The USMNT played one of its worst opening 45 minutes in the modern era on Wednesday night in Honduras, and then followed that up with one of the greatest second halfs we've ever seen. Both were largely down to the choices of Gregg Berhalter, and while we should ultimately value and treasure the second 45, we shouldn't immediately forget about the first half.
Whisper it — anything more than a whisper and it might vanish — but Canada is on course for the 2022 World Cup (after three games).
The 1-1 draw with the United States in Nashville must’ve stirred something in the Canucks’ plums, because they came out like a side possessed on Wednesday night at BMO Field. Frankly, some of Canada’s play against El Salvador in the opening 30 minutes was disturbingly good, and 38-year-old captain Atiba Hutchinson was at the heart of it all.
How much must this all mean to the man who collected his 88th cap tonight?
Will the US qualify for the World Cup? One month ago, even the most pessimistic of USMNT fans would begrudgingly say this squad will qualify for Qatar 2022.
Fast forward to the afternoon of Sept. 8 and there’s a thick fog of anxiety and nervousness in the air ahead of the American’s clash against Honduras.
No nation plays the spoiler quite like Greece.
The pinnacle was reached at Euro 2004, but it should be remembered that the Ethniki dumped out Andriy Shevchenko’s Ukraine in qualifying for the 2010 World Cup and then ended the Ivory Coast’s golden generation of Didier Drogba, Yaya Touré and company at the 2014 finals.
After failing to qualify for its last three major international tournaments, Greece again assumed the role of gate crasher in UEFA Group B for 2022 World Cup qualifying alongside the favorites Spain and Sweden.
Premier League clubs could face sanctions from FIFA if they play South American players who were not released for international duty in this weekend's games.
Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City are among clubs who did not release Brazilian players for the current international break due to them having to travel to "red list" countries and face a choice of not selecting those players this weekend or running the risk of sanctions.
A massive Group G World Cup qualifier between first-place Turkey and second-place Netherlands resulted in a famous 6-1 victory for Louis van Gaal’s side in Amsterdam.
The Netherlands moved to the top of the group with 13 points from six games, while Turkey dropped to third after Norway took care of business against Gibraltar to climb into the second-place spot. It’s going to be an almighty battle between the three nations over the final four matchdays, but it’d be shocking to see Holland slip-up now.
DAR-ES-SALAAM - Tanzania were awarded one of the fastest penalties in international football after five seconds of Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier against Madagascar.
Ugandan referee Mashood Ssali pointed to the spot when a long ball from kickoff was chased by Tanzania’s Simon Mvusa, who was clumsily clattered into by Malagasy goalkeeper Melvin Adrien, who plays club football in France’s fourth division.
MANCHESTER, England - FIFA is investigating the abandonment of the Brazil-Argentina World Cup qualifier with its president Gianni Infantino labelling the events "crazy,” while Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly ready to take disciplinary action against their Argentine players.
Brazilian health authorities intervened on Sunday after accusing four Argentine Premier League players of violating the country's COVID-19 quarantine rules.
The USMNT is only two matches into its 14-game CONCACAF World Cup qualifying odyssey, but one look at the early table shows you why Wednesday’s meeting between the U.S. and Honduras in San Pedro Sula is feeling like a must-win.
While qualification obviously doesn’t hinge on the result, there’s a sense that if the tournament successes of the past summer are to have any real meaning, then the U.S. needs to end this September window with its first win of the Octagonal.
As things stand, we’re not going to the World Cup. We’re going to the inter-confederation playoffs. Yes, it’s only two games down and 12 to go, but we’ve already messed with the formula. Don't ever mess with the formula: win at home and draw away.
The scoreless stalemate against El Salvador at Estadio Cuscatlán last Thursday could be forgiven as part of the plan, but not this. Not like this. Not Alphonso Davies skinning DeAndre Yedlin out wide to silence Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.