U.S. enters a crucial summer with eyes on World Cup

	If both teams can manage to stay on course, it should be a U.S. vs. Mexico classic in the final of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Sandra Tenuto/WireImage.com
	U.S. Men's National Team '07 Schedule June 7 vs. Guatemala at Carson, Calif.* June 9 vs. Trinidad & Tobago at Carson, Calif.* June 12 vs. El Salvador at Foxborough, Mass.* June 28 vs. Argentina at Maracaibo, Venezuela** July 2 vs. Paraguay at Barinas, Venezuela** July 5 vs. Colombia at Barquisimeto, Venezuela** Aug. 22 at Sweden Oct. 14 vs. Catalonia at Barcelona, Spain Oct. 17 at Switzerland * CONCACAF Gold Cup group-stage play ** Copa América group-stage play

The U.S. is going to win the World Cup.

There, I got your attention. Of course, I don't know when that's going to happen, and I seriously doubt it will be in South Africa 2010. But even the haters agree: Sooner or later, the Yanks are going to break through.

It's amazing that just a year ago, we were all talking about how much progress the U.S. had made, how it was ready to build on its appearance in the '02 quarterfinals and how the talent had never been better. That was before the three-and-out flameout in Germany last summer that exposed the Americans' overconfidence and lack of big-game experience.

That said, Germany '06 is ancient history. The U.S. has a new coach in Bob Bradley, a fresh philosophy, a slew of new players and three years to strengthen itself for the next World Cup.

Starting Thursday, the Yanks get serious again. The next seven weeks are Team USA's most important since the World Cup disaster, and a trio of crucial tournaments will go a long way toward solidifying the U.S. team of the future. The players' time together is also crucial in building team chemistry. As defensive stalwart Carlos Bocanegra says, "This will be the longest time we'll be together before the World Cup."

Here's why you should care about each tournament.

Gold Cup: U.S.-Mexico dead ahead -- hopefully

In theory, this should be a competitive clash to determine who's the granddaddy of CONCACAF. There's just one problem: Beyond the U.S. and Mexico, the quality in our own region is pretty slim. Mexico is currently No. 20 in the FIFA rankings, the U.S. No. 29. After the dynamic duo, the highest-ranked country is Costa Rica at No. 52, one of the 10 other Gold Cup participants -- all of whom are far outside FIFA's top 50.

That puts everything in place for the biggest showdown between mortal enemies Mexico and the U.S. outside of World Cup qualifying. And yet amazingly, the two haven't locked horns in the final since 1998. A lot of that is due to the "guest invites" over the past few tournaments that have played havoc with the field, such as Brazil, Colombia and South Korea.

There are no invited countries this time around. It might be a bit of an overstatement to say anything less than a U.S.-Mexico final would be disastrous. But for both countries, it would be a big step backward for the teams that are supposed to be the only real powers of CONCACAF.

The U.S. isn't underestimating any of the teams it will face in the group stage, but the fact is that all are fairly weak opposition. Guatemala is basically FC Dallas star Carlos Ruiz and 22 others. Trinidad and Tobago will be missing the bulk of its '06 World Cup veterans, who are in the middle of a dispute with the national federation over their bonuses. El Salvador hasn't been to a World Cup in 25 years and is ranked No. 144.

All three should be (and we say this very hesitantly) fairly easy opponents, and the Yanks should advance to the final again on June 24 at Chicago's Soldier Field -- as should Mexico, assuming neither team blows it. "We aim to win it," Bocanegra says flatly.

Why you should tune in: U.S. vs. Mexico is obviously an enormous rivalry, and the ill will is never hotter than in games that actually matter. The fans want this final, and so do the players (not to mention CONCACAF, which looks even more impotent if anyone else gets there). And need we mention the U.S. is now 7-0-1 against Mexico on American soil this decade and has outscored the Mexicans 13-1?

The winner earns a spot in the all-important Confederations Cup in South Africa in '09, a tournament that features the winners from each of FIFA's six confederations and is considered a major World Cup warmup. For the U.S. to be able to play against possible Cup opponents in South African stadiums the summer before the big show is a huge advantage.