Sorry, but the U.S. national team was playing World Cup champion Spain before 64,121 Saturday night at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., and its 4-0 loss can't be treated as an afterthought.
"Spain is a great team," understated U.S. coach Bob Bradley. "It's a tough test to play against them at any time and it becomes even tougher on the eve of the Gold Cup. It's what the game at the highest level is all about. It's the best way for our team to improve."
The last time the United States played Spain was at the 2009 Confederations Cup in South Africa, and the Americans scored a spectacular, 2-0 victory, ending Spain's 35-game international unbeaten streak. Six players who played that night were in Bradley's lineup Saturday, and the rest of the U.S. team included players who play professionally in England, Germany and Scotland.
What inexperience?
The Spaniards used five Real Madrid players, three from just-crowned UEFA Champions League king Barcelona, and three from English Premier League teams.
Santa Cazorla (Villareal) scored two goals, Alvaro Negrado (Sevilla), and Fernando Torres, who could not buy a goal this past season for either Liverpool or Chelsea, each scored once.
"We got our butts kicked," said U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard, who will face the Union with Everton at PPL Park in July. "If we win the Gold Cup in a couple of weeks, nobody will remember this."
And who do you think will remember anything about the Gold Cup?
