This team defeated Costa Rica 1-0 in March, the team that plays in Costa Rica on Friday will be even better. (Credits: Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) |
Never before has the United States entered a game with so much confidence, so much skill, so much poise and so many expectations. No longer is it the question of, "Which US squad will show up?" It's "How badly will they mangle their opponent." The only problem head coach Jurgen Klinsmann has is too much talent. We've never seen a United States team this talented from top-to-bottom, not in '10, not in '02. The youth is enticing. The veterans are locked in. America is the class of CONCACAF and that's not even a question.
Yet can they handle expectations? Will they crumble under this newfound pressure?
The United States is expected to go into Costa Rica on Friday and take care of business. Not one American is thinking about how tough it is to play in that brutal environment and how consistently underrated Costa Rica is. To us they're just a little pest, getting in our way to a much larger goal coming next summer. But the US has never faced such high demand before; they've never seen their fans have so many presumptions of earning three points. Even though they beat Costa Rica earlier this year in the blustery confines of Denver, it wasn't a cakewalk and Friday should be one hundred times tougher.
Fortunately for the US, the squad has become even better. That team that defeated the Ticos in March would get annihilated by this current outfit. The addition of a healthy, in-form Landon Donovan could be the catalyst for this team to reach unimaginable heights. Add in the sizzling Jozy Altidore, unbelievably consistent Michael Bradley, exciting Aron Johannsson, rock solid combo of Matt Besler and Omar Gonzalez and you have a team with legitimate potential. Never has an American team been assembled with this much talent and there's never been this much excitement from even the casual American soccer fan.
Forget the 12-game winning streak. Forget the overwhelming Gold Cup performance. Forget Jozy's mind-boggling hat-trick comeback against Bosnia. The United States needs to take care of business against Costa Rica and Mexico. I don't mean get four points out of two games. I mean two games, six points, then they can just cruise off into the World Cup sunset. Will it be easy? No. Realistic? Absolutely. If they play like they have for a majority of this 12-game winning streak they will take care of business. Add that take-care-of-business mentality with the emerging talent and team cohesion and this squad can take on the world.
Let the success and pressure get to them, however, and they could find themselves in a CONCACAF dog fight in a blink-of-an-eye.
Friday. Costa Rica. 10 PM.
Tuesday. Mexico. 8 PM.
Take this one home boys.
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