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WC MOTD: Portugal 2-2 USA

By on June 22, 2014

Back, exactly four days and four years ago, the US were down 2-1 to Slovenia, eighty-one minutes into the World Cup Group C fixture. Then, Michael Bradley scored a late goal to give the US a 2-2 draw in their second group stage match. Bars, and frankly, most public spaces, exploded with celebrations across the US, and despite needing a win against Algeria to advance from Group C, the 2-2 draw felt like a win for the US.

And fast forward to tonight, the US once again drew 2-2 in their second group stage match, and this time, the opponent was Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal. But this time around, all they need next Is a draw, and even with a loss in their final match they have a chance of advancing to the second round.  However, tonight’s draw feels like a loss. At the end of the match, bars across the US were dead silent – the emotion? Disappointment.  This is the game football is. The same team can be in a bad position and feel great, but depending on the way it goes down they can be in an unbelievable position and feel disappointed. After all, when Portugal went up 1-0 early on, it was a safe bet to say that the majority of US fans would have been ecstatic with a draw.

Yet it is at the same time entirely rightful for the US fans to be disappointed.  The US were just forty seconds away from sealing their spot out of the Group of Death, and a win over Portugal. Michael Bradley, arguably the US’ best player, was on the ball, with miles of space in Portugal’s half. But suddenly, one bad pass, Portugal broke, and Silvestre Valera, who had hardly touched the ball since coming on sixty-nine minutes in, gave Portugal an equalizer with less than thirty-seconds left in injury time. It could not have been more heartbreaking.  For it was a lead that the US has not only attained, but fought to attain after doing themselves in. And the worst thing that could have happened was exactly what happened – they did themselves in again.

Jurgen Klinsmenn’s men had first put themselves up against it just four minutes in, when Miguel Veloso curled a cross in from the left. Geoff Cameron and two other US defenders were at the front post the clear, yet Cameron mis-kicked his clearance and the ball slipped through to Nani at the far post. Nani brought the ball down in miles of space, and after Tim Howard had been sent to the ground via a clever dummied shot, Nani slammed the ball into the roof of the net from only six yards out.  The US were clearly rattled. For the next ten minutes, they would find themselves pinned back in their own third.

But then, the US started creeping out and finding their footing. Clint Dempsey came close to actually finding an equalizer thirteen minutes in, curling a twenty-five yard free-kick inches over the crossbar, and the US began to believe they could come back.  This is what made it so hard at the end, having dug themselves out from the hole.  The US couldn’t have worked more for their two goals – just thirteen minutes in Dempsey was denied another goal after being slipped in down the right side of the box and finding his low shot from an nearly impossible angle kicked out for a corner by Portugal goalkeeper Beto.  Bradley then sliced a brilliant thirty yard volley just over the crossbar, before Fabian Johnson sent a fierce dipping effort just wide of the frame.

However, it wasn’t as if the US was devoid of having to defend, either. Forty minutes in Howard was forced to parry Nani’s twenty yard effort wide, before the Everton goalkeeper did brilliantly to make a double save right on the brink of the half.  Nani sent a dipping and swerving effort towards goal, and Howard found himself fooled by the ball’s swerve, just getting enough contact on it to flap it onto the right-hand post. The ball bounced back out to Eder, who had came on sixteen minutes in for the injured Helder Postiga, and the forward curled a first time effort that looked for all the world to be floating over Howard and into the back of the net. Yet miraculously, Howard managed to get a hand on it as he was falling backwards and push the shot over the crossbar.

In the second half, the US’ fight only grew.  And it was just as cruel that they didn’t come in front ten minutes into the second period, when they looked sure too. Johnson had been set in down the right, and as he cut into the box he attracted out Beto, only to cut it back into the box at the last second before the goalkeeper smothered it from under him.  The ball skipped right to the feet of Bradley, and from six yards out the ex-Roma midfielder, at the peak of his powers, seemed destine to score. Yet somehow, with the nearly wide open, Bradley guided a one-touch effort straight at the one place where Portugal had the goal guarded; Ricardo Costa blocked the shot of the line without even knowing much about it.

The US were pushing and pushing, and finally, the gates flooded open. Jermaine Jones, a get-in-there defensive midfielder known more for his work in front of the back line then behind the front line, collected a clearance from a US corner, and from twenty-five yards out, pushed the ball past Nani and spanked an absolute cracker into the bottom right corner of the net. The ball looked to be heading out, but swerved right back inside the post at the very last second.

And immediately, the entire US was pushing their side on the for the win.  A would-be historic win that seemed destine to be claimed by the US. Down at the other end, Howard was made to palm Raul Meireles’s volley from eight yards wide of the post, but up in their attacking third, the US worked even harder than they had been working before. And finally, eighty-one minutes in, the US did it. DeAndre Yedlin, who had come on for Johnson, was slipped in down the right, and the Seattle Sounders starlet cut the ball back to Bradley in the box. Likewise in his horrible miss twenty-five minutes earlier Bradley seemed to fluff the chance, mis-kicking his shot, but the ball bounced back to Graham Zusi on the left side of goal.  Zusi curled the ball back across goal to Dempsey, and from point-blank range, Dempsey didn’t care how he got the ball in. He bundled it in with his hip, but the goal could not have been less sweet for the US.

Everything the US had done now rested on nine more minutes of play.  The US used the remainder of their subs to waste the remaining time, and kept it in the corner whenever possible, and they looked to have done it. Five additional minutes of stoppage time was added on, but Klinsmann’s men looked to have held strong through that, as well, as Bradley got the ball in miles of space, in Portugal’s half, with just twenty-five seconds left. Yet everything went backwards to plan for the US. Bradley’s poor pass was intercepted, Portugal fed the ball out to Cristiano Ronaldo on the right, and the Real Madrid forward curled in a brilliant cross. The US seemed set to defend it, but Valera crept in and headed the ball into the top right corner.  Howard didn’t even bother to dive for it. An equalizer had never felt so much like a winner for Portugal, either.
Man of the Match: Tim Howard

About Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, founder of Football Every Day, lives and breaths football from the West Coast of the United States in California. Aside from founding Football Every Day in January of 2013, Alex has also launched his own journalism career and hopes to help others do the same with FBED. He covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a beat reporter for QuakesTalk.com and his work has also been featured in the BBC's Match of the Day Magazine.