Men's National Teams
5 USMNT Gold Cup Players Desperate To Make An Impact Before The World Cup
Bruce Arena has finalized his 23-man roster for the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup, and it’s an interesting mix of veteran players that are desperate to impress and make one final World Cup squad while the next generation of talent aims to prove that their time has arrived.
While every player on the roster stands to either gain or lose a lot with regards to the ultimate goal of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, here are five players that could use this tournament as a springboard to more important roles next summer.
These Are The 7 Greatest Confederations Cup Finals
The Confederations Cup will play its eighth final on Sunday, July 2.
For the first time since 2003, Brazil will not be in said final.
The Brazilians have dominated this tournament, winning four of the seven editions and reaching the final another time. Only France (twice) has been to more than one final, winning in 2001 and 2003.
While the Confederations Cup can occasionally create some less-than-stellar matches in the group stage, the finals have been entertaining at the very least.
Mexico Advance To Confederations Cup Semifinals At The Expense Of Sorry Hosts
Goals from Nestor Araujo and Hirving Lozano were enough to see Mexico through to the semifinals of the FIFA Confederations Cup. Russia took an early lead through Aleksandr Samedov, but Yuri Zhirkov’s red card in the 68th minute extinguished any hopes of a Russian comeback.
Portugal’s 4-0 victory over New Zealand consigned Mexico to a runners-up finish in Group A, setting up a semifinal match against, most likely, either Germany or Chile.
The United States Men's National Team Ultimate World Cup Starting XI
The United States has appeared in 10 FIFA World Cups, including the last seven straight. Out of those 10 appearances, they've fallen at the first hurdle on five occasions. The most notable exceptions include the first-ever World Cup in 1930 when the side finished third in the 13-team tournament and their run to the 2002 quarterfinals in Japan and South Korea.
Christian Ramirez Scores Another Beauty, Gold Cup Omission Grows More Baffling
Approaching the halfway point of the 2017 Major League Soccer season, Minnesota United has already answered two questions that lingered around the expansion club throughout preseason: 1.) Is MNUFC the worst MLS side of all-time? No. Far from it. In fact, with five wins (which is what many predicted would be their grand total for the entire season), they’re only three points out of the playoff picture.
Americans Plot Sabotage On Torsten Frings Exactly 15 Years Later
Torsten Frings is finally getting his comeuppance, 15 years and 24 hours to the day.
The former German international became head coach of SV Darmstadt in January, around the time American Terrence Boyd joined the team.
Darmstadt was promptly relegated to 2. Bundesliga.
On Thursday, 19-year-old Texan McKinze Gaines signed with the club. One can only assume he’s planning to help finish the job Boyd started.
Why might these young Yanks be plotting revenge on a new coach of high regard who spent a couple years in MLS before retiring?
The Best (And Worst) Soccer Fans
With the Russia World Cup less than a year away, we here at The18 asked ourselves who are the best (and worst) fans in the world.
We’ve compiled a list below of superlatives to break down what makes each country’s fans unique, for better or worse.
Note: We limited results to nations that are or have been regular World Cup qualifiers. Scroll to the bottom for the best and worst fans.
The Latest USMNT Gold Cup Kits Have Leaked
The 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup kicks off in just a few weeks, and it looks like the United States Men’s National Team has a new kit on the way. The tournament will begin on July 7 with Canada taking on French Guiana at Red Bull Arena in New Jersey. While we continue to speculate over who will make the final 23-man roster for the USMNT, there’s one thing we can all come to an agreement on: the new Nike kits are a huge upgrade.
Goals From Peralta And Jimenez Enough To Overcome Juan Carlos Osorio’s Master Plan
Oribe Peralta, enemy of the free people of New Zealand with six goals against the Oceania side, might’ve saved Juan Carlos Osorio’s job with a match-winning goal against the Kiwis in the 72nd minute of El Tri’s 2-1 victory.
After an impressive showing from Mexico in their opening 2-2 draw with European champions Portugal, El Tri manager Juan Carlos Osorio made eight changes to his side because he’s the tinker man. As a result, Mexico spent the opening 45 minutes looking disjointed, blunt and second best.