I believe I wrote a few days ago that America’s fluke arrival in the Confederations Cup semifinals — a 3-0 win over Egypt, a 3-0 win by Brazil over Italy — meant that the United States would be playing South Africa in the third place game on Sunday.

Color me shocked.

The Americans beat Spain, only the best team in the world, 2-0, on Wednesday. They got an early goal and played on their heels for most of the rest of the game, but the defense rose to the occasion, flustering the Spanish, and then getting a goal on a counter. It was amazing to say the least, and to think a few days ago, the masses were calling for coach Bob Bradley to be fired.

I’d say this is the most stunning win for the American since they beat Portugal 3-2 in the first game of the 2002 World Cup in Sowon, South Korea. It’s the biggest win since they beat Mexico in the second round 2-0, but that wasn’t a stunner. The United States always beats Mexico now unless it’s in Mexico City.

Going back from there, you’d have the 1-0 win over Brazil in 1998 in the Gold Cup, and the 1995 win over Argentina (3-0!) at the Copa America in Uruguay. And then you’d have the win over Colombia in the 1994 World Cup. And you can’t forget the 1-0 win over Trinidad in 1989, which sent the team to the 1990 World Cup. If the U.S. doesn’t win that game, there’s a chance that the U.S. doesn’t host the World Cup in 1994, which changes everything.

All in all, a great win for the Americans, and the defense did quite a job under some pretty intense pressure in the final 60 minutes of the game.