A first round to remember

By John F. Molinaro, CBCSports.ca

Goals, saves and major upsets - the first round of the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup provided plenty of talking points for fans of the beautiful game.

Here are just some of the highlights (and one lowlight):

A Chilean and Canadian fan share some laughs in Toronto. (CP PHOTO/Frank Gunn)

The crowds: FIFA announced that this summer's U-20 World Cup has drawn the most spectators of any single-sport event in Canadian history. According to soccer's world governing body, more than 400,000 spectators attended the first 16 games of the biennial competition, 11 of which were sold out. FIFA also announced that ticket sales for the 52-game tournament topped the one million mark. The 1983 tournament in Mexico set the competition's all-time attendance record with 1.15 million fans passing through the turnstiles, but that record could soon fall in Canada - the maximum number of tickets available for this summer's tournament in Canada is 1.3 million.

Much ado about Freddy: With three goals in the first round, American Freddy Adu ranks as one of the top goal-scorers in the tournament. Adu scored three times in the U.S.'s 6-1 win over Poland, as the MLS star made history by becoming the first player to record a hat trick at both the FIFA U-20 and U-17 World Cups. Aside from his goals, Adu paced the potent American attack with his creative and inventive play, his speed and dazzling dribbling skills, and his brilliant playmaking ability. Teammates Danny Szetela and Josmer Altidore also potted three goals each in the first round, benefiting greatly from sublime countless scoring chances set up by Adu.

Low point: How can it be anything else but Canada's early exit from the tournament? Canada's first-round group wasn't easy, but the Canadians had enough skill, talent and depth to at least compete and fight for a second-round berth. They couldn't even manage that, though, losing all three of their games by a combined score of 6-0 and becoming the first host nation in the 30-year history of the tournament not to score a single goal. What's even more frustrating is that Canada looked impressive in exhibition games against Argentina, the U.S., Czech Republic, Brazil and Scotland in the last year. Sadly, that Canadian team, the one that showed so much heart and played with pride, was nowhere to be found.

Best game: Mexico's 2-1 win over Portugal in Toronto. Before the tournament even began, this game was touted as the marquee contest of the first round featuring two teams packed with creative superstars who are committed to playing attacking soccer. They did not disappoint. Toronto fans could hardly have any complaints about the contest they witnessed, with both sides playing at a break-neck pace. The ravenous crowd enjoyed every minute of the spectacle, serenading the young players with chants of "Ole" throughout the 90 minutes as the stadium heaved with electricity.

Best goal: Lots of great candidates, but the nod has to go to Mexico's Giovanni dos Santos. Mexico had found itself unable to break down a pesky Gambian team in its opening game of the competition, but then a thunderbolt of a shot from a special player broke the deadlock in the 57th minute. That's when dos Santos out-muscled a defender to the ball after a poor defensive header and hit a gorgeous volley over Gambian goalkeeper Joseph Gomez. The Mexicans eventually cruised to a comfortable 3-0 win over the Africans, but the opening goal demonstrated why dos Santos is heralded as one the best youth players in the world. In that one moment he showed no hesitation, only the natural goal-scoring instinct of a veteran star.

Biggest upset: In the opening game of the competition in Montreal, Polish defender Grzegorz Krychowiak scored on a beautiful, bending free kick from 25 yards out in the 23rd minute against Brazil. Poland, competing in this tournament for the first time in 24 years, was reduced to 10 men four minutes later when forward Krzysztof Krol was expelled for earning his second yellow card of the game. Pegged as one of the tournament favourites, the South American powerhouse dominated possession (a staggering 63 per cent) and registered 14 shots, compared with just two for Poland, but they couldn't find a way to score against the Poles, who won 1-0. Poland's shocking victory over the four-time world champions has to be considered one of the biggest upsets in the 30-year history of the tournament.

Memorable hat trick: Adrian Lopez wasn't the only player to score a hat trick in the first round, but the Spaniard was the only one to record a natural hat trick - scoring three consecutive goals in a game. Lopez was a one-man wrecking crew against Jordan, scoring three times within an 11-minute span (29th, 32nd and 38th minute) to give Spain a commanding 3-0 lead. Lopez's goals not only proved timely, but they were also the difference in the game, as Spain withstood Jordan's second-half surge to hold on for a 4-2 win. Thanks to Lopez, Spain not only won the game, but clinched first place in Group B. Ole!