In the past two decades, the US conceded first to a CONMEBOL team 19 times—resulting in only a solitary victory (against Peru at RFK Stadium on 9/5/15), a trio of ties, and 15 losses. History rang true when Colombia found the net in the eighth minute of Friday’s matchup, and the U.S. fell 2-0 in their first match of the Copa América Centenario to Columbia at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
The Colombians got on the board early Friday when defender Cristian Zapata rocketed Edwin Cardona's corner kick into the bottom-right part of the net to draw first blood. In the 40th minute, Real Madrid’s James Rodriguez added an insurance goal, converting from the penalty spot after a cross into the box struck Sunderland defender DeAndre Yedlin's hand.
Friday’s loss instilled a sense of urgency for the U.S. National Team against Costa Rica on Tuesday, however. In what was essentially a must-win game, the Red, White and Blue responded strongly, trouncinglos Ticos 4-0. A trio of first-half goals staked their claim in the match, beginning with Clint Dempsey’s seventh-minute penalty kick (and his 50th international goal). Colorado’s Jermaine Jones, Bobby Wood (who recently signed with Hamburger SV of the German Bundesliga) and Sporting KC's Graham Zusi all scored to put the game out of reach for Álvaro Saborío and los Ticos.
Zusi, who came off the bench to replace Wood in the 70th minute, scored 17 minutes later and to seal the emphatic victory. "We knew played pretty well against Colombia, they just got two set-piece goals," United defender Steven Birnbaum said. "In the end, it came down to the Costa Rica game, and we’ve had our backs against the wall before so no one was worried, more so excited for the opportunity to keep this going and potentially advance."
While Costa Rica recorded a number of shots (seven), they were unable to find the net against the U.S. defense. Saborío entered the match for Costa Rica in the 18th minute after Danish Superliga forward Marco Ureña exited the match with an injury. Saborío played 72 minutes, won a free kick in the attacking half and made a number of good attacking runs. Birnbaum—who started in the U.S.’s warm-up match against Ecuador before the tournament—did not play.
Tuesday’s victory, which helped to get the U.S. out of the cellar in Group A, puts the United States (1-1-0) in good shape for advancement, though a place in the quarterfinals are not guaranteed. "We had a good performance both offensively and defensively, but now we’re looking for another win against Paraguay," Birnbaum said. "We’ve been going over film this week getting ready. Hopefully moving on to the next round, so everyone’s in good spirits and looking forward to the opportunity.” On Saturday, June 11th, head coach Jürgen Klinsmann will look to his veterans to lead the charge against Paraguay (0-1-1) at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field.
Seattle Sounders forward Clint Dempsey has recorded one goal on eight total shots, three shots-on-goal, and two assists in his first two games of the 2016 Copa America Centenario. And after the United States’ 4-0 victory on Tuesday, eyes will follow Dempsey and Jones to make an impact against Paraguay.
Hoping to harness the momentum from their shutout against Costa Rica, the United States are facing a Paraguay team coming off a 2-1 loss to Colombia on Tuesday. Head coach Ramon Diaz and his Los Guaraníes enter the match with the urgent task of needing three points in order to reach the tournament’s quarterfinals. Saturday will mark Paraguay’s final group-stage match against the United States.
