US seeking 1st WCup goal

It’s been 12 years since an American forward scored in a World Cup.

Brian McBride’s go-ahead goal against Mexico during a 2002 second-round match in South Korea helped the Americans advance to the quarterfinals in their best showing since 1930.

As the Americans prepare for next month’s tournament in Brazil, pressure for goals will be on Jozy Altidore and Dempsey, who gradually has shifted to striker during the current four-year cycle.

As a 20-year-old, he started all four American matches at the 2010 World Cup, and he didn’t start to break out until he signed with AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands.

He scored 20 goals in 2011-12 and added 31 the following season, setting a record for an American with a European club.

While he didn’t score in seven matches during a winter loan back to Fulham, he has eight goals in six games with the Sounders in 2014.

“If you looked at the position that I’ve played over the World Cup qualifiers, you’d say most of the time I was playing more of a withdrawn forward, which is a little bit of both,” Dempsey said.

“I’ve played wide left, played wide right, played centrally, played withdrawn forward, played the target striker.

Landon Donovan, the American career leader with 57 international goals, has had an opposite run, scoreless in seven games this year for the Los Angeles Galaxy.

A pair of 23-year-olds also are competing for roster spots: Terrence Boyd scored 20 goals in for Rapid Vienna this season and Aron Johannsson had 26 for AZ.