It was a frigid night in St. Paul, Minnesota when the U.S. Men’s National Team (USMNT) defeated Honduras 3-0 in a World Cup qualifying match.
A game-time temperature of 3 degrees with a minus-16 wind chill meant players for both teams were not just competing against each other but the cold as well.
Though U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) guidelines deem below-zero wind chill temperatures as “extreme conditions,” the game continued on. The official recommendation of the USSF is cancellation or relocation indoors for such low temperatures, as frostbite could occur.
However, the cold did not hamper the U.S., which played its previous two games in cold environments. On January 27, the Americans defeated El Salvador 1-0 in Columbus, Ohio, when the game-time temperature was 29 degrees. On January 30, the game-time temperature was 22 degrees in Hamilton, Ontario, when the U.S. lost 2-0 to Canada.
Still, the weather in Minnesota was another level of harsh, compared to the conditions during the two previous games for the U.S. Despite the bitter cold, the game was a sell-out. The official attendance was 19,202 fans, most of whom cheered for the red, the white, and the blue.
From the opening whistle, the U.S. looked like the superior team. Weston McKennie and Walker Zimmerman scored first-half goals for the Americans. Then, Christian Pulisic came off the bench to add the third goal in the second half.
The U.S. failed to score any goals off set-pieces in the first ten qualifying games, but against Honduras, all three goals came courtesy of a set-piece.
McKennie opened the scoring just eight minutes into the game. Kellyn Acosta took a long-distance free-kick and passed the ball into the box. The ball found McKennie, who headed the ball in for his ninth career international goal.
The second goal came in the 37th minute and was also set up by an Acosta free-kick. His long-distance pass appeared to be heading for Jordan Morris, but it flew past him as he attempted a leaping header. The ball landed at the feet of Zimmerman, who turned around his defender and kicked the ball in with his right foot from five yards out.
The U.S. would enter halftime with a comfortable 2-0 lead after only having scored four first-half goals in the first ten qualifying games.
Pulisic scored the third goal of the night and his 18th career international goal just three minutes after entering the game as a substitute. Acosta again initiated the goal by passing the ball in from a corner kick. Ricardo Pepi managed to head the ball back across the goal. The ball bounced off of Zimmerman and landed near the penalty spot, where Pulisic kicked it in for the goal with his right foot.
It was an overall dominant performance for the USMNT. American goalkeeper Matt Turner was not forced to make a save. The U.S. possessed the ball 71.8% of the game and outshot the Hondurans 16-2.
Football Club (FC) Dallas’ fingerprints were all over this win. McKennie, Acosta, and Zimmerman played multiple seasons for FC Dallas before moving onto other clubs. Current FC Dallas player Jesus Ferreira subbed in the second half for Pepi, another FC Dallas alumnus, who left to join a German club in January.
The Hondurans entered the game already eliminated from qualifying for the World Cup. After the match, Honduras coach Hernán Darío Gómez expressed his displeasure with the unfavorable weather conditions.
“Soccer shouldn’t be endured this way. I’ve got all my players getting treatment, some players getting an IV,” Gomez said.
Honduran goalkeeper Luis López and forward Rommel Quioto did not return to the game after halftime, reportedly due to what was described as hypothermia.
Meanwhile, USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter defended the location of the game despite the temperature violating USSF guidelines for safe outdoor play.
“When we go down to those countries, and it’s 90 degrees and 90% dew point, and it’s unbearable humidity, and guys are getting dehydrated and cramping up and getting heat exhaustion, that’s the nature of our competition,” Berhalter said.
As for other action within the Central, North America, and the Caribbean qualifying region, Canada won 2-0 in El Salvador for its sixth consecutive win. Mexico needed an 80th-minute penalty kick by Raúl Jiménez to defeat Panama 1-0 at home, and Costa Rica won 1-0 in Jamaica, officially eliminating the Jamaicans from qualifying for the World Cup.
Canada is unbeaten in qualifying and leads the standings with 25 points. Mexico and the U.S. follow with 21 points each, but the Americans hold the goal-differential tiebreaker. Panama is in fourth with 17 points, and Costa Rica is in fifth place with 16 points.
The top three finishers will automatically earn a spot in the World Cup. The fourth-place finisher will enter into a two-game series against the Oceania region winner – likely New Zealand – for a berth in the competition.
The final three games for qualifying will take place in March. The U.S. will open that cycle with a game in Mexico on March 24 and play their final qualifier in Costa Rica on March 30. In between those two games will be a home game against Panama in Orlando on March 27.
