U.S. men facing four critical days in World Cup bid
The last time the USA
ORLANDO failed to qualify for the World Cup you could scarcely find soccer on American television, goalkeeper Tim Howard was 6, Bruce Arena was still coaching lacrosse part time, Major League Soccer did not exist and virtually the entire current squad had not been born yet.
Things have certainly changed in the sport since May 31, 1985, when a home defeat to Costa Rica kept the USA out of the World Cup in Mexico the following summer. The national team has managed to qualify for the seven tournaments since, often fairly comfortably. If the current crop is unable to save its troubled 2018 campaign and suffers elimination over the next four days, it would feel like a huge step backward.
“The game in the U.S. is at the highest point in its history,” Arena said ahead of Friday’s crucial clash with Panama.
Arena’s team has nine points and is in fourth place in the group with two games remaining, including Tuesday’s match at Trinidad and Tobago. The top three teams qualify for next summer’s World Cup in Russia. The fourthplace team will face Syria or Australia in a playoff.
“It is very important to continue to grow the game in this country,” Arena said. “It is important that we continue to qualify for World Cups. We know this is a huge game.”
The road to, or at least toward Russia, began for the USA in late 2015. After two years, 14 matches, a coaching change when Arena replaced Jurgen Klinsmann and plenty of head scratching, it now boils down to two must-win games and one key factor. Pressure. “People can come and say it is just another game, but the reality of the situation is that it is not just another game,” midfielder Paul Arriola said. “A lot of us have not been in a situation like this, where we can really complicate ourselves if we don’t get three points. There is a lot of pressure on us to perform, but the reason all of us is here is to win.”
On paper, the USA has enough talent and pedigree to get the victories in Orlando and Couva, Trinidad.
The U.S. team has spouted optimism for months, but that didn’t prevent a home loss to Costa Rica and a road tie vs. Honduras that left it in troubled waters.
There comes a time when you have to back up the talk.
“Games don’t get much bigger,” captain Michael Bradley said. “From the get-go we’ve been in a situation where our back was up against the wall.’’
Time for a revival is running out. Anything less than six points from the final two round-robin games would leave the USA in danger of either being forced into a playoff or even missing out altogether.
And Panama might be the trickiest of opponents to face from the CONCACAF region when you’re desperately chasing a win.
The last four meetings with Panama have each ended in ties, and the USA survived a bruising encounter in Panama City in March, when Christian Pulisic received especially rough treatment.
“It is to be expected,” Pulisic said. “These teams are not going to give it to us easy. They are going to come in hard, and it will be the same (Friday).”