U.S. Soccer news: Castillo called up, U-17's move on

This weekend was a relatively good one for American soccer as players scored (Dempsey, Goodson) or continued to see action (Bradley) and even made a comeback after a long delay (Simek), but the biggest news was made by a young lad playing in Mexico. Edgar Castillo who recently switched national team allegiance from Mexico to the United States has revealed that he will be called up for the November friendly matches against Slovakia and Denmark.

Castillo plays at left back, which has been a weak spot for the U.S. in recent times, should be able to push Jonathan Bornstein for playing time immediately. Castillo is known for his attacking skills which could help the Americans keep pressure on opposing defenses. Whether he plays or not this is a great boost for a position that has been in flux for the last few years and adding a player of Castillo's ilk should help push the competition and force the best out of each player.

In Nigeria, the U.S.A. U-17 national team pulled out a 1-0 victory over UAE to clinch a spot in the knockout stages of the U-17 World Cup. Coming off a completely underwhelming victory over Malawi last week, the Americans came out and played a more complete and impressive performance over a UAE team that was stronger than the Malawi team that they struggled against previously. Jack McInerny tallied the goal, calmly tapping in a rebound in the first half to give the U.S. all they needed for the victory. The offense pushed forward with purpose for most of the game and looked sharp in the attack and the defense looked steady in front of Earl Edwards goal. The U.S. now moves on with a chance to make some noise in the next round this week. Check your local listings for game time.