The setting will be historic.

Nuremberg was where the war crimes of the Nazis were laid bare. The stadium, first constructed in the 1920s, is near the remains of Albert Speer’s Zeppelin Field, where huge Nazi rallies were held in the 1930s.

Both teams worked out at the stadium on a muggy Wednesday afternoon. Ghana captain Stephen Appiah, wearing a huge shiny earring and ring before training, laughed when asked about his favorite things to do when he visits the United States.

“Going to the clubs,” he said. “I’ve been in Miami, LA, Chicago and New Jersey, Houston.”

Ghana, which lost to Italy 2-0, would go to the second round with a victory, and possibly could advance with a tie.

“We are cool. We are cool, and we are ready,” Appiah said. “There’s no pressure on us.”

Each team will be missing a pair of suspended players. Ghana’s Asamoah Gyan and Sulley Muntari, its two goal scorers, will sit out, as will U.S. defender Eddie Pope and midfielder Pablo Mastroeni.

Jimmy Conrad, who entered after Pope was ejected against Italy, figures to take over his role in central defense. Replacing Mastroeni will be trickier.

Slide show   Goooooooaaaal! Click to see images of highlights, stars and fans from 2006 World Cup.

Arena could insert Ben Olsen into defensive midfield, or he could alter the shape. Eddie Lewis, who started against the Czechs, could return in place of Carlos Bocanegra, who played against the Italians.

The Americans are convinced this has been the toughest of the eight first-round groups — it’s the only one in which no teams had clinched advancement or been eliminated going into the final day of play.

“We’re in a position now to get through,” Reyna said. “So the team knows that now we have to score. That’s obvious. But this team’s done it before. We know we can break out and have a game where we score a few goals, and hopefully this is the one.”

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