LANDOVER, Md. — The U.S. men’s national team kicked off its most consequential summer in a decade surrounded by expectations and buzz, by 55,494 fans here outside Washington D.C. — and by the 23rd minute of a high-profile friendly, a game billed as yet another test for a still-unproven USMNT, some of those fans were chanting: “USA, Colombia es tu papá!”
USA, Colombia is your daddy.
They were decked in Colombian yellow, to support a top-10 team in the world, the very type of team that has become a USMNT measuring stick. And they reprised the chant throughout a 5-1 beatdown of the Americans.
Over 90 minutes Saturday at Commanders Field, Los Cafeteros became yet another elite team that the USMNT couldn’t measure up to.
They beat the Americans in a game whose result was, in one sense, inconsequential. But it was part of an ongoing pattern. It was another opportunity for the Yanks to prove to the world and to themselves that they can topple soccer’s superpowers; and it was, in the end, another opportunity missed.
They found themselves behind in less than six minutes, and two goals down after 19. It was the first time since 1995 that a USMNT had conceded twice in less than 20 minutes.
Jhon Arias’ opener lit up a pro-Colombia crowd.
Rafael Borré’s acrobatic finish not long after sucked life out of U.S. fans who looked at the two starting 11s on paper and saw an even matchup.
They looked at the first-ever U.S. starting 11 exclusively comprising players from the Big Five European leagues. “Where everyone is playing, and the levels that they’re playing at, and what they’ve accomplished this year, speaks for itself,” Christian Pulisic had said Friday. “It’s just an exciting time.”
And yet, in roughly five years under head coach Gregg Berhalter, the U.S. still hasn’t beaten a top-25 opponent outside CONCACAF in an A-team game.
Colombia’s players, on the other hand, did not all come from the vaunted Big Five. Some did, but others came from Mexico’s Liga MX and Turkey’s Super Lig and Brazil’s Serie A and the Qatar Stars League.
They, however, have developed into a dynamic unit, one that’s now unbeaten in 22 games, dating back over two years.
The USMNT remains very far off that mark.
