Orlando City defender Michael Halliday and the United States U-20 Men’s National Team have officially qualified for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup, defeating Costa Rica 2-0 in the CONCACAF U-20 Championship quarterfinal round on Tuesday evening.
The U.S. needed to advance past the group stage and win two knockout games to qualify for the U-20 World Cup, which will be held next year in Indonesia.
Halliday has been a crucial piece for U-20 Head Coach Mikey Varas. After starting one group stage game and playing the second half in each of the other two, Halliday started both the Round of 16 game against Nicaragua and the quarterfinal against Costa Rica, going the full 90 minutes in each as the U.S. cruised to two important victories.
The U.S. first defeated Nicaragua 5-0 last Saturday, with Philadelphia Union Homegrown Quinn Sullivan scoring two goals. It was another Union starlet, Paxten Aaronson, who powered the quarterfinal win over Costa Rica, tallying both goals as Halliday helped the American defense to a third straight clean sheet.
Now, the Americans face a semifinal game this Friday night against Honduras, with the winner qualifying for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Honduras is hosting the tournament and is considered one of the toughest sides in the region, most recently coming from behind to beat Panama 2-1 in Tuesday night’s quarterfinal game. The U.S. has not reached the Olympics since 2008.
