo González are their two foreign players.
Uruguay, even if they are missing talisman Rodríguez up top, present the toughest test the U.S. has faced at the U-20 World Cup. Can they resist it?