U.S. Needs To Defeat Jamaica Victory Would Move Americans Close To Spot In World Cup Field
The United States can take a giant step toward qualifying for the 1998 World Cup by beating Jamaica on Friday at Washington’s RFK Stadium.
“Everybody here is expecting big things from us this weekend,” forward Eric Wynalda said.
If the United States beats Jamaica, the Americans probably will need only one victory in their final three qualifying matches to gain a spot in the 32-team World Cup field.
Three teams from soccer’s North and Central American and Caribbean region will qualify for the World Cup. Mexico and Jamaica lead the standings with 11 points apiece, followed by the United States and El Salvador with nine points each.
However, Jamaica has played two more matches than Mexico and one more than the United States.
“We respect Jamaica for what they’ve accomplished, but Jamaica also has to play three very difficult games,” Wynalda said. “They’re coming in here looking to get something out of this game. But if we concentrate on what we have to do, we should be fine.”
Wynalda, the U.S. career scoring leader, missed the last qualifier against Costa Rica on Sept. 7 while he was recuperating from groin surgery. But he is ready to go against Jamaica after playing two MLS games for the San Jose Clash in the last 11 days.
Two others players who missed the Costa Rica match are returning against Jamaica.
Forward Joe-Max Moore, bothered all summer by ankle and groin injuries, recently led the New England Revolution into the MLS playoffs. And midfielder John Harkes, who missed the Costa Rica match because of yellow cards, also is back.
The U.S. team has had success in Washington, going 4-2-2 at RFK since 1993. But the expected sellout of 50,000 fans won’t all be rooting for the Americans. U.S. soccer officials are predicting that up to onethird of the crowd will be Jamaican.
Jamaica has won its last three qualifying matches, all at home and all by 1-0 scores against El Salvador, Canada and Costa Rica. But it has lost two and tied one in its three road games.
“Jamaica is a team that has a lot of confidence,” U.S. coach Steve Sampson said. “For us, the most important thing is not only to win this game and get three points, but also to win the support of the Latino fans in the Washington area.”
Although the U.S. team is favored, it is not overconfident.
Wynalda remembers a similar situation eight years ago, when the Americans only needed to beat a weak team from El Salvador to qualify for the World Cup. But the match in Fenton, Mo., ended in a scoreless tie, and the U.S. squad then had to win at Trinidad and Tobago to qualify.
Wynalda wasn’t a member of that U.S. team, but he watched the El Salvador game from the stands.
“I think back then, we realize now how inexperienced we were,” he said. “We were very nervous. The difference with this game is, we’re far too experienced. We know what to do. We’ve been there before.”