Alexander Bernhardsson, Magnus Knudsen, Armin Gigovic and Finn Porath (from left) cheered on their team-mate John Tolkin during the penalty shoot-out

On Sunday evening, the long day of arrival ended with a real highlight for our Storks: After landing in Minneapolis in the afternoon and then traveling on to the hotel, they experienced the USA’s semi-final match against Costa Rica in the Gold Cup live at the U.S. Bank Stadium in the evening.

Our boys spent the almost nine-hour flight from Frankfurt to Minneapolis in different ways: Some caught up on an hour or two of sleep, some read a book or watched a movie, some played a game of Uno. On the way across the pond, they were catered for by Florian Held, among others, who himself had once learned about competitive soccer in the youth ranks of VfB Stuttgart, SV Waldhof Mannheim and SV Darmstadt 98 – and who now works as a flight attendant after his early career ended due to injury, so he took care of the KSV professionals’ physical well-being above the clouds.

At around 2 p.m. local time (9 p.m. CEST), our Storks set foot on American soil and then traveled to the hotel by team bus. “We arrived safely in the USA. We are full of anticipation and are looking forward to everything that awaits us here. I’m sure we’ll have a good time,” said Mladen Cvjetinovic upon arrival. Kasper Davidsen added: “Everything is really well organized by the club and therefore runs smoothly. The atmosphere in the team is very positive. It makes the trip fun and the anticipation for the rest of the training camp is growing.”

After a quick snack, there was another highlight on the agenda: as the USA had reached the quarter-finals of the Gold Cup in first place, they faced Costa Rica. The game took place at the U.S. Bank Stadium, which was within walking distance, so after a short walk our boys reached the arena where the Minnesota Vikings American football team normally plays its home games. As they entered the 73,000-capacity stadium, they witnessed the final minutes of the quarter-final between Canada and Guatemala live, which the Central Americans won 6:5 on penalties. The USA’s clash against Costa Rica kicked off just half an hour later. Together with more than 30,000 other spectators, we witnessed a thrilling encounter in which the score was tied 2-2 after regulation time, meaning that this match also went straight to a penalty shoot-out without extra time. John Tolkin had a chance to decide the game, but our full-back, who came on as a substitute in the 84th minute, was denied by Costa Rica’s legendary goalkeeper Keylor Navas. But just a few minutes later, Damion Downs from 1. FC Köln converted the decisive penalty, ensuring a happy ending from the US point of view and a place in the semi-finals.

Speaking of endings: a long day of travel ended a little later for our boys too, after more than 24 hours, with a dinner together. On Monday, coach Marcel Rapp’s team will start this year’s summer training camp with the first sessions at the grounds of MLS club Minnesota United FC.