My 3 Thoughts on USMNT-Costa Rica

A Dominant U.S. Midfield Overcomes a Disastrous Start; A Tremendous Team Goal Finished by Dest; the USMNT Is On Track for the World Cup

Sergiño Dest (left) scored on a left-footed rocket past Keylor Navas (Photo by Omar Vega/Getty Images)

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COLUMBUS, Ohio — Here are my three thoughts on the USMNT’s 2-1 win against Costa Rica in Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier, bringing the U.S. to 11 points after six games in the CONCACAF Octagonal:

• The U.S. midfield was hugely improved over the Panama loss. After going down 1-0 in the first minute in the worst start imaginable, the U.S. deserved to come back and win this game, not least because the midfield was dominant. Tyler Adams should start every game in the central midfield, period. He’s a game-changer in how much space he controls, and he makes players like Yunus Musah and Weston McKennie around him better. The U.S. had 64 percent possession in the game and was far smoother in its passing than the jumbled mess we saw in Panama Sunday. That central midfield completed just 11 passes to each other in the first half; Adams, McKennie and Musah completed three times as many in the first 45 on Wednesday, as noted by TruMedia’s Paul Carr. While Costa Rica’s aging players were exhausted in the second half of their third game in seven days, the U.S.’s midfielders kept ticking and the Ticos rarely looked threatening. The one time they did, when Bryan Ruiz had a breakaway thanks to a botched U.S. pass, Miles Robinson reeled Ruiz in like you might expect a 24-year-old to track down a 36-year-old.

• The USMNT scored one of its best goals in a long time. Sergiño Dest has a knack for producing highlight-reel goals, and he added a glorious one to the list by blasting a rocket with his left (weaker) foot—with his shoelaces untied!—past Costa Rican goalkeeper Keylor Navas to tie the score at 1-1. But I wish highlight packages would also show the other reason why it was such a great goal: The majestic U.S. buildup involving 13 passes among nine players over 35 seconds. That’s the kind of soccer this U.S. team is capable of playing, and when they do it’s something to behold. It was also the first time in nine games that the U.S. scored a goal in the first half. On Tuesday, Antonee Robinson said the U.S. players needed to remind themselves that they’re a good team and can be ruthless in the attack, that it was time to be less conservative. The result of that approach was one of the best U.S. goals—and build-ups—that we’ve seen.

ESPN FC @ESPNFC

SERGINO DEST WHAT A GOAL 🔥 The USMNT equalize!

• It’s hard to exaggerate the importance of the U.S. comeback. This was a pivotal match in the 14-game Octagonal. Had Costa Rica kept its lead, the Ticos would have overtaken the U.S. in the standings by a point, the U.S. could have fallen as low as fifth place and U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter would have been on a very hot seat. Instead, the U.S. finds itself in no worse than second place by the end of the night (and first if Mexico loses at El Salvador). That’s a much better place to be in heading into the next qualifier, a huge rivalry game next month against Mexico down the road in Cincinnati. Getting at least six points out of this window was crucial for the USMNT, and that job got done, even if the loss in Panama was ugly. At this rate, the U.S. is doing what it takes to get to the World Cup next year. The path getting there might be bumpier than U.S. fans want—that was certainly the case against Costa Rica—but they’re on track for Qatar.

ESPN FC @ESPNFC

TIM WEAH GETS THE BOUNCE TO PUT THE USMNT UP 2-1 🙌

What are your thoughts on the game? You can share them in the comments below.

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