2017 U-20 World Cup round-up, round of 16: Yangel Herrera puts Venezuela into quarterfinals

A relatively even contest seemed destined for a penalty shoot-out: Venezuela and Japan had traded chances for close to two hours, and kicked off the second half of extra time looking like they'd need spot kicks to figure out which of them was heading to the quarterfinals of the 2017 Men's U-20 World Cup.

But Yangel Herrera - a Manchester City signing currently on loan to New York City FC in MLS - connected with a corner in the 108th minute to put Venezuela through to the last eight of the tournament.

It was a game that highlighted a perhaps understated strength Venezuela has brought to this World Cup: its defense. The Venezuelans have yet to concede a goal in this competition, and that record is perhaps more important to their presence in the quarterfinals than the fact they have now scored 11 goals in four games.

Japan will know it missed out on several good opportunities to score, but so have three other teams - Germany, Mexico, and Vanuatu - against Venezuela in this tournament. It will next fall to the United States or New Zealand to see if the Venezuelan shutout streak can be broken. One of those teams will play La Vinotinto in the quarterfinals on June 4.