After all the hype and hoopla of their World Cup-opening draw with favored England, now the United States finds themselves in the unfamiliar _ and uncomfortable _ role as favorites themselves. They face tiny Slovenia tomorrow (9:30 a.m. ESPN) in their most pivotal match of the Cup, a must-have tilt to decide their fate in South Africa.
“In the past I would’ve worried about (a letdown), but it’s not like we were popping champagne,’’ said midfielder Landon Donovan. “As much as was made of the England game, we knew that was only the start; we understand what (Friday) is all about.”
A victory would all but achieve their stated goal of reaching the knockout stage. A tie would keep their hopes alive, with a loss almost guaranteeing elimination. And while Andrej Komac brashly guaranteed a Slovenian win, the United States readily acknowledges the importance of the moment.
“Obviously a loss will put us out,” said captain Carlos Bocanegra. “We’re going to have to go into this game in an intelligent fashion. We need to be smart and not open ourselves up going for the win, because a loss will put us out.”
Slovenia sits atop Group C after their opening win over Algeria, a victory that emboldened Komac to make his nervy prediction. But the U.S. is determined to make sure he ends up more Patrick Ewing than Joe Namath.
“Talk is cheap,’’ said keeper Tim Howard. “They’ve got to stand toe-to-toe with us for 90 minutes; and if he’s still standing, then I’ll take my hat off to him. But a lot of boxers talk, too, and they’re looking up at the lights; and next thing they know, they’re trying to figure out how they got there.’’
Howard, the North Brunswick (NJ) grad who suffered bruised ribs in the opener, should start today. But will coach Bradley stick with speedy Robbie Findley up front alongside Jozy Altidore? In need of goals will he stay with Rico Clark in central midfield, or go with the box-to-box Maurice Edu or offensive-minded Jose Torres?
Whatever starts, the United States will see a mirror image of a physical, 4-4-2 team looking to counterattack. But with Slovenia leading the group, now the U.S. must carry the play in search of the full three points. They’ve also never done well against Central European teams or underdogs, and in Slovenia they face both.
They’re 0-7-1 all-time vs. teams from the region, generally outmuscled physically. And while they’ve done exceptionally well against the group favorites over the years _ 3-3-2 since 1950 _ they’re a horrid 0-9-2 against everybody.
“Mindset is key. Going into a game as favorites would be different for us, and that does pose a challenge…to know you’re under pressure to get three points,’’ said centerback Jay DeMerit. “But we need to use that as a positive; we should expect more. There’s no reason to get results like Saturday to not put in a good performance against Slovenia. It’s games like this that’re going to get you to the next round.’’
And it’ll be decided at Ellis Park, the same stadium where they blew a second-half lead to Brazil in last summer’s Confederations Cup final to Brazil. How have they learned their lessons?