MANAUS, Brazil (June 22, 2014) – In hot, humid conditions at Arena Amazonia, the U.S. Men’s National Team earned one valuable point in a 2-2 draw against No. 4 Portugal during its second match of Group G play at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Jermaine Jones and Clint Dempsey each scored for the USA with Dempsey’s 81st-minute tally giving the USA a 2-1, come-from-behind lead.
The U.S. was seconds away from clinching a spot in the Round of 16 as a win would have sent the U.S. through and Portugal would have been eliminated. However, Portugal’s Silvestre Varela tallied the latest of equalizers in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time on virtually the last touch of the game.
The USA is now tied atop Group G with Germany at four points each, but Germany holds the tiebreaker based on goal differential. The USA will face Germany in its Group G finale on Thursday, June 26, at 12 p.m. ET (ESPN, WatchESPN, Univision) and can clinch a spot in the Round of 16 in the following ways:
- A victory against Germany, which would also give the USA the group title
- A draw against Germany
- A draw between Ghana and Portugal in the other Group G match, which will be played concurrently to USA vs. Germany
- A loss combined with ending group play with superior goal differential over the winner between Ghana and Portugal
For full standings and results, visit ussoccer.com’s 2014 FIFA World Cup homepage.
Goal Scoring Rundown:
POR – Nani (unassisted), 5th minute: Portugal capitalized on a mistake to go ahead early in the match. The sequence started on the left side from Andre Almeida to Miguel Veloso, who then crossed into the middle of the box. Central defender Geoff Cameron failed to clear the ball as it skipped off his left foot and straight to Portugal forward Nani, who found himself alone in front of the U.S. net. Nani settled and powered the ball over U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard to make it 1-0. USA 0, POR 1
USA – Jermaine Jones (unassisted), 64th minute: After the goal, the U.S. was the aggressor and the more dominant team and finally got the goal it had seemingly earned. The U.S. earned a corner kick from the right and Graham Zusi’s delivery was deflected away by Portugal’s defense. U.S. midfielder Jermaine Jones collected outside the box toward the left, took a touch inside to his right to make space, and with Nani defending, crushed his 27-yard shot just inside the right post into the side netting as Portugal goalkeeper Beto could only watch flat-footed. USA 1, POR 1
USA – Clint Dempsey (Graham Zusi), 81st minute: Michael Bradley passed to second-half sub DeAndre Yedlin on the right, and the young defender – who played in the midfield after coming on for Alejandro Bedoya in the 72nd minute – took the ball to the end line and crossed on the ground into the middle. The ball was deflected and Bradley got a shot attempt, which was blocked. The ball ricocheted to Graham Zusi on the left, and he calmly clipped a short left-footed cross over Portugal’s Joao Pereira to Clint Dempsey, who guided the ball into the net from the doorstep with his mid-section for the go-ahead goal. USA 2, POR 1
POR – Silvestre Varela (Cristiano Ronaldo), 90+5th minute: With the USA clinging onto the lead and just seconds left in the five minutes of allotted stoppage time, Cristiano Ronaldo crossed from the right side on a counter attack. The connection to Silvestre Varela was pin-point as Varela dove to powerfully head the ball from the edge of the six-yard box into the right side of the net for the dramatic equalizer. USA 2, POR 2
Key Saves and Defensive Stops:
POR – Beto, 17th minute: The USA’s best scoring chance in the first half from the run of play came from Michael Bradley’s pass from the midfield to Clint Dempsey who was sprinting into the right side of the box. The well-timed run led to Dempsey getting a look at the goal from a stiff angle in the right side of the box, but his shot toward the near post was knocked away by Portugal goalkeeper Beto.
POR – Beto, 27th minute: Clint Dempsey once again challenged the Portugal defense when he was set up Graham Zusi on the right. Dempsey had a tight window as he fended off a defender, and then shot right-footed toward the near right post, where Beto cleaned up with the foot save.
USA – Tim Howard, 42nd minute: Portugal’s counter attack went through Cristiano Ronaldo on the left side, where he crossed to a wide-open Nani on the right. Nani shot from outside the box, trying to find the left side of the frame, but Howard dove for the save, eventually leading to a free kick that Ronaldo fired over the goal.
USA – Tim Howard, 45th minute: Nani’s strike from outside the box snuck pass diving U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard, who tried to bat the ball away. Instead, it clipped off his glove and hit the right post flush for a rebound. First-half sub Eder had a chance to strike the bouncing ball at goal, but the off-balance Howard managed to stick up his left hand to spectacularly lift the ball over the goal or it would have been 2-0.
POR – Ricardo Costa, 55th minute: The USA’s most clear-cut scoring opportunity to this point pulled a last-ditch block from Portugal’s defense. Graham Zusi led Fabian Johnson on the right side. Johnson brought the ball to the end line and drew goalkeeper Beto toward him before crossing to Michael Bradley in the middle of the box. With Beto on the ground, Bradley shot at the goal from almost point blank range and somehow sprawling Portugal defender Ricardo Costa cleared the ball off the line with his left knee.
Milestone Watch:
- Clint Dempsey scored his second goal in this year’s FIFA World Cup and his fourth in tournament history. His four goals tie Bert Patenaude for second on the all-time USA list, and is one goal behind Landon Donovan’s five tallies.
- Dempsey moved past Eric Wynalda in all-time appearances with his 107th game on Sunday and sits in ninth place on the list. Wynalda had 106 caps from 1990-2000.
- Dempsey earned his eighth FIFA World Cup cap, which moves him into a tie for ninth place on the U.S. MNT list alongside Marcelo Balboa and Wynalda.
- With his 102nd international appearance, Tim Howard ties the U.S. MNT goalkeeping record set by Kasey Keller (102 caps from 1990-2007). Howard and Keller are tied for 11th on the all-time caps list overall.
- DaMarcus Beasley, the only USA player to appear in four FIFA World Cups, played in his ninth World Cup game, which ties him for sixth on the U.S. MNT’s all-time list with Eddie Pope and Tab Ramos. Beasley also played in the 118th match of his career as he sits in fifth place on the all-time list, nine caps behind fourth-place Balboa (127).
- Midfielder Michael Bradley moved past Steve Cherundolo on the all-time caps list with his 88th appearance. Bradley is 19th, two caps shy of 18th-place John Harkes (90 from 1987-2000).
Next on the Schedule:
The U.S. MNT faces Germany in the third and final game of Group G play at the 2014 FIFA World Cup at 12 p.m. ET on Thursday, June 26, at Arena Pernambuco in Recife, Brazil.
Broadcast information: ESPN, WatchESPN, Univision and ESPN Radio
Reprinted from U.S. Soccer.