Hex: Bobby Wood Saves the USA
Perhaps USA manager Bruce Arena was putting a fallback in his pocket, just in case his side lost this pivotal Hex match in Honduras.
He claimed the news earlier in the day that DACA was no more would anger his hosts to the point of causing an adrenaline rush at the sight of an American.
Wrong. Hondurans don't need any additional fuel to keep that fire burning.
It was Honduran General Florencio Xatruch who put an end to Walker's imperialistic ambitions, and it's in his honor that Hondurans morphed his name and refer to themselves as Los Catrachos.
Putting paid to the USA's automatic World Cup qualifying hopes was what their footballing version was trying to do in a crucial Hex match. A Honduran victory over the Yanquis would've given them the inside track to making their third straight World Cup appearance.
But it was not to be.
Shifting to a 3-5-2 and inserting Bobby Wood into the fray were the saving graces that disguised another poor Yank outing and pulled a vital 1-1 draw outta the wreckage.
Americans know what they're gonna get from Honduras:
- A Uruguyan approach to physicality; think Oakland Raiders during their heyday, and
- A Portuguese penchant for diving at the first hint of, for example, bad breath.
At least from that perspective, the match didn't disappoint. Aesthetically, though, it was trash.
It sounds preposterous to say that maybe Los Catrachos scored too early, but given how they dicked around with the ball afterward -- look at the passing advantage compared to their possession percentage -- maybe they did:
Perhaps they were lulled into a false sense of security by the Americans' insistence on playing aimlessly, as they did when surrendering the Hondurans' goal in the 28th minute:
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Now, ask yourself:
- Knowing your very survival for a World Cup berth could be on the line, how do you trot after Romell Quioto instead of busting patootie to make amends for letting that pass through?
- Realizing that in dire situations, it's advisable for a defender to immediately get between the ball and the goal, why in the name of Ali Baba & the 40 Thieves would any defender pull up before doing so?
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So much for the 4-4-2 diamond.
Turns out that a second-half sub with extensive European experience was called upon to save the day, and dude delivered.
Give Arena credit for shifting to a 3-5-2 to cut down on the Hondurans' clock-chomping lateral grass-cutters, and give Christian Pulisic props for hanging in there despite enduring incessant chippiness.
Take a look at the full frontal he absorbed to win the free kick that ultimately resulted in the American goal:
Two-point landing for the kid. No yellow card. Somewhere, Joe Jordan is smiling.
Given the opportunity, this is where Wood displayed his close-quarter skills and gave his mates the inside track to Russia in the process:
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Now, that's quality, especially at a time -- the 85th minute -- when the rubber met the road.
Panama predictably popped Trinidad & Tobago, 3-0, to jump into the Hex's third qualifying position:
But the USA gets them in Orlando on Fri 6 Oct before doing the T&T thing on Tue 10 Oct for what had better be a gimme.
Thus, they're the masters of their own fate.
All they've gotta do is play like it.