Jorge Flores played in the United States Under-20 National Team's 2-0 win over El Salvador on Tuesday, which booked the team a spot in the FIFA U-20 World Cup which takes place in September and October in Egypt.
The win was in the third and final group stage match, and now the team moves on to the semifinals, where the U.S. will face the hosts, Trinidad & Tobago, on Friday at 8:00 p.m. local time (5:00 p.m. PT). Unfortunately, Jorge won't be able to play in the match, since he received a red card in the 84th minute of the match against El Salvador.
On the U.S. Youth National Teams blog, Jorge gave his thoughts on playing a new position (left back, where he has occasionally trained with Chivas USA, especially during preseason a year ago), and also on the red card that he was given at the end of the match.
Here are the highlights:
On the new spot:
"I will play wherever the coaches want me to, whether that's at left back or left midfield. I will do my best wherever I am because that's where the team needs me. I think I did well and it felt good. I think the back four did a good job because they weren't able to get through us and I don't think I let my attacker get by me on the wing."
On his red card:
"The player was antagonizing me, he was pinching me as we were going up the field and talking trash. I kind of threw up my arm to get him off of me and he threw up his arms and took a couple of steps backwards. I did touch him, but I think the assistant referee thought I tried to elbow him."
You can follow Friday's match on the USSoccer.com Matchtracker, starting at 5:00 p.m. PT tomorrow. The third-place match and the final will both be played on Sunday, and Flores will be eligible to play in the team's match on that day.
