Open Cup
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On the Pitch
On the Pitch
26 USMNT Moments, Past to Present: Standing Tall Against Brazil
Goalkeeper Kasey Keller records 10 saves to lead USMNT to first ever win vs. World Cup champions Brazil
By: Adam Jasper
Sometimes, even the best players in the world have to tip their caps when they know they’ve been bested. Sometimes, legends of the game fall to the giant slayers. Sometimes, a singular performance on a field full of 22 creates a moment etched into history.
Kasey Keller made the night of February 10, 1998, at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum one of those times. The U.S. Men’s National Team goalkeeper’s 10-save performance to lift the Stars and Stripes to their first ever win over reigning World Cup champions Brazil was a confluence of all the most compelling storylines: An underdog story with an unlikely hero led to a historic result in a storied venue.
Keller’s most memorable save came in the 42nd minute of the Gold Cup semifinal match. As Brazil whipped in a cross, legendary forward Romário rose up into space to head the ball. It was a point-blank chance for one of the best goalscorers in world football, and Keller stood tall, parrying the ball down to the turf and collecting it after a bounce.
Romário was stunned into immobility. Standing above Keller, the Brazilian waited for the goalkeeper to stand back up and did something you rarely ever see in the middle of a match. He shook his opponent’s hand.
“[Romário] was so frustrated, he just didn’t know what to do,” Keller said in a 2018 interview. “I never had it happen before, and I never had it happen again where a player just shook my hand in the middle of the game. That gets replayed over and over, it’s a special moment.”
Keller’s night was one where he had to face bombardment at the hands of a sublime Brazil squad.
“We were getting beat up by Brazil,” Preki, his USMNT teammate, said. “But I remember Kasey having one of those nights that comes once in your lifetime.”
Things weren’t exactly going according to plan for the U.S. in a first half where Brazil were having their way.
“I remember looking at the lineup that comes out against you,” Keller said. “Brazil is a world All-Star team, and you look at the team and the strike force that they have. You’re like, ‘Well, this could be a long day.’”
Keller started his night off saving a longshot from a Brazilian attacker in the 9th minute. Two minutes later, it looked like the visitors surely had their first. Romário got on the end of a squared ball at the top of the 6-yard box, fake shot a defender out of the picture and poked an attempt at goal. Keller, who was recovering left to the middle of the goal, countered his momentum and dove right to stop the strike from no more than a yard or two away.
It might’ve been in that moment that Keller and the U.S. knew something special was brewing.
Or maybe it was in the 65th minute, when fancy footwork and an audacious attempt saw Preki thrust the U.S. into the lead. His strike from distance at a nearly impossible angle soared into the left side of the net and ignited furious celebration from the hosts.
If those watching weren’t convinced that something was in the air that night by then, they sure were in the 79th minute. Romário got another golden chance, one-on-one with Keller, as the Brazilian chested the ball down and flicked it on towards the net. With so little space between him and the attacker, Keller had to pick a side. He chose wrong, diving right as the ball went to his left.
But then he stuck out a leg, a desperate left leg that sent the ball away from the frame of goal. The announcers calling the match, the fans in attendance, even the coaches looking on couldn’t believe what they were seeing. Neither could Keller.
“There’s still this thought that there’s so much talent on this [Brazil] team that somebody is going to do something that I can’t save,” Keller said. “But if I can dive the wrong way and still make the save, there’s a good chance that maybe we have something special going on here.”
The shots kept coming, all the way up until the 87th minute when Keller went full extension to stop a longshot from Giovane Élber.
Ten saves and a screamer later, the United States had at last beaten Brazil, and to go to a Gold Cup Final, nonetheless.
“Honestly, if we would have lost that game 7-0, that would have probably been a fair result,” Preki said. “But that’s why this game is such a beautiful game because you never know what can happen.”
Still, for all the iconic plays that took place, the moment of the match was the one that had nothing to do with the ball being in play, that handshake. Romario reflected the respect he showed on the pitch when speaking to media after the match.
“That was the greatest performance I have ever seen by a goalkeeper,” Romario said. “It was an honor to be on the field with him. I take the blame. But the goalkeeper was incredible.”
