Snooze Express Towards South Africa

Thanks to Ricardo Clark's stunning outward bender, the United States took all three points in Trinidad & Tobago on Wednesday night, moving temporarily to the top of the CONCACAF qualifying table and coming to the verge of qualification for World Cup 2010.

The game was about as non-descript of a crucial win as you'll find, with ultra-homeless-looking Clint Dempsey's otherwise lackluster play the most remarkable aspect of the 1-0 American win. Luckily for the Yanks, Dempsey crossed a ball that Landon Donovan fed to Ric, who pounded home the game's lone goal.

The States win guarantees them no less than the CONCACAF/CONMEBOL playoff, which pits the No. 4 seed from the former against the No. 5 seed from the latter for one of the final World Cup slots.

I don't know if I can stay up any later, but in the 63rd minute, both the Mexico/Honduras and El Salvador/Costa Rica matches are scoreless. My calculations say we should hope to El Salvadorian and Honduran victories. I'll update everything else tomorrow (or tonight when I punish my morning my staying up).

States in danger? Not if we humbly opine...

Sometimes you have to let your credibility flag fly -- I can't talk at length about the States' 2-1 win over El Salvador at Rio Tinto because I was working myself into a spot via a wonderful variety of scotches and whiskies that will likely lead to me having to wear a disguise the next time I want to go to the splendid soccer bar that is Piper's Pub in Pittsburgh (I also left my red US track jacket behind. Hopefully whoever dealt with my handiwork earned that swell piece of attire as a reward. I'm sorry, Piper's. You have a truly great pub).

The States were superior enough to overcome a rare Tim Howard mistake and emerge with all three points. Landon Donovan hit two picture perfect passes to assist on both Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey's goals. As promised on Twitter, Altidore and Charlie Davies celebrated by doing their own version of the Stanky Legg. Nice.

Media-types are saying the States are in danger, but I'd place my worries at a relatively low and scientific 13 percent. Over three games, the States have to be one point better than one of three teams, and can all but ensure qualification with a win in Trinidad&Tobago this Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. The Yanks also have the second-best goal differential of the Top Four, at plus-4.

The Americans also have defender Edgar Castillo in the fold. The Tigres backliner had played in four friendlies for Mexico before requesting to align himself with the Red, White & Blue. He's been granted his request, and will be available beginning with the States' two October match-ups. Jermaine Jones has not yet been cleared to skip sides from Germany to America. According to Goal.com, FIFA is waiting for extra information from the German footballing federation.

Prediction for Wednesday: In home fixtures, T&T has taken all three points from El Salvador, just one from Honduras, and zero from then in-form Costa Rica. Look for the US to fall into the latter category, with a defender's goal off a corner, and an open field tally from either Davies or Altidore: States 2, T&T 0.