ORLANDO, Fla. — The goal the United States national team needed arrived after only eight minutes. Soon there was another. And another.
By halftime, the whispered pregame fears about the unthinkable — that the United States might stumble and bumble its way right out of a place in next summer’s World Cup in Russia — were long forgotten. By the final whistle — after the United States had polished off an encouragingly comprehensive 4-0 dismantling of Panama on Friday night — there were only cheers, and relief, and the acknowledgment that while there was still one more important step toward Russia, the job was nearly done.