In the past two World Cups, the Americans have bid bitter adieu to the competition at the hands of the Black Stars, whoâ⬔first in Nuremberg and then in Rustenburgâ⬔dealt the knockout blow to the USAââ¬â¢s tournament dreams.
To add insult to injury, the United States was also ushered out of last yearââ¬â¢s under-20 World Cup by the Ghanaians, a third decisive defeat over the Yanks in international competition that added some varnish to Ghanaââ¬â¢s reputation as Americaââ¬â¢s World Cup nemesis.
For this reason, while any pundit would classify Mondayââ¬â¢s opening match in Natal between these two nations as a crucial fixture in a group alongside Portugal and Germany, the already-high stakes of the clash have been amplified by American media to an intensity that feels more like cup final than tournament opener.
Nobody feels that pressure more than US national team manager Jurgen Klinsmann, who has become the most talked-about member of the American World Cup team, despite the fact that he wonââ¬â¢t touch a ball in Brazil.
Fromà axing leading goalscorer and sporting icon Landon Donovanà toà last-minute tactical upheavalà to aà sweeping critique of basketball star Kobe Bryantà and big-money contracts in American sports, Klinsmannââ¬â¢s every action has been headline-making, every word seized upon by the press.
This media attention has meant a long, strange road to the World Cup for Klinsmann, who has quickly gone from media darling and lauded tactician-in-chief to a man whose pre-tournament actions have invited scepticism and even uncurbed angerâ⬔coming to a head when an ESPN presenterà demanded the former German international ââ¬Ëget out of America.ââ¬â¢
The unremitting negative press may have its upside, however, as Klinsmannââ¬â¢s relatively untested teamâ⬔featuring only five players with any World Cup experienceâ⬔has been afforded the opportunity to go into Brazil out of the mediaââ¬â¢s crosshairs with the focus trained squarely on their manager.
Though largely untried in major tournaments, the squad boasts proven talent with experienceà across Europeââ¬â¢s best leagues, including Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard, former Roma midfielder Michael Bradley, and forward Clint Dempsey, who tallied 50 career goals for Fulhamâ⬔a core that guided the Americans to the top of Englandââ¬â¢s Group C at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
The team also boasts seven dual-internationals at their first World Cupâ⬔including 19-year-old Julian Green, who made a brief cameo this year for Bayern Munich in the Champions Leagueâ⬔and nine players from Major League Soccer, where Dempsey and Bradley now play.
The Yanks won their three warm-up matches against Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Nigeria and seem to have particularly gelled in the last friendly, moving back toward a 4-2-3-1 formation that bears more resemblance to what was deployed in qualifying.
Klinsmann has already said that the Americans wonââ¬â¢t lift the World Cupâ⬔but they will need to win against Ghana.
Anything less would prove catastrophic to the United Statesââ¬â¢ chances in Brazilâ⬔and damaging to Klinsmannââ¬â¢s legacy, should he become yet another American manager undone by Ghana.