Needing two wins to secure their place in the championship match, Philadelphia Union Academy U-12s did just that and got some help to reach the final of the U-12 Iber Cup Elite Sao Paulo Championship in Brazil.
The Boys in Blue will face off against CR Vasco da Gama for bragging rights on Saturday, January 18th at 8:15 a.m. EST. The match is scheduled to be streamed live on PhiladelphiaUnion.com.
The championship will be the third time this week that the two sides have squared off, with the Brazilian side claiming a 2-1 victory in the first match of the tournament while the U-12s battled back for a 1-1 draw Thursday morning in SuperGroup Gold play.
The path to the tournament final was an adventurous one for head coach Kleberson's squad, overcoming early first-half deficits against Brazilian sides Sao Caetano and SE Palmeiras but the young squads battled back with four-consecutive goals to win by matching 4-1 scorelines.
After picking up the crucial six points, the U-12 squad had to hope for a winner in the final SuperGroup Gold match as CR Vasco da Gama battled Red Bull Brazil for the top spot in the competition as a draw would have seen the Union Academy drop to the third place contest. In the end, CR Vasco da Gama emerged victorious to set up the final.
