Jakupovic’s 8th goal leads U.S. to U-17 World Cup qualification

It turns out all of those goals Malik Jakupovic scored in Concacaf U-17 World Cup qualifying mattered for more than just running up the score.

The Philadelphia Union II striker finished qualifying as the Golden Boot winner with 8 goals and it was both his contribution to the U.S. goal differential and his goal against the Dominican Republic on Tuesday that secured qualification for the Americans for the 20th time.

Jakupovic scored in the 41st minute for the U.S. but disaster struck afterwards as the Dominican Republic equalized three minutes later and played up a man for the final 12 minutes after Astin Mbaye was sent off for a second yellow in the 78th minute.

By finishing a 1-1 draw, the U.S. was able to win the group on goal differential, which was +18 (19-1) to the Dominican Republic’s +15 (16-1).

The U-17 World Cup will be played in Qatar this November.

Matthew Ralph

Matthew Ralph is the managing editor of Philadelphia Soccer Now. He's covered soccer at all levels for a decade in the Philadelphia region and has also written for TheCup.us, NPSL, PrepSoccer and other publications. He lives with his wife and two young children in Broomall, Pa., but grew up in South Jersey and is originally from Kansas.

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