: U.S.A. vs. Costa Rica (World Cup Qualifier)
With Costa Rica in first place and the U.S. in second in our group, this was an important home game for the U.S., though we were missing a number of top players (Reyna, Pope, McBride, Lewis, etc.) and coach Bruce Arena was suspended. Costa Rica was openly playing for a tie, defending with numbers and threatening on fast-paced counter-attacks. The U.S. pressed and played well most of the time, including some terrific chances that were only stopped by the Costa Rican goalkeeper. The U.S. was occasionally weak on defense, and a couple of times it looked like the U.S. would go down a goal. But neither team wilted and the game finished nil-nil. A tie isn’t terrible for the U.S. — if we tie or win in Barbados next month we qualify to the next round (remember, we beat them 7-0 here at home). But it’s a bit of an ominous sign that we should struggle so early in World Cup qualifying — the games are only going to get tougher.
Topic: [/soccer] |
