USA v Mexico, do you believe? Lets get some talk people

[the noise factor]

There is a growing belief that the U.S. will make history and get the three points needed to head to South Africa, seriously denting Mexico’s World Cup dreams at Azteca Stadium on Wednesday.

The U.S. has never won a match on Mexican soil with woeful record of 0-18-1 in Mexico City.

They will need to overcome the grueling combination of 7,200 feet in altitude, smog and more than 100,000 hostile fans if they are going to pull off a historical victory.

The match comes just 2½ weeks after the Mexicans’ 5-0 trouncing of the U.S. in the Gold Cup final -- but nearly all the players in that match were backups. Before the victory Mexico had been 0-9-2 against the U.S. in the States since a March 1999 victory at San Diego.

The teams first met in 1934 in a World Cup qualifying match in Italy, and seventy-five years and 56 matches later, the intensity and hostility between these two teams of the CONCACAF region have never been at a higher level.

For the USA, a spot in the finals should be all but secure barring a huge meltdown, like the one displayed against Brazil in the Confederations Cup final. But missing the 2010 World Cup is a serious possibility for Mexico if the U.S. comes away from the Estadio Azteca with a draw or a win.

Six points from five games in the final stage of CONCACAF qualifying has left Mexico in fourth place in the six-team pool. The top three finishers progress directly to the World Cup, while the No. 4 finisher goes into a playoff against a tough South American team.

This will be one of the most exciting sporting events of the year and either outcome will produce some new history in this long-running rivalry.

USA 2 Mexico 1

[the noise factor]

We have still never beaten El Tri on their home turf. We played as well as we ever have, but we still came up short.