Let’s be perfectly clear. The ultimate goal in the final round of regional qualifying for the 2014 World Cup – the Hexagonal – is to earn an automatic berth to the World Cup in Brazil.
Finishing among the top three in the 10-game round robin earns that trip to Brazil.
Yes, short-term goals include winning every game and finishing first in the final hexagonal standings. Finishing ahead of Mexico gives one some sense of leadership in the region, but the quest is to qualify.
Going unbeaten is now out of the question after a 2-1 loss to Honduras. With three of the first four games on the road, the U.S. challenge is significant.
The hexagonal offers the possibility of earning 30 points with three points going for each victory. How many does it take to finish in the top three? Past history shows that 16 will earn the prize.
That can be accomplished by winning all five home games and earning at least one point with a draw on the road.
Finishing first is always a goal, but in 2001 the team got to the World Cup in South Korea/Japan as the #3 team in CONCACAF. That was the tournament in which the U.S. reached the quarterfinals for the first time in 72 years, beating Mexico in the Round of 16, and losing to Germany on a controversial goal.
The upcoming home game against Costa Rica on March 22 in Commerce City, Colorado, will offer Jurgen Klinsmann’s team an opportunity to jump start their drive towards qualification.
A trip to Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium comes four days later. Then comes a June 7 trip to Jamaica.
The player pool from which Klinsmann will draw his roster for the upcoming qualifiers is reasonably experienced and deep in talent. But it is also one devoid of exceptional players and one that has been weakened by injuries.
To say that the U.S. did not play well in Honduras is a bit of an understatement. Mistakes on defense led to both goals being scored, and the U.S. spent most of the game searching for a second goal that never came.
Steve Cherundolo is still out following knee surgery. US captain and star goalkeeper Tim Howard has missed club games with broken ribs. He is out for the upcoming qualifiers, and backup Brad Guzan will be in goal. Retired goalkeeper Brad Friedel, 41, recently tweeted that he would consider a return to the national team if needed.
Goalscorer Clint Dempsey is recovering from a calf strain, and left back Edgar Castillo recently suffered broken bones in his face playing for Club Tijuana in Mexico.
Starting left back Fabin Johnson has been slowed by a hip injury.
And Landon Donovan, who has been the face of the U.S. MNT for the past decade, has yet to return to the field from his sabbatical to discover if he really wants to play soccer again.
Recently there has been some good news. Both Johnson and Dempsey have said that they should be ready to report to training before the game against Costa Rica.
Among other missing parts, Klinsmann doesn’t have a clear choice for outside left midfield. Brek Shea, who plays that position, has finally made his EPL first team debut with Stoke City, but there are questions as to his fitness.
The game against Costa Rica is only one of 10 in the Hexagonal, but a win would earn the three home points that are critical to qualification. It would provide some confidence and momentum going into the game with Mexico.
And confidence is very important at this point in qualifying. Both individually and collectively. Against Honduras, the U.S. appeared to be pressing without patience to score a second goal. Better that they played with confidence that they could create the opportunities to score, and then finish one or more of those chances.
Klinsmann will need to find a forward who can finish, so that all the responsibility doesn’t fall on Dempsey’s shoulders. Jozy Altidore has been on a tear with his Dutch team, and his 24th goal broke Dempsey’s mark for most goals by an American in a European season.
Klinsmann will also have to find a way to have Michael Bradley and Jermaine Jones compliment one another at midfield, and Jones, always a threat to pick up a card, will have to play his usual “hard” game and keep his composure.
Sixteen points to punch a ticket for the U.S. to Brazil ’14, and it all begins in Colorado.