USA vs. Paraguay Won't Define Copa America but Could Change Hosts' Future
The United States of America face Paraguay on Saturday night in Philadelphia, and they know their survival in the Copa America Centenario is on the line.
But regardless of what happens to the Stars and Stripes, the event is up and running more fluidly, and the show will go on—even if Paraguay triumph at Lincoln Financial Field. That reflects badly on the Yanks in terms of football.
In some tournaments, the success of the competition is tied to the hosts' success—Chile at last year's Copa America, for example.
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During games not involving the host nation, many of the stadiums were full, and Chilean fans inside enjoyed the football but also chanted for their team during lulls in play or songs from other supporters.
Without the momentum provided by La Roja's run to the final and the enthusiasm garnered in cities from Concepcion to Valparaiso, via Santiago and Vina del Mar, the tournament would not have been so intriguing.
It has not been the same in the United States. Though fans have mostly chosen to avoid games that don't involve the host nation, there have been a few notable exceptions.
Mexico games have been extremely busy, thanks to the millions of Mexicans who live in the U.S. Brazil and Argentina have drawing power, especially the latter—thanks to Lionel Messi.
La Albiceleste's No. 10 played for the first time in the tournament Friday night, coming off the bench in the 61st minute with his team up 1-0 against Panama.
By the time he left the field, he had scored three goals in a 19-minute spell and also created another for Sergio Aguero, via a Marcos Rojo knock-down.
Fans went wild for Messi in Chicago, chanting his name and roaring when he came on. It had been the same in Santa Clara, California, during Argentina's first game, but the Barcelona star did not feature as he tried to get over a back injury.
Americans in the stadium were disappointed not to see him, as some started to filter out of the stadium after Gerardo Martino made all three of his substitutions and left Messi on the bench.
Spectators have also been denied the chance to see Luis Suarez in his element. The Barcelona forward suffered a hamstring injury in the Copa del Rey final and missed Uruguay's first two games of the Copa America—both of which they lost, leading to their elimination.
Suarez put on a pretty good sideshow during the most recent of those, against Venezuela in Philly on Thursday, angrily punching the dugout after he was not brought on as a substitute—even though he was not available to play in the first place.
Teams like Mexico, who has showed their strength, and Brazil, who routed Haiti 7-1 on Wednesday after a 0-0 draw with Ecuador in their first match, have kicked the Copa America into gear following a slow start.
The second round of fixtures was more entertaining than the first—that was reflected in the goal tallies.
In the first batch of eight group games, there were 14 goals. That's an average of 1.8 per game. In the second week, the teams scored 30 goals, or 3.8 per game.
Colombia solidified their standing as contenders for the title, and Argentina flexed their muscles. On the other hand, Chile were extremely lucky to beat Bolivia on Friday and put themselves in position to qualify for the quarterfinals.
But the United States' 4-0 win over Costa Rica at the start of the week was also significant.
Not because they need to go through for the tournament's sake but, on a smaller scale, because the team proved a point.
The Americans are just another storyline in the Copa—not the major one, even for their own supporters. Part of the deal for fans in the country was being able to see players like Messi. And that suits Jurgen Klinsmann and Co. just fine.
Focused on trying to improve his team's level, the manager said they will not play for a draw against Paraguay, which would send them to the quarterfinals, per Jeff Carlisle of ESPN FC:
"We are not playing for one point, we cannot do that, it's not our character to for one point. We go for the win. Otherwise we might punish ourselves.
It's a one-off, and then this is our goal to go through that on Saturday and then play the next one-off, and learn how to win these one-off games, to mature in our own way towards a World Cup where we want to go further, where our big dream is to get into a final four of a World Cup, rather sooner than later.
[...]
The spirit is very upbeat, it's positive. Two games now played, three points. It's as difficult as we expected. The whole thing, we knew we were in the toughest group but now everyone is really hungry and eager to make things happen on Saturday night.
"
To some extent, he is right—USA's group was the hardest to call, with four teams that, on paper, seemed fairly even, even if Los Cafeteros were the favorites.
Costa Rica suffered a big blow when it lost goalkeeper Keylor Navas to an Achilles injury, which left the hosts and Paraguay to vie to go through in second place, and Saturday night's game between the pair should be an exciting one.
Klinsmann didn't change his team after a 2-0 defeat to Colombia on the opening day of the tournament in Santa Clara, and it paid dividends with the 4-0 triumph over Los Ticos in Chicago.
Clint Dempsey inspired his team to victory, and Bobby Wood, Jermaine Jones and substitute Graham Zusi landed on the scoresheet as well.
Darlington Nagbe and Christian Pulisic are the flavors of the day when it comes to the U.S. national team. And not without reason, as they add vibrancy and creativity to a team that sometimes looks like it is lacking those things.
And yet Klinsmann's decision to persevere seems to have paid off. He is likely to select the same starting lineup for the third game in a row after it worked so well against Costa Rica.
The coach called on the fans to get behind the team and drive them on to success against Paraguay.
"The whole squad is ready to rock it tomorrow night in Philadelphia," he said at his pre-match press conference. "Hopefully the fans are ready too and help us in that big, big task. Everybody is fit and healthy."
If the hosts cannot muster the right stuff, Klinsmann may be in danger. There is a fine line between success and failure, and he is on the wrong side for some.
"Results are what matter—everyone understands that," U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati said, per Doug McIntyre of ESPN FC.
"My expectation is certainly to win tonight and to win on Saturday to get through. A heartbreaking third place doesn't do the trick."
After a painful exit in the Gold Cup semifinals last July, Klinsmann needs a better showing at this Copa America. So far there is little evidence things have improved by any great degree in his five-year tenure.
The USA would move onto the quarterfinals with wind in their sails with a win over Paraguay, and the most probable matchup would be with Dunga's Brazil in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
That's the sort of game the coach wants his side to learn how to handle. And it's also the sort of game that, if the Americans win, would garner plenty of attention across the country. From there, they could really harness the benefits of being the hosts, though that is a long way off yet.
The match against Paraguay could send the USA on an upward trajectory or put them back to square one. According to Brian Lewis of the New York Post, 45,000 tickets had been sold for the game by midweek.
Will the spectators be watching the start of something or the end of it?
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