USMNT 2 Ghana 1 – Yanks Have One Foot In Knockout Rounds After Thrilling Win

Clint Dempsey put the United States up less than a minute after the game began, picking up a ball off a throw-in and weaving his way through the Ghanian defense before smacking a shot off the post and in on the far side. That early boost kept the US powered up for the first 20 minutes of the game or so, but it seemed nearly inevitable that when the US' other chances started to fall by the wayside, the Ghanians would start to work their way back into the match.

The end of the first half featured some early signs of Ghana having all of the control of the match, and that unfortunately followed into the second half. The US defense, supposedly its biggest weakness, stood strong for a very long time, even with John Brooks being brought in as a substitute for Matt Besler. Unfortunately, holding the Ghanians at bay for the entire game proved to be impossible. Andre Ayew looked like he would kill off American dreams in the 82nd minute as he finished off a lovely 1-2 play for Ghana that saw the entire US defense chasing behind it after a slick pass.