In the last two World Cups, Ghana was the country responsible for sending the United States home, coincidentally on 2-1 finals each time. However, this time, the U.S. got their revenge. But it wasn't easy. After Clint Dempsey scored a goal 30 seconds into the match to give the USMNT a 1-0 lead, Ghana went on the offensive, barely missing on an equalizer with one attack after another.
Then, in the 22nd minute, the hearts of U.S. fans everywhere skipped a beat when Jozy Altidore came up grabbing his hamstring.
After lying on the pitch for a bit, Altidore was taken off on a stretcher and eventually diagnosed with a strained hamstring. And the hits didn't end there. Ten minutes later, Dempsey took a boot to the face, causing his nose to profusely spew out blood.
Even with a solid knock to the nose, Dempsey managed to stay in the game. The same can't be said for central defender Matt Besler, who didn't return after halftime because of hamstring injury and was replaced by John Brooks. The move proved to be a genius one on the part of Jurgen Klinsmann but we'll get to that later.
With Ghana continuing to force the issue in the second half, they finally broke free on a fancy give-and-go to tie the match up in the 82nd minute.
After sitting back for most of the half, the USMNT needed to force the issue if they wanted to come away with more than one point. With time running out, the U.S. got a corner which found a wide-open Brooks (remember him?) who, in his first competitive cap, headed in the game-winner to give the United States a 2-1 victory.
The United States will play Portugal this Sunday at 5 p.m. ET while Ghana will take on Germany on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET.
