By Ridge Mahoney in Seoul Sometime late Wednesday night, a few hours after the United States stunned Portugal, 3-2, an Argentina-England ticket fell to second on the first-round list, at least in South Korea. Even before that game — which was played in Sapporo, Japan — went into the books 1-0 to England, Red Devil Fever had swept through South Korea like a forest fire as news agencies around the world caught the scent of a Really Big Story: Sleeping Giant Meets Host Country. Interview requests flashed across the Pacific Ocean via telephone, e-mail and fax. As South Koreans savored their first World Cup victory, a solid 2-0 defeat of Poland, Americans woke up — in many cases literally — to the fact their team had pulled off a coup of its own. The day after beating Portugal, American players and coaches had to navigate a snake pit of tripods and cables on the third floor of the JW Marriott Hotel. Scores of TV cameras were aimed at Coach Bruce Arena during his daily press conference. Dozens of reporters wanted every tidbit from the U.S. camp as the buildup began for the showdown in Daegu next Monday. ''What's great to see is back in America seeing the response of everybody back home and sports bars having to turn people away at 5 o'clock in the morning,'' said goalkeeper Kasey Keller. ''That's fantastic and that's what we're striving for. If we can continue to do well, then we want to obviously help this sport the most we can, and success usually helps.'' The mood is not purely one of sportsmanship and competition, however. American players were questioned about the Olympic disqualification of a Korean speed skater that elevated American Apolo Ohno to the gold medal and resulted in anti-American sentiment. Rumors that the Red Devils — the team's official fan group — could descend on the Americans' hotel to disrupt their sleep the night before the game were whispered. Korean officials are planning heavy security in cities for the night of the game. Huge crowds thronged into the streets to celebrate the win over Poland and there are fears of violence if similar masses were to be angered by a South Korean defeat. The largest celebration crowd in Seoul was estimated at 150,000. Approximately 40,000 had gathered in the city's baseball stadium to watch the match on large-screen TVs. ''Everything we've seen from the Koreans has been nothing but extreme hospitality,'' said Keller.''We're not going to misrepresent ourselves, and hope we're accepted for what we are and not for what other people have done in the past.'' On the competitive front, the temperature could be as high as 95 degrees for the mid-afternoon kickoff in Daegu, which has a reputation as being among the hottest and most humid spots in the country. The Americans