USMNT
Costa Rica Conquers United States As ESPN’s Star Cam Shows You Exactly Everything And Nothing
The United States hadn’t lost in 14 matches since November. Then Costa Rica put a New Jersey beat down on the Yanks at Red Bull Arena, winning 2-0 in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying on Friday evening.
Costa Rica pressed, harassed and fought its way to a deserved win that all but assures Los Ticos a spot in next summer’s World Cup. The USMNT played like they did when they got Jurgen Klinsmann fired in November.
The World Isn't The Same As It Was The Last Time The U.S. Lost
The world has changed a lot since the U.S. Men’s National Team last lost a match on Nov. 15, a dark time for America. For starters, the United States saw a great man who has accomplished so much throughout the world replaced by a goofy New Yorker with awful hair. We’re talking about Jurgen Klinsmann making way for Bruce Arena, of course.
Here’s How The U.S. And Mexico Can Both Qualify For The World Cup By Tuesday
With four match days left in the final CONCACAF World Cup qualifying round, Mexico and the United States are on the brink of ensuring their inclusion in Russia next summer. Both could start booking accommodations by Tuesday if things fall their way.
Mexico leads the group with 14 points and it would take a massive collapse for El Tri to fail to qualify. The U.S., in third with eight points, three back of Costa Rica and one ahead of Panama. The top three automatically qualify for the World Cup while the fourth-place team must play an Asian country in a playoff to reach Russia.
Consistency Doesn’t Sell Like Goals, But That’s What Christian Pulisic Brought This Weekend
Without a goal or an assist in Borussia Dortmund’s 2-0 win over Hertha Berlin on Saturday, Christian Pulisic mania wasn’t allowed to grip the nation. But a “quiet” week from the 18-year-old also allows us to dissect his performance in a more serious manner.
What the analysis reveals should obviously already be clear, but let’s just belabor the point: Pulisic isn’t a gimmick. He’s not the fevered creation of a nation starved of a world-class talent. He’s actually just really, really good.
Darlington Nagbe’s Instinctive Scoop Shows Why Soccer Is The Best And Nothing Is Even Close
After a long footballing period consisting of nothing but transfer market hell and the Gold Cup, it’s permissible that you’d forgotten the real meaning of the beautiful game. It’s totally normal to have watched an inning or two of MLB on the TV, to have spent an inordinate amount of time discussing which Game of Thrones characters and story arcs you vaguely remember.
Gerard Pique is a defender, not a poet. Mino Raiola is a sideshow, not the main attraction. The football’s since returned, but MLS would argue that it never really left.
USMNT Midfielder Lynden Gooch Scores Quality Game-Winner For Sunderland
21-year-old USMNT midfielder Lynden Gooch made a successful start to his club season on Tuesday, scoring the game-winning goal for Sunderland in their 2-1 victory over Carlisle in the EFL Cup.
Gooch earned his first two USMNT caps last fall, but a serious ankle injury last December disrupted a promising start to his Premier League season. Sunderland, of course, were relegated, but Gooch was one of the few players to escape serious criticism from supporters by virtue of actually looking like he gave a f**k.
Christian Pulisic Named Bundesliga Player Of The Week
Guys, I think the Christian Pulisic secret is out. America's Great Hope scored a goal and collected an assist this weekend in Borussia Dortmund's 3-0 win over Wolfsburg, which was good enough to earn the 18-year-old Man of the Matchday honors for matchday one in the Bundesliga.
Pulisic is going to be hard for the rest of the world to ignore after scoring this:
Our Christian Pulisic Hype Meter Is Threatening To Off Itself
Hey, so this is going well, don’t you think? To be honest, it's really going too well. Our Pulisic-O-Meter wasn't designed well enough to withstand this breakneck pace of USMNT wins in the Bundesliga.
After scoring against Bayern Munich in the German Super Cup to jump-start his 2017-18 season, Christian Pulisic opened his league campaign with a goal and an assist against Wolfsburg on Saturday.
Claudio Reyna’s 14-Year-Old Son Giovanni Is An Incredibly Impressive Talent
When you’re the son of a player considered by many to be the most composed and technically gifted in a country’s footballing history, you’re going to garner some attention out on the pitch. But Giovanni Reyna, son of USMNT legend Claudio, is clearly an exceptionally gifted 14-year-old.