At home, U.S. team has golden chance Americans meet Mexico for CONCACAF title

So, we meet again, eh, Tricolores?

Today, Mexico is on the U.S. national team's turf, the Los Angeles Coliseum, to play for the biennial CONCACAF Gold Cup championship each nation has won once earlier this decade.

El Nino's drenchings permitting, upward of 80,000 are expected to watch at 8 p.m. EST, maybe half to cheer for each side.

Notwithstanding, if you're the Yanks, just being home beats the last Mexico-U.S. tussle, just 14 weeks ago. That was the scintillating 0-0 tie the U.S. team earned in Mexico City's 7,000-foot altitude despite having to play a man short for 58 minutes in front of 110,000 Mexican partisans.

What a tense, memorable World Cup qualifier that was, the second 1997 tie between the teams and the end of a zip-for-60 years string of American humiliations in Mexico City.

Remember, Tricolores? So tough was the Americans' resolve, so selfless their passing, and so disciplined their defense, why, in the second half, many of your own fans began cheering for Los Gringos. Verdad -- the truth.

From a U.S. perspective, that draw yielded an unexpected "golden point" in the standings, as coach Steve Sampson put it, on America's road to France. The tie also helped get Mexican coach Bora Milutinovic fired and left Mexico with one win out of the countries' last eight matches.

All of which makes today's rematch (no Baltimore-area TV) zestier, even though, win or lose, both teams still leave for France and the World Cup in June.

Both clubs today will use most of the players they'll likely use in France. For winning this championship of North and Central America and the Caribbean carries more than just bragging rights.

The winner gets $150,000 and will represent the region in next year's Copa America, South America's national-team championship, and possibly in the fourth FIFA/Confederation Cup, which has yet to be scheduled.

World Cup-bound Jamaica and Brazil play for third place in the opener of today's doubleheader. Jamaica lost, 1-0, in overtime to Mexico Thursday night. The Americans ousted defending world champion Brazil, a Gold Cup guest, on Tuesday, 1-0.

NOTES: Play-making midfielder Claudio Reyna is expected to play today for the U.S. team; a groin strain benched him against Brazil. Americans Kasey Keller, brilliant in goal against Brazil, Eddie Pope, the D.C. United defender, and midfielder Preki Radosavljevic, who scored game-winners against Costa Rica and Brazil, made the Gold Cup all-star team. Holland's roster for next Saturday night's friendly against the U.S. team in Miami includes the country's best-known international players. There is no Dutch B team for that exhibition.

Pub Date: 2/15/98