Generation adidas Cup | Day One Recap

The first three matches of the 2016 Generation adidas Cup Central Region took place Friday at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City, Missouri. Each match featured two 40-minute halves. A regulation win earned a team three points. If the score was tied after 80 minutes, the two teams went to penalty kicks. The winner of penalty kicks receives two points with the loser receiving one point. The action continues on Saturday with three matches starting at 2 p.m. CT.

Central Region
Toronto FC 3, Houston Dynamo 2

If the rest of the Generation adidas Cup is anything like our opener on Friday, we're in for an exciting tournament. Toronto FC defeated Houston Dynamo 3-2 in a match that featured end-to-end action from the first moment. The Reds took a 1-0 lead off a set piece midway through the first half. Noble Okello Ayo cleaned up a loose ball in the Dynamo penalty box after Houston was unable to clear a long free kick. The lead stood for 50 minutes, before Houston tied the match through Tobias McKay who laced a right-footed shot past the Toronto goalkeeper. The Dynamo grabbed the lead 10 minutes later after U.S. U-17 midfielder Marcelo Palomino dribbled through the Toronto midfielder and found Domingo Mba Ayecaba darting down the right side. The 16-year-old striker cut to the middle of the field and calmly placed his shot past goalkeeper Gianluca Catalano.

Toronto was not to be denied, however, and it was a pair of second-half subs that made the difference for the Canadian side. First it was Olakunle Dada-Luke who hit a low shot that deflected off a Dynamo defender and sailed under the crossbar. Then it was Ayomide Akinola, who recently featured for the U.S. U-17 national team. In the 74th minute, Akinola hit a powerful header from 12 yards out to the top corner of the goal to give the Reds a 3-2 win and three points in their GA Cup opener. Houston returns to action on Saturday at 2 p.m. against FC Dallas. Toronto FC will play the Chicago Fire at 4:30 p.m.

Toronto FC (1-0-0) vs. Houston Dynamo (0-1-0)
2016 Generation adidas Cup - Central Region
October 7, 2016 –- Swope Soccer Village, Kansas City, MO

Scoring Summary:
TFC -- Noble Okello Ayo (1) 28
HOU -- Tobias McKay (1) 50'
HOU -- Domingo Mba Ayecaba (1) 60'
TFC -- Olakunle Dada-Luke (1) 69'
TFC -- Ayomide Akinola (1) 74'

Toronto FC -- Gianluca Catalano; Afram Gorgees, Julian Dunn, Rocco Romeo, Terique Mohammed; Noble Okello Ayo, Matthaus Garcia (Lucas Areco 59), Steffen Yeates (Cristopher Castillo 59); Luca Petrasso (Olakunle Dada-Luke 54), Zakaria Abdi (Ayomide Akinola 54), Jordan Faria (Jonathan Sinopli 78).

Houston Dynamo -- Osmar Chavero; Mujeeb Murana, Arnold Segundo, Guillermo Rodriguez, Angel Carrasco; Diego Gutierrez, Alfonso Galvan (Rene Tello 41), Marcelo Palomino; Tobias McKay, Domingo Mba Ayecaba, Jesus Ortiz (Heriberto Soto 48).

Matches played with 40-minute halves.
All statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial
FC Dallas 4, Columbus Crew SC 1

FC Dallas showed why they are the two-time defending national champions at the U-16 age group with a dominating 4-1 win in their Generation adidas Cup opener against Columbus Crew SC. Jesus Ferreira (pictured, right), son for former MLS MVP David Ferreira, scored just 14 seconds into the match when he intercepted a back pass and laced a shot past Crew SC goalkeeper Alec Srodawa. The early goal did not faze Columbus, however, who leveled the match just ten minutes later through Sebastian Berhalter. The diminutive midfielder got on the end of a Max Thesing cross and knocked his attempt off the near post and past goalkeeper Michael Collodi.

Columbus had a good spell of possession, but it was broken in the 15th minute when Ferreira scored his second of the match. Dallas added a third before halftime when 15-year-old Bryan Reynolds fought his way through three defenders before hammering a shot to the far corner. Reynolds added his second of the match in the 44th minute, when he and Ferreira connected on a give-and-go inside the Crew SC penalty box. Reynolds calmly placed hit shot past Srodawa with the outside of his right foot to seal the victory for FC Dallas who return to action on Saturday against Houston Dynamo at 2 p.m. Crew SC will square off against Sporting KC at 7 p.m.

