World Cup qualifiers

All the USMNT had to do to qualify for the World Cup was forfeit and take a 3-0 loss, instead they played soccer. Costa Rica would need to win by six or win ...

If you watch the replay, the ball clearly strikes the back of the net and then bounces back to hit Zack Steffen in the head... It might have been a loss, but at the end of the day the USMNT has achieved its goal of qualifying for the World Cup. As it wound down, the match seemed to lose its steam. Occasional sloppy defending hasn’t been badly punished by opponents of the USA so far in qualifying, but the backline failed to clear three chances following a Costa Rica set piece and punishment was doled out. Miles Robinson did manage a shot that Keylor Navas initially dropped, it looked like maybe the ball would backspin it’s way into goal, but it wasn’t meant to be. Costa Rica’s 4-4-2/5-4-1 formation did what it was meant to do and gave the USA possession, but pressed the Americans to slow their build up in the back, and then fell back into well organized blocks of four or five and four. Following the goal, Weah, Yedlin, and Pepi made way for Gio Reyna, Shaq Moore, and Jesus Ferreira. Things then calmed down and the Ticos stopped scoring every eight minutes. The USA didn’t need to win but couldn’t lose by more than six but wanted to win for the first time in Costa Rica. It almost felt like a really important friendly. The Americans then forced Navas into another save and... The Americans set out a strong lineup as Gregg Berhalter sought to finish the qualifying campaign with a win. Or there’d have to be an even more improbable set of events to see the Ticos eliminated. Notably, Berhalter went with a more defensive option in midfield with Kellyn Acosta getting the start of Luca de la Torre.

The United States men's national team arrived at the Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica on Wednesday having all but qualified for the 2022 Fifa World Cup.

They pushed the ball forward and kept on the attack, but were slowed by fouls and tight defending. But the USA would never quite regain the momentum or control the pace of the match. The opening minutes of the second half saw the United States’ best chance on goal. As for the hosts, the atmosphere was celebratory and hopeful. The 35,062-seat bandbox was packed and cheering. Had lightning struck, the worst-case scenario was an intercontinental playoff with New Zealand in June.

After beating the USA, Costa Rica finished World Cup qualifiers in fourth place and will face New Zealand in a playoff for a World Cup berth.

Jewison Bennette drove in a low cross and Contreras bundled in the finish from close range. Despite the early effort from USA, it was Costa Rica who took the lead in the 51st minute. However, Costa Rica goalkeeper Keylor Navas parried away the shot, before Timothy Weah’s follow-up was blocked.

The USA are coming back to the FIFA World Cup stage after they had missed the last edition in Russia in 2018.

Qualifying will not be as onerous for the 2026 World Cup, which expands to 48 nations. The US travelled 25,042 miles on charters — just over circling the globe at 24,901 — plus players had up to five trans-Atlantic round trips, with Germany-based Adams and England-based Antonee Robinson making the maximum. While the USA won six of seven home games with one draw, it finished with one victory, three losses and three ties on the road. A growing and increasingly hypercritical fan base is hoping to see Christian Pulisic & Co. reach the quarterfinals for the first time since 2002. The Americans have never won a qualifier in Costa Rica, losing 10 and drawing two. El Tri moved ahead of the USA and clinched their eighth straight World Cup, while the USS finished third with 25 points and a plus-11 goal difference.