Jurgen Klinsmann insists USA will be playing to win when they face old friend Joachim Loew's Germany.
A draw in Thursday's match in Recife would see Germany qualify as group winners and the United States finish runners-up.
That has brought back memories of the notorious group match between West Germany and Austria in 1982 when both teams went through the motions and a 1-0 German victory allowed both to qualify.
"You're talking about a game that is decades ago," Klinsmann said.
"That is only a part of Germany's history and not part of the United States' history. I think if you look at the past of the U.S. team, we always try to make things happen.
"We have that fighting spirit, and we give everything in every game."