U.S. Goalkeeper's Gaffe Is A Reminder Of Soccer Team's Sucky State

Hopes of the embarrassed U.S. men’s national soccer team to move forward aren’t going to be helped by mistakes like this.

In the team’s first match  since a humiliating loss to Trinidad and Tobago last month knocked it out of next summer’s World Cup, U.S. goalkeeper Ethan Horvath let a ball go between his arms and legs during a friendly against host Portugal on Tuesday.

The Americans actually had a 1-0 lead on their European opponents, who were playing without Cristiano Ronaldo. But that evaporated with the goalie’s blunder. The game ended in a 1-1 tie.

Horvath was benched earlier this month by his Belgian club team Brugge. Tuesday night’s unfortunate error probably won’t help his confidence, either.