The pressure is high as the USA enters the knockout stage of the Copa America Centenario. The USMNT will have a solid home-field advantage with the match taking place at CenturyLink Field, but they face one of their toughest opponents to date—Ecuador.
Read on as we take a look at the intense soccer action to come. For more action, tune in to Euro 2016 currently being contested on the other side of the Atlantic. Check out our complete previews for England vs. Wales and Germany vs. Poland.
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There’s plenty of pressure on the Americans to advance to the semis, but doing so may not even be rewarding since they may face tournament favorites Lionel Messi’s Argentina. Nevertheless, the USMNT are one gritty group and won’t go down without a fight, especially after they already beat Ecuador 1-0 in a friendly leading toward the Copa America Centenario.
The United States is coming off a strong group stage. After losing their opener 2-0 against Colombia, they won their next two games, outscoring their competition 5-0 along the way. The stars of the USMNT showed up in the past two matches with Clint Dempsey scoring twice, while Jermaine Jones also tallied one of his own.
Dempsey may be even more dangerous in this match considering he’s playing on CenturyLink Field, home to his MLS team Seattle Sounders FC. Team USA’s star striker has scored three goals at Seattle in club competition this year. Having Dempsey at his best should be a big boost to the USMNT, given that Ecuador didn’t look too comfortable in draws against Brazil and Peru in the group stage.
The Americans are 8-1 on their native soil in international competition this year.
Ecuador may not have been too impressive during the group stage of the Copa America Centenario, but they are still very dangerous. All it takes is one slip up and La Tri are there to take over. Take for example the Ecuadorians’ match against Peru in the group stage. They went down 2-0 early, but managed to even it up within just a few minutes before and after halftime.
La Tri also flashed their scoring prowess against bottom-feeders Haiti in their group stage finale. Enner Valencia, Jaime Ayovi, Christian Noboa and Antonio Valencia each scored to get Ecuador into the knockout stage.
Ecuador should be spurred by their 4-0 rout of Haiti. They’ll be teeming with confidence despite playing on Team USA’s native soil. The teams have met 12 times since 1984, with USA winning just twice, while Ecuador have won five times, with five draws.
Writer’s Prediction
Clint Dempsey will be Team USA’s (+148) hero, netting the game winner late in the second half.
