Canada defeats Dominican Republic 1-0 at CONCACAF men's U-20 championship

Canada's Tavio Ciccarelli, right, takes a shot against St. Vincent and the Grenadines in CONCACAF U-20 Championship qualifying play at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad on Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024. Tavio Ciccarelli scored in the 86th minute to lift Canada over the Dominican Republic 1-0 on Tuesday at the 2024 CONCACAF men's under-20 soccer championship. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Canada Soccer **MANDATORY CREDIT **

IRAPUATO, Mexico - Tavio Ciccarelli scored in the 86th minute to lift Canada over the Dominican Republic 1-0 on Tuesday at the 2024 CONCACAF men's under-20 soccer championship.

Ciccarelli entered as a substitute in the 69th minute before deflecting a Santiago Lopez cross into the back of the net to break the deadlock at Sergio Leon Chavez Stadium.

The 17-year-old Ciccarelli of Winnipeg joined the Canadian Premier League's Halifax Wanderers in May after playing his youth career in England with Sheffield United and Leeds United.

Canada drew its Group B opener against Honduras 2-2. The U-20 Canadian men wrap up group play Friday against El Salvador with a chance to reach the knockout stage.

The Dominican Republic outshot Canada 12-10 (7-7 on target), while Canada held 52 per cent of possession.

Canada edged the Dominican Republic 6-5 on corner kicks. Canada also had two yellow cards to one for the Dominicans as Myles Morgan and Christian Greco-Taylor were cautioned.

The top four teams at the championship qualify for the 2025 U-20 World Cup in Chile.

This report by Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ was first published July 23, 2024.

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