Jurgen Klinsmann saiys USA's defeat by Costa Rica is toughest of his reign
Wednesday 16 November 2016 09:44, UK
United States coach Jurgen Klinsmann believes his team's 4-0 defeat by Costa Rica was the most dispiriting loss of his reign.
Arsenal's Joel Campbell scored twice in three minutes after Johan Venegas and Christian Bolanos had put the 2014 World Cup quarter-finalists 2-0 ahead.
The defeat was the second in succession for USA, who lost 2-1 at home to Mexico last Friday and leaves Kilinsmann's side bottom of the CONCACAF qualifying section.
"It's definitely the defeat that hurts the most in my five years, for sure," Klinsmann said, following Tuesday's defeat at San Jose's Estadio Nacional.
Although there are still plenty of points to play for with eight games remaining, Klinsmann admitted he had not anticipated failing to take a point from the opening two games.
"It's a bitter moment for us. There's no doubt about it," Klinsmann said. "We didn't imagine we'd start the Hexagonal with two defeats right at the beginning.
"We knew it was going to be difficult playing Mexico and Costa Rica in the first two games. But obviously you want to have some points.
"This is definitely a moment to reflect on what happened in the last 10 days. I said to the players it won't be the only 4-0 defeat in their career.
"But hopefully they'll take some lessons from this. Definitely it's bitter because we wanted to do far better than we did."
The United States has played in every World Cup since the 1990 finals in Italy. The top three finishers in the CONCACAF round robin tournament qualify automatically for Russia, while the fourth placed side enters a play-off.
Tuesday's drubbing is certain to renew speculation about Klinsmann's position. The German World Cup winner has faced repeated criticism of his tactics and personnel over the past year.
