Wednesday, October 17, 2012

USMNT Wins, Moves on to Final World Cup Qualifying Round!

The US Men's National Team defeated Guatemala last night, 3-1, to win its semifinal round qualifying group and move on to the final round of qualifying, known in this region as the "Hex." The loss knocked Guatemala out of World Cup Qualifying.

The US played its most complete match of the semifinal round at its most critical stage. If you missed the match, watch highlights by clicking here. Despite giving up an early goal and having some issues in the backline, the US dominated possession and took advantage of some great play from Clint Dempsey (2 goals and an assist). Also earning high marks were Herculez Gomez (great effort throughout, and his work earning a corner kick was critical to an early goal), Michael Bradley (dominated the midfield and contributed an assist on one of Dempsey's goals) and Eddie Johnson (assisted on Dempsey's first goal and played well before tiring late).

And now, it is on to the Hex. Here is a lowdown on the format:

Six CONCACAF teams make up the Hex (hence the name): Costa Rica, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, United States. The top three finishers in the round-robin format (one home, one away against each of the teams) qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The fourth place finisher will play a two-match playoff against the winner from the Oceania region (New Zealand is considered the favorite), with the winner advancing to the World Cup. The teams finishing fifth and sixth in the Hex are out.

Hex matches will begin in March. Until then, the US will play some friendly matches, including one next month against Russia. For now, let's enjoy a deep breath and look forward to the announcement of match dates and locations in the coming days.

Sunday, October 14, 2012

USMNT Gears Up for Final World Cup Semifinal Round Qualifier

Tuesday marks the end of the semifinal round of qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. With one match remaining, the US sits tied atop its group with Guatemala at 10 points. Jamaica has seven points, and Antigua and Barbuda has just one point. The US and Guatemala will play each other in Kansas City on Tuesday knowing a win or draw will get them into the final round of qualifying, known as the Hexagonal. Jamaica takes on A&B and needs a win and for the US-Guatemala match to end in lopsided fashion so they can win the goal differential (the US and Guatemala are both +3 and Jamaica is even). In other words, the US would have to lose and Jamaica would have to win big for our boys not to advance.

The USMNT has had an up and down qualification journey. Friday night saw long-overlooked striker Eddie Johnson score early on a header off a beautiful feed from Graham Zusi, only to see A&B take advantage of a weak left and left-center defense - starting LB Fabian Johnson missed the match with the flu - to tie things up. Only a second goal from Johnson, which came in the 90th minute, salvaged all three points for the US and made things less nerve wracking going into Tuesday's match with Guatemala.

Watch Johnson's game-winning goal here!

For the negative nancies and/or newer US Soccer fans out there who might be concerned, allow me to take you back to the first World Cup cycle of this millennium. The USMNT struggled in the pre-Hexagonal round of qualifying and barely made it to the Hex. They ended up dominating the Hex and went on to make the quarterfinals of the 2002 World Cup.

I have faith the USMNT will do something similar this time around. Klinsmann is working hard to instill his style of play and that has been hindered by significant injuries to many of the squad's stars in recent matches (Donovan and Bradley, in particular). If they can get healthy for the Hex, you have to like the USMNT's chances to finish near the top of the group of six. The top three in that group advance to the World Cup, while the fourth place team will play in a playoff to qualify. The Hex should look like this:

Mexico
United States
Guatemala
Panama
Costa Rica or El Salvador
Canada or Honduras

So, fans of US Soccer, let's cheer on the stars and stripes to victory on Tuesday. A win would help the USMNT grasp onto some positive momentum going into the Hex and once again establish themselves as a favorite to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.