U.S. forward Josh Wolff ready to deliver

U.S. forward Josh Wolff knows all about the role of the substitute but is prepared to embrace the opportunities it presents.

"Any minutes are good minutes," said Wolff who has six goals in 17 appearances for his country.

Making a rare start on Thursday, Wolff scored a pair of goals to lead the U.S. to a 5-0 rout of Jamaica in a World Cup warmup match.

The U.S. meets a near-full-strength Netherlands on Sunday in Foxboro, Massachusetts, in its final warm-up before departing for South Korea on May 23 where they open their campaign on June 5 against Portugal in Suwon, South Korea.

Even though he is viewed as a reserve, Wolff made a strong argument for inclusion in the starting lineup based on his performance against Jamaica.

In the 32nd minute, he met a cross from Joe-Max Moore with a diving header along the left post for a 1-0 lead before his shot from 17-metres into the top right corner at 60 minutes sent the U.S. to a comfortable 3-0 lead.

"You always look at a game differently as a substitute, but that doesn't mean you can't make a big difference," said Wolff comparing his role to that of Italy's 1990 World Cup hero Salvatore "Toto" Schillaci.

"Look at what Schillaci did. He came off the bench and destroyed teams.

"Life as a forward is very up and down. The way I see it, you're going in to change the game, to make an impact. I just want to spark up the team."

GOAL STUNS MEXICO

Named to his first World Cup squad, Wolff proved during the qualifying campaign what an opportunistic substitute is capable of doing.

As a second-half substitute in their opening match in the final round of qualification last year, Wolff broke a scoreless deadlock against CONCACAF archrival Mexico.

Later, he made a scintillating run down the right before supplying a cross to Earnie Stewart who finished the scoring for the 2-0, shock result.

A month later, Wolff pounced on a loose ball in the area and slotted it home to give the U.S. a 1-0 win over Costa Rica as the Americans built momentum to what would ultimately be its fourth-consecutive finals appearance.

His impact during qualifying was noticed by team management.

"He's (Wolff) done it in qualifying and we know what he's capable of," said U.S. assistant coach Dave Sarachan.

"His role, his mindset, is 'I'd like to start, I hope to start', but he knows that if that doesn't happen he knows how to be a good reserve.

"It sounds easy, but some players, I'm not saying World Cup players, don't know how to handle that," said Sarachan. "But Josh's role will be one if he's called upon in a game whether it's late in a game to give us a jumpstart."

INJURIES

While he has warmed the bench for much of his international career, his appearances for the U.S. national side have also been curtailed by two serious injuries.

Shortly after winning his first cap for the national team in 1999 he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and was sidelined until March 2000.

He made his country's Olympic squad, scoring two goals in six games, but then early last year broke his foot in a match for his Major League Soccer club side, the Chicago Fire.

"The injuries that I've had are bizarre," he said, "but you just have to get through them. The knee was tough, but the foot injury kept going on and on.

"I was just excited to get back to playing and now I'm just proving my way back and showing what I can do."

Wolff, who drew the attention of European scouts during the Olympic tournament, has one year remaining on his four-year Chicago contract, but is now concentrating on the World Cup.

"The Olympics were incredible," Wolff said, "but the World Cup . . . Americans just don't understand how big it is. It can be a life-changing event for a player.

"I could play all three games or I could play none, but either way, I'm going out there and I am going to just savour the moment."