National Pride

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Today was not a very productive day in the United States because citizens, and the whole world for that matter got the prospect of seeing the US get out of possibly the toughest group of the tournament and into the knockout stage of the World Cup. This group was the closest and intense group of the tournament, and from 9:00 to 11:00, I could not sit still. It was a sentimental game for coach Jürgen Klinsmann because he used to coach the German national team. Along with that, there were 5 German-Americans in the 23 picked by Klinsmann. Jermaine Jones had even played 3 friendlies for the German team before transferring to the USMNT. Both coaches said they were going out there to win, but in the first 10 minutes, I really doubted that the US was. They were just sitting back and parking the bus for the first 10 minutes, and when they did get the ball, they couldn't keep it for more than 5 seconds. As the first half wore on, they grew into the game a little bit more, with the defense pushing out a little bit as well. Yet again, whenever the midfield got in trouble, Fabian Johnson was the outlet ball on the right. Germany still had the majority of the possession, but the US counterattacked better and held the ball for longer periods. It also came as a relief that Portugal scored against Ghana in the first half. Portugal still had a long way to go, and the US knew that Portugal wasn't going to score 5 or 6 against a strong and resolute Ghana defense. The only realistic threat was Ghana, whose goal difference after that goal was -2. When the half time whistle sounded in the US game, the whole country blew a sigh of relief that they got through one half. However, the second half was going to be one of the most intense 45 minutes that this country had probably seen in the history of the game. It began the same way as the first half ended, with Germany dominating possession and US hitting on the break. I think it was a smart tactic by the coach to crowd the penalty area an threaten on the break. However, the US defense was breached with a sumptuous finish from Thomas Muller from a corner piece. That was Muller's fourth goal of the tournament, equaling Messi and Neymar for the top scorer. Things just got worse for the US, as Ghana equalized with a goal from Gyan. Just one more goal by Ghana, and the US would have been out. It was nail-biting time for all the people watching these 2 games. It was the same tactic used by the US, and it almost felt like they gave up on scoring on Manuel Neuer, and they were hoping for Portugal to score. Well, if that was the plan, it worked out perfectly as Ronaldo buried his shot past the Ghana goalkeeper. This made things a whole lot easier for us, knowing that Ghana needed 2 goals in the last 10 minutes to qualify. Both games stayed the same, and US qualified. Ronaldo may not have helped his country qualify, but he did help our country, and that is why we should stand up and applaud him. Jurgen Klinsmann has showed his masterclass and experience in coaching, getting them past the group stage in consecutive tournaments for the first time since 1994. His tactics were key to the US going through. Now, for once, the nation believes!

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