Let’s face it: when it comes to Americans playing abroad, there’s Christian Pulisic and then there’s everybody else.
But who is everybody else? There are 18 other U.S. nationals who will be playing in Europe this upcoming season with a chance of making Bruce Arena’s World Cup squad next summer. Some are well-known, like defenders John Brooks and Geoff Cameron. Others not so much, like Caleb Stanko and Lynden Gooch.
The United States defeated Jamaica 2-1 in the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup Final thanks to phenomenal goals from Jozy Altidore and Jordan Morris. Altidore struck a pinpoint free kick on the stroke of halftime, but Je-Vaughn Watson equalized for Jamaica shortly after the break. With extra time looming, Morris dispatched a blistering effort in the 88th to give America the Cup.
The return of Bruce Arena as manager of the USMNT has been close to perfection — he’s now unbeaten in 14 matches, and he’s managed to lift his country back to the top of CONCACAF.
As Jamaican Kemar Lawrence’s sweetly-struck free kick sailed into the back of the net in the semifinals of the Gold Cup on Sunday night, millions of soccer fans across America reacted viscerally. Some cheered for the wonderful goal. Some laughed as Mexico was knocked out of the Gold Cup. Some groaned over the loss of a Mexico-U.S. final. And many more shouted out in distress as their favorite soccer team suffered an ignominious defeat.
Substitute Clint Dempsey dribbled through the Costa Rica defense set up Jozy Altidore for the first goal of the night as the USMNT defeated Costa Rica 1-0 to advance to the CONCACAF Gold Cup final.
Here's the goal:
The United States are through to the Gold Cup semifinals, but the real story on Wednesday night was the erotic interplay between USMNT striker Jozy Altidore and his tight man-to-man marker, El Salvador’s Henry Romero.
The City of Brotherly Love was truly feeling the heat yesterday evening as Romero pinched and twisted Altidore’s nipple and took a nice little chomp on his shoulder for good measure. Romero was booked in the 81st minute, but he kept Altidore off the scoresheet for 90 minutes, so mission accomplished.
Despite a litany of mistakes from the back four and very hungry El Salvador defense, the USMNT is through to the semifinals of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The 2-0 scoreline perhaps flattered the USA, but a win's a win.
Omar Gonzalez opened the scoring off a set piece, for his second goal of the tournament.
Right this minute, El Salvador and the USMNT are gearing up to play in a crucial Gold Cup quarterfinal match. The U.S. are clear favorites for this game, ranked the 35th best team in the world while El Salvador is 101st. In the 21 times the two have met, El Salvador have never beaten the U.S, losing 17 and drawing four.
It’s like Superman wearing a green cape or Cristiano Ronaldo without perfectly manicured hair — there’s just something off.
When the U.S. plays in the Gold Cup quarterfinals on Wednesday, a few national team veterans won’t look quite right in the red, white and blue. Their numbers will be all wrong.
When Bruce Arena called up a few of his top veterans to bolster the USMNT for the Gold Cup knockout rounds, Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley and others joined a squad that had already doled out the first 23 jersey numbers.
With one powerful blast of his left foot, Dom Dwyer’s chances to make an even bigger statement with the U.S. men’s national team took a blow, the Nicaraguan keeper guessing correctly to keep the American’s penalty kick out.
The English-born U.S. international scored in his first two appearances for USMNT, but Dwyer couldn’t convert from the spot in his third appearance on Saturday. The next day he was dropped from the team for the remainder of the Gold Cup. Now the 26-year-old striker will be wondering what could have been.
The CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal match-ups are set. Only eight teams remain. Let's check them out:
July 19: Costa Rica vs. Panama
Time: 6:00 p.m. EST
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
TV: FOX Sports 1, Univision
Match-up: Costa Rica finished first in Group A, and Panama finished second in Group B. Costa Rica thrives on an organized defense and the creativity of Benfica midfielder Bryan Ruiz on offense. Panama's top players include Porto forward Ismail Diaz and NYCFC midfielder Miguel Camargo.