FC Dallas (1-0-0) vs. Columbus Crew SC (0-1-0)
2016 Generation adidas Cup - Central Region
October 7, 2016 –- Swope Soccer Village, Kansas City, MO

Scoring Summary:
FCD -- Jesus Ferreira (1) 1'
CLB -- Sebastian Berhalter (1) 10'
FCD -- Jesus Ferreira (2) 15'
FCD -- Bryan Reynolds (1) 23'
FCD -- Bryan Reynolds (2) 44'

FC Dallas -- Michael Collodi; Imanol Almaguer, Nathan Toledo, Eric Romero, Julian Hinojosa; Alan Velasco, Pablo Arias (Diego Pareja 73), Thomas Roberts (Adrian Munoz 65); Bryan Reynolds (Jalen James 73), Jesus Ferreira (Kevin Kim 65), Bryan Padilla (Edwin Cerrillo 57).

Columbus Crew SC -- Alec Srodawa; Kalen Nichols, Keegan Hughes, Griffin DeBolt (William Perkins 64), Max Thesing (Aboubacar Keita 49); Sean Zawadzki, Abdoulsalan Faqi (Maouloune Goumballe 49), Sebastian Berhalter, Isaiah Parente (Kurt Lehmkuhl 57), Colin Biros (Braden Durbin 64); Eric Conerty.

Matches played with 40-minute halves.
All statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial
Sporting KC 2, Chicago Fire 2 (SKC won 6-5 on penalties)

Sporting Kansas City got off to a positive start in their Generation adidas Cup campaign, claiming two points with a 6-5 penalty shootout victory against the Chicago Fire after the score was locked in a 2-2 tie at the end of regulation. Sporting KC took the lead within 60 seconds of kickoff with the first of two goals on the day from forward Mason Visconti (pictured, right). After receiving a pass from Colin Innes, Visconti carried the ball forward down the left wing, outpacing the Chicago defense in the process and striking a powerful effort into the top corner from inside the area to give SKC a 1-0 lead.

The Fire began to grow into the game and their pressure paid dividends in the 32nd minute. Gilberto Angeles dribbled at the Sporting KC defense, beat his man to the endline and stood up a cross to the far post that Victor Bezerra headed home to make it 1-1. The lead didn't last long as Visconti was brought down from behind inside the area, and the 16-year-old picked himself up to bury the spot kick in the 38th minute to make the score 2-1.

Both sides struggled to create clear-cut chances early in the second period. Chicago pulled themselves level when Roberto Alonzo tucked the ball into an empty net to make it 2-2 with seven minutes remaining. The game was decided through penalty kicks, with Visconti, Jonathan Munoz, Kyle Reese, Ryan Fessler, Gianluca Busio and Luke Rafanan all converting for Sporting, while Nick Fernandez, Bret Bebej, Bryce Blevins, Roberto Alonzo and Cepeda made no mistake for Chicago until Brown saved substitute Stefan Imbronjev's penalty to give Sporting a 6-5 victory on penalty kicks. Sporting KC next face Columbus Crew SC at 7 p.m. on Saturday, while Chicago return to action against Toronto FC at 4:30 p.m.

Sporting KC (0-0-1) vs. Chicago Fire (0-0-1)
2016 Generation adidas Cup - Central Region
October 7, 2016 –- Swope Soccer Village, Kansas City, MO

Scoring Summary:
SKC -- Mason Visconti (1) 1'
CHI -- Victor Bezerra (1) 32'
SKC -- Mason Visconti (2) 38'
CHI -- Roberto Alonzo (1) 74'

Penalty Shootout Summary:
SKC -- Mason Visconti (GOAL)
CHI -- Nick Fernandez (GOAL)
SKC -- Jonathan Munoz (GOAL)
CHI -- Bret Bebej (GOAL)
SKC -- Kyle Reese (GOAL)
CHI -- Bryce Blevins (GOAL)
SKC -- Ryan Fessler (GOAL)
CHI -- Roberto Alonzo (GOAL)
SKC -- Gianluco Busio (GOAL)
CHI -- Carlos Cepeda (GOAL)
SKC -- Luke Rafanan (GOAL)
CHI -- Stefan Imbronjev (SAVE)

Sporting KC -- Alex Brown; Dontell Gilyard, Jaylin Lindsey, Kyle Reese, Jackson Wood; Cameron Duke (Ryan Fessler 76), Colin Innes (Massimo McGuire 62), Grayson Barber (Jonathan Munoz 76); Abdu Kikhia (Gianluca Busio 54), Mason Visconti, Max Rugova (Luke Rafanan 62).

Chicago Fire -- Damian Las; Krystian Kreysso, Bret Bebej, Adrian Lara, Andre Reynolds, Victor Bezerra (Stefan Imbronjev, Nick Fernandez, Diego Mendoza, David Ochoa (Roberto Alonzo 56), Gilberto Angeles (Bryce Blevins 70), Andrew Akindele (Carlos Cepeda 60).

Matches played with 40-minute halves.
All statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial

Standings through first matchday

Goalscorers through first matchday