At least four American cities have larger populations than the nation of Slovenia, the United States' opponent Friday in the teams' second match in the group stage of the World Cup. The size of their respective talent pools alone suggests that the United States should prevail. But Slovenia is also in Europe. And that is not good for the Americans. The Americans are 1-9-3 against European opponents in the last five World Cups and have struggled against them in more recent matches. Slovenia qualified ahead of the Czech Republic, which defeated the Americans, 4-2, last month in an exhibition, and twice beat Slovakia in qualifying, a team that defeated the United States, 1-0, last November. A victory at Ellis Park here would put Slovenia in the next round and seriously hurt the United States' chances of advancing out of the group stage. 'All the European teams are good,' said Clint Dempsey, who scored against England in the Americans' first game, a 1-1 tie. 'There are a lot of great leagues, there's a lot of great players that have come from all parts of Europe.' A dash of spice was added to Friday's match when a Slovenian player, Andrej Komac, who played only three minutes of his team's lackluster 1-0 victory against Algeria on Sunday, seemed to guarantee victory. 'We are going to win this match,' Komac was reported to have said Tuesday, eliciting a flood of heated comments on the blogosphere and prompting U.S. defender Oguchi Onyewu to say, 'I don't think a U.S. player would ever make a comment like that.' It was later revealed that Komac's words had been mistranslated and what he actually said was, 'We will play to win.' The Americans, of course, expect nothing less and are well aware of the threat Slovenia poses to their ambitions. 'We have some personal experience against the guys we're playing against,' said Carlos Bocanegra, the American captain, who plays in France. 'We're not going to go into it taking anybody lightly just because the rest of the world doesn't know their names.' Like the United States, Slovenia plays compact, organized defense and tries to get goals on the counterattack. But sitting on top of a competitive Group C with 3 points, Slovenia may take few risks, content that a tie -- and the point that comes with it -- is sufficient. 'This is not the most important match, but it is a great match and this match can solidify Slovenia in the global map of football,' Slovenia coach Matjaz Kek said Thursday. 'We haven't just come here to be tourists.' Slovenia conceded only four goals in 10 qualifying matches. When it defeated Russia in a two-game playoff to reach the World Cup, the Slovenian prime minister made good on his promise to shine the players' cleats. Now, the nation with the smallest population in the tournament is a win a way from the knockout round. 'Just imagine how we feel,' Kek said on the eve of the game with the United States. 'Last year we were making preparations to play San Marino. Today we are thinking about reaching the knockout stage in our second match, so a great step has been taken forward.' Slovenia's defense is anchored by goalkeeper Samir Handonovic, who plays for Udinese in Italy's Serie A. And though its roster boasts no big names, the team is stocked with competent role players who play regularly in Europe's most competitive leagues. Forward Milovoje Novakovic, who is 6 feet 3 inches, is particularly skilled with the ball at his feet for a player of his height. During qualifying, he averaged a goal every other game and led Cologne in the Bundesliga with six goals last season. His strike partner, Zlatko Dedic, who scored the goal against Russia that put Slovenia in the World Cup, is a workhorse. He runs from sideline to sideline chasing down balls and will try to stretch the American backline, opening holes for midfielder Robert Koren to exploit. Koren is the captain and Slovenia's most influential player. He is what coaches and players call a technical midfielder, expert on the ball, with a careful and accurate touch and incisive passing. He is the Dragons' most experienced player and scored the lone goal against Algeria. 'You'll probably see less domination from one team,' Tim Howard, the United States' goalkeeper, said. 'I think there's probably going to be more of a tactical battle, a chess match.' Still, the Americans are confident they can break down a team that is so similar to their own. It may turn on one goal, one mistake, and the Americans will try to dictate the pace of the game. 'You get to this point in the World Cup and you get teams that are giving anything to get results, to get points; you see hard, fast games,' midfielder Michael Bradley said. 'We want to push the tempo of the game, to play the game at a speed that makes it uncomfortable for them.' 