USA will be up against Portugal as the Americans look to qualify from Group G of the FIFA World Cup 2014. The match, which will be the second group match for both teams, will be played at the Amazonia Arena in Manaus on Sunday, June 22.
The United States of America are currently second in their group behind Germany on goal difference. They beat Ghana 2-1 in the opener riding on the fifth quickest goal in World Cup finals history by Clint Dempsey which was followed by a winner from John Brooks. They will need to win this game if they are harbouring any hopes of qualification to the second round as their final group match is against the Germans.
Portugal lie at the bottom of Group G after suffering a heavy defeat at the hands of Germany. After going two goals down, Portugal were a man down after Pepe’s stupidity earned him a red card. What followed was disaster as Thomas Muller score a hattrick for Germany to give them a 4-0 victory. The match is thus a must win encounter for Portugal if they are to qualify for the Round of 16.
USA are coached by German star Jurgen Klinsmann, who had reached the 2006 world cup semi-final in Germany as coach of the home team.
Klinsmann has appeared to be a shrewd customer when it comes to tactics and his teams are always set out to attack. The team have been featuring in FIFA tournaments for some time now and have shown great improvement to be where they are today.
The Americans, who are possibly the fittest team at the World Cup, will look to play a counter attacking game against the Portuguese as they will be wary of their talismanic skipper Cristiano Ronaldo. As a unit, USA should not be afraid of Portugal currently. While Ronaldo is clearly playing through an injury which needs rest according to experts, the rest of the group did not show much fight against Germany.
While the USA won against all odds in their opener against Ghana, Portugal wilted in what was expected to be a close encounter. The likes of Nani and Joao Moutinho have got to play well for Portugal to have a chance. Playing through Ronaldo is too one dimensional an approach to succeed at an event of this magnitude. The team from Europe will need to raise their game by a great deal in order to qualify for the next round.
The Portuguese also have the disadvantage of having to play in the heat of Manaus – something that their players are not accustomed to. The USA will not face such problems though and are favourites to cause a big upset on Sunday.