USMNT keeps World Cup hopes alive with shutout win over Honduras

The U.S. {national} group proved Wednesday that it’s potential to play soccer on the North Pole. What it didn’t set up, nevertheless, is why you’d wish to.

Taking part in in climate extra appropriate to polar bears, penguins and popsicles, the U.S. warmed its cooling World Cup hopes with a 3-0 win over Honduras that stored it second within the eight-team CONCACAF qualifying match with three video games remaining, inserting a ticket to this fall’s competitors in Qatar nicely inside its grasp.

Weston McKennie, Walker Zimmerman and Christian Pulisic stormed throughout the frozen tundra at Allianz Area to attain on three set items, sending the U.S. on to its most one-sided shutout win since final spring.

But it surely wasn’t engaging, it wasn’t suave and it most likely wasn’t all that sensible to be working round in shorts in 2-degree climate and a wind chill of -13, temperatures which made Wednesday’s kickoff the coldest for a U.S. qualifier this century by a large margin.

How chilly is a temperature of two levels?

So chilly that infrared heaters hung from aluminum frames over each benches, scorching air was pumped in at ft stage and the substitutes and coaches sat on heated seats, wore heated vests and drank scorching apple cider and tea. However even that couldn’t entice two Honduran gamers to depart the heat of the locker room for the second half.

How chilly is a wind chill of -13?

So chilly that the 19,202 followers courageous sufficient to threat hypothermia discovered disposable hand heaters within the cup holders at their seats. Frostbite can happen inside minutes within the circumstances Wednesday’s sport was performed in, so roving medical groups circulated all through the stadium checking on the paying clients whereas further medical stations have been set as much as deal with those that wanted assist.

And people have been the highs Wednesday night time. By the point the sport ended the temperature was -1 and the wind chill -17.

Gamers on each groups, in addition to the referees, worn compression shirts and tights in addition to Nike hypertherm headcovers and gloves. U.S. goalkeeper Matt Turner, who regarded extra like a cross-country skier than a soccer participant, took the sector with a quarterback-style handwarmer supplied by the Minnesota Vikings. After a protest from the Honduran bench, referee Oshane Nation made the keeper take it off, leaving Turner to heat his gloved fingers inside his shorts.

Taking part in within the Artic circumstances, U.S. Soccer stated, was meant to present its group a home-field benefit. Being the much-better group, apparently, wasn’t benefit sufficient: the U.S. began Wednesday ranked 13^th on the planet by FIFA, 50 locations forward of Honduras, and has misplaced simply eight of 47 matches below coach Gregg Berhalter.

Honduras remains to be searching for its first victory since final July – it has been outscored 29-6 in14 video games since then — and hasn’t gained in any respect below supervisor Hernán Darío Gómez.

United States’ Weston McKennie (8) heads in a objective previous Honduras’ Rommel Quioto (12) and Juan Delgado (6) with United States’ Walker Zimmerman (3) and Honduras goalkeeper Luis Lopez (22) trying on through the first half of a FIFA World Cup qualifying match Wednesday in St. Paul, Minn.

(Andy Clayton-King / Related Press)

The Central Individuals, 0-8-3 in qualifying, performed their earlier match Sunday in 87% humidity and had been eradicated from rivalry for a World Cup berth earlier than their even bought to snow-covered Minnesota. However they gamely performed on in circumstances that left its frozen gamers bluer than their indigo warm-up jackets.

This match would have been a mismatch no matter the place it was performed. And whereas the Individuals (6-2-3 in qualifying) struggled — particularly with their continued incapability to attain from the run of play – they bought what they needed after they scheduled the sport within the coldest of the nation’s 51 largest city facilities, beating Honduras by the identical three-goal margin they gained by within the warmth of humidity of San Pedro Sula in September.

McKennie put the U.S. forward to remain within the eighth minute, heading an extended Kellyn Acosta free kick from the precise aspect simply contained in the close to submit for the group’s first set-piece rating in 11 qualifiers. It might get one other 29 minutes later when Zimmerman bought on the top of one other Acosta cross, this one from the left wing, then spun and redirected it previous former LAFC teammate Luis López together with his proper foot.

The 2 targets additionally doubled the variety of first-half scores for the U.S. in qualifying. Pulisic bought the ultimate rating two minutes after coming off the bench, banging in a unfastened ball that fell to his ft following an Acosta nook within the 67^th minute.

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