Confed Cup
June 25, 2009
The United States scored its greatest win in almost 60 years by beating European champions Spain to reach the final of the Confederations Cup.
A first-half strike from Villareal's Jozy Altidore and another goal 16 minutes from time by Fulham's Clint Dempsey did the damage in what will go down as one of the biggest victories in US soccer history.
"This win is huge for American soccer," said man of the match Dempsey. "This is our first time to be in the final of a major competition, so obviously we're thrilled."
Spain is currently ranked as the world's best team by FIFA, the governing body of world soccer. But for Spain the defeat was even more painful as it ended a record of 15 consecutive wins and also prevented them from surpassing Brazil's record of 35-match unbeaten runs.
Spain had not been defeated since going down 1-0 in a friendly to Romania in November 2006.
US faces Brazil in Sunday's final
"A lot of people didn't think we could do this," US defender Oguchi Onyewu said after the game.
"But we showed our heart, our grit and our resilience. It's a huge achievement for us. I bet there weren't a lot of people in Europe and around the world that would have bet on this."
Even Spanish striker Fernando Torres was forced to admit that his side was up against a more-than-worthy opponent. "They have fantastic players and a strong team, and maybe by beating Spain and breaking our streak people will start to recognize that."
The result was even more remarkable because the US had lost their opening two group matches in the competition and were heading out until they beat Egypt 3-0 on Sunday. After Brazil had sunk Italy by the same score, the US only squeezed through on the numbers of goals scored.
However, the match ended in bittersweet agony for the US when Michael Bradley, after a brilliant game in midfield, was sent off three minutes from time. He will now miss Sunday's final against Brazil, which beat South Africa in the other semi-final Thursday night.
ai/Reuters/dpa/AFP
Editor: Jennifer Abramsohn