There were seven Hyundai Young Player Award candidates in action on Day 13 of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™, and all but one were left celebrating a place in the last 16. FIFA.com looks back at their performances.
Jozy Altidore: It was, ultimately, a memorable afternoon for Jozy Altidore, as the USA clinched their place in the last 16. However, on a personal level, the 20-year-old enjoyed mixed fortunes. He had a frustrating first half, but appeared rejuvenated after the break when he caused a few problems for the tiring Algerian defence. While he only managed one shot over the course of the 90 minutes, blazing the ball over when it looked easier to score, it was his cross that set Landon Donovan up for the winning goal.
Jonathan Mensah: The 19-year-old claimed only his fourth international cap and almost marked that achievement with an own goal just 11 minutes into the game, when he turned Lukas Podolski's cross goalwards, but his blushes were saved by a fine diving save from Richard Kingson. He completed 32 out of 40 passes during his 93 minutes on the field.
Andre Ayew: The 20-year-old midfielder signalled his intentions in Ghana's crunch clash with Germany, firing in a shot within the opening minute. He failed to hit the target then, but found himself with a fine chance to put his side ahead the 25th minute. However, he took one touch too many, and the opportunity was lost. Ayew collected his first yellow card of the tournament five minutes before the interval.
Thomas Muller: The Bayern Munich midfielder ran his heart out for the German cause, covering 5634m during the first half alone, and 8296m in all. He was booked shortly before the break for a challenge on John Mensah. Perhaps with that in mind, Joachim Low saw fit to remove his young star from the field on 68 minutes, after Mesut Ozil had given Germany the lead.
Tim Matavz: The young Slovenian was handed an 11 minute cameo against England at the end of his side's 1-0 defeat in Port Elizabeth, replacing Andraz Kirm. He was unable to make an impact in that time but did cover 1569m.
Toni Kroos: With the clock ticking down at Soccer City, Low brought on the 20-year-old for the final nine minutes. During his time on the pitch he had a 100 per cent record in terms of passing, as all of his seven passes found their intended target.
Dominic Adiyiah: The man who won the Golden Boot at the FIFA U-20 World Cup came on for the final 90 seconds of stoppage time, but did not get a touch of the ball.
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