Jeff CarlisleFootball correspondent in the United States8 minute reading
Gomez: USMNT performance against Trinidad and Tobago makes me uncomfortable
Hercules Gomez says USMNT’s “lackluster” performance against Trinidad and Tobago makes him “uncomfortable” about the second leg.
October 10, 2017 is a day that still thrills the American football ecosystem. It was on this day that United States men’s national team lost 2-1 to Trinidad and Tobago and, combined with a confluence of supernatural events, the result saw the United States eliminated from qualification for the 2018 World Cup.
The consequences were seismic. Bruce Arena resigned as U.S. coach a few days later. The president of the American Football Federation, Sunil Gulati, has finally decided not to run again. This result also gave birth to a new generation of players, a group that ultimately qualified for the 2022 edition of the World Cup in Qatar, with the United States reaching the round of 16.
But wounds, emotional or otherwise, leave a scar. Scars may heal, but they never completely disappear either. There is sensitivity to what happened and discomfort with the memory.
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For some, those memories will be front and center on Monday, when the United States faces T&T in the second leg of the Concacaf Nations League quarterfinals. Although this is the fifth time the two teams have faced each other since that fateful night at the Ato Boldon Stadium in Couva, Trinidad, 3-0 victory on Thursday in the first leg — this will be the first time the United States plays in T&T. This time the match will take place at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain. If the United States takes care of business, not only will progression to the CNL semi-finals be assured, but qualification for next summer’s semi-finals will also be assured. Copa Americaa vital tournament in terms of preparation for the 2026 World Cup.
It doesn’t take much for the memories to come flooding back. The day before the match, parts of the field were literally underwater, making the American training session unsuccessful. There was the opportunity missed early by Jozy Altidore, the disastrous own goal from the American defender Omar Gonzalezthen the absolute dart triggered by Alvin Jones which put T&T 2-0.
Christian Pulisic‘s goal, two minutes into the second half, gave some hope, but as the minutes passed, the tension began to build and became unbearable. Clint Dempsey hit the post in the 77th minute. Results elsewhere in Concacaf began to tilt against the United States, including a phantom goal of Panama striker Gabriel Torres who never crossed the finish line and set the stage for Roman Torres’ late winner. Honduras‘ Overcome Mexico sealed the fate of the Americans, and they had to leave the field after suffering the greatest embarrassment in the history of the program – eclipsing even the 40-year period from 1950 to 1990, when failure to qualify was the rule and not the exception.
Current American midfielder Weston McKenniethen drill with Bundesliga of Schalke 04, remembers waking up in Germany at the home of his then teammate Nick Taitague, only to be stunned by the result.
“We woke up in the morning and we were like, ‘Oh my God, we didn’t qualify for the World Cup,'” McKennie said before Thursday’s match. “We looked at the goals and there were some crazy goals. It shows that football can be any team’s game that day. And that’s what was shown during this match as well.”
With Pulisic currently injured and not with the United States at the moment, defender Tim Réam is the only vestige of this team which made the trip to Couva. He has been a professional for over 13 years and has therefore had to deal with many moments, ups and downs.
So, what are the moments that impact a player the most: the highs or the lows?
“I think you remember both of them, because they’re both … learning experiences,” Ream said after Thursday’s game. “But for me, I tend to focus on the highs and the positives because I think over the course of a career there are so many moments, and when you dwell on the negatives, they build up and keep coming. So I tend to remember the good times more than the bad times. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t there in the memory bank.
Will they be there on Monday?
“No, absolutely not. I passed that point a long time ago,” he said. “For me, obviously, I’m the only one here that’s a part of it, but to be completely honest, it’s been so forgotten that I don’t even think about it.”
The subject of this American humiliation has been raised several times during this camp to better ensure that the USMNT plays with the required intensity.
“I could kind of feel the spark and the fuel of the team, the staff and how special this game is; the story behind it and what it did to American football that day,” said the winger. Kevin Paredes said.
The focus has not been entirely negative in the current camp, with the United States trying to focus on another famous incident in Trinidad. It would be Paul Caligiuri’s “Shot Heard ‘Round the World”, the goal that in 1989 beat T&T 1-0 on the final day of qualifying for the 1990 World Cup. The victory put the United States in at the World Cup for the first time in 40 years and gave a boost to the U.S. men’s program.
U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter brought in Caligiuri to speak to the team before Thursday’s game. The former US international not only brings the prospect of scoring to put the United States into the World Cup, but also of being one of the first pioneering US players to head overseas, having signed with HSV Hamburg, then a German powerhouse, in 1987.
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“At one point in my life I wanted to prove to the world that Americans could play football,” he told reporters before Thursday’s game. “We’re past that point. I mean, we’re obviously respected. I think America loves soccer. America loves our men’s national team, our women’s national team, and those who don’t like us, fear us , and that’s it. A whole different level of play than what we’re at today.”
Caligiuri now marvels at how much the sport has evolved in the years since his retirement. He believes this is the best American men’s team of all time, and there isn’t a single area of the sport that hasn’t grown tremendously. But its goal remains a major turning point for sport in this country.
“I think it resonates with a lot of people, and it was an important moment, not just for football in terms of the men’s national team. I think it’s world football,” Caligiuri said . “It really brought football to the forefront in this country, it allowed us to host World Cups, both men’s and women’s, and it introduced this great sport to the rest of the country.”
Thanks to three goals scored in the final eight minutes of Thursday’s match, there shouldn’t be much drama in Port of Spain on Monday. But that doesn’t mean the United States takes anything for granted.
“We’re in a good position, but crazy things happen,” Berhalter said after Thursday’s game.
That night in Couva, six years ago, is a not-so-subtle memory.
Arch Bell contributed reporting for this story.
