Washington Post · Sep 1, 2021
USMNT enters World Cup qualifying ready to create new legacy after 2018 debacle
SAN SALVADOR — On Wednesday afternoon, a charter carrying the U.S. men’s national soccer team landed at El Salvador’s international airport, some 30 hours before a 2022 World Cup qualifier between the countries.
The players disembarked with a collective value in the tens of millions of dollars, a figure that, even without attacker Christian Pulisic, who was held back from the opener after recovering from the coronavirus, and goaltender Zack Steffen, who is suffering from back spasms, is unprecedented in American soccer and a measure of the program’s rebirth.