The USA aren’t a team you commonly associate with the World Cup, yet they usually are a participant in the World Cup finals. However, it will not come to any surprise that the best the USA has achieved in recent World Cups is the last 16. What you may not know, is that they achieved their best finish in 1930, in which they finished third in the tournament.
According to German Coach Jurgen Klinsmann they can’t win the World Cup, and that is not the sort of pessimism that Americans will be used to. However, this is a realistic view even if the Americans looked impressive against a Ghanaian side who reached the quarterfinals in South Africa, winning the game through a last minute winner from John Brooks.
On Saturday, they face Portugal in an integral match for the US if they should hope to qualify for the knockout stages. In Portugal, they face the best player in the world, but if they keep Cristiano Ronaldo contained then they have every chance of achieving victory, especially if Clint Dempsey is on form. Then, they face the Germans which will show us how they deal with a top team. If they can come through unscathed, the currently ranked 13th in the world side could do more than make up the numbers.
Football, or soccer, is growing rapidly in the US, and a good World Cup will further the good work and help the sport grow. Perhaps somewha surprisingly, they filled their allocation for the first game and are expected to do so tonight. It is a clear sign of the growth for the sport.
The US have the talent readily available unlike in previous years, and have every chance of progressing. Then, once you get to the knockout faze anything can happen; perhaps they have a outside chance of doing very well in this World Cup, after all.
