The U.S. men's national team escaped with a 3-2 win over Martinique at the Gold Cup on Wednesday - a sentence nobody expected to read. It was another unconvincing performance from the hosts, who somehow have four points from two matches, but it puts the team in a good spot to advance. Here are three takeaways from the match:
Don't worry too much
This team has been together for just a few weeks and a lot of these guys haven't played much together. It's like an expansion team in other American sports leagues - you know it is going to take some time. This team was never going to come in and be dominant, but it is going to need more time before it leaves a good taste in the mouth of fans.
In a good spot
Despite perhaps not deserving four points, the U.S. has them and should be fine to move on. It doesn't have to be pretty. This team just wants to move on and this victory, with Jordan Morris' two goals leading the way, is probably enough to at least get through as one of the two best third-place teams.
Momentum or done
With all that said, this team hasn't looked like a contender, let alone a team that can get out of the quarterfinals. With one more group stage match against Nicaragua at the weekend, this team has to put on a performance to build confident and momentum. It has neither right now, and if it doesn't do so, this team will likely exit the competition early in the knockout stages.
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