The U.S. men’s national team’s newfound depth at left back is suddenly gone heading into the toughest road game of the first round of 2014 World Cup qualifying. Fabian Johnson (calf), Edgar Castillo (hamstring) and emergency backup Jose Torres (ankle) are all banged up, and Eric Lichaj didn’t get called in. Still, the United States (1-0-0) is undefeated all time (6-0-4) in qualifying matches against Guatemala (0-1-0) and hasn’t lost to it overall since 1988. But conditions at Mateo Flores Stadium won’t be easy, especially with the home side hoping to bounce back from its 2-1 loss at Jamaica (1-0-0) in its opener.
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Following an underwhelming 3-1 win over Antigua and Barbuda (0-1-0), the United States also wants to show better, but the bigger challenge stateside will be finding a place to watch. With TV rights going to the host country, the Guatemalan soccer federation sold the game to a group that in turn conjured a deal with a company that will offer it only on pay-per-view for $29.95.
– Craig Stouffer
