2014 Year in Review: June Edition
By DJ Smith
World Cup fever reaches USA
Jun 16, 2014; Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, BRAZIL; United States goalkeeper Tim Howard (1) makes a save against Ghana during the second half of their 2014 World Cup game at Estadio das Dunas. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
Starting in early June the stars of Soccer all migrated to Brazil to take part in the 2014 World Cup, as players represented their home countries all trying to capture the elusive World Cup. For the United States they were placed in a very competitive group that featured powerhouse Germany, Portugal and Ghana, all were thought to be favorites heading into play. On June 16, the Americans faced off against Ghana in a rematch of their 2010 World Cup matchup where Ghana knocked off the Americans. In this years matchup Clint Dempsey started the match scoring the Americans first goal just 15 seconds into the match, the 1-0 lead would hold up for 82 minutes when Ghana’s Andre Ayew scored in the final minutes of the match and to tie the match at 1-1. However with just under five minutes left, bench player John Brooks headed in fellow teammates Graham Zusi’s corner kick to give the Americans a late lead and the upset victory over Ghana. The Americans would go on to tie Portugal 2-2 just six days later, then fell to the Germans 1-0, but because the Americans held the tiebreaker on goals allowed, they advanced over Portugal and were headed to the knockout stage against Belgium on July 1st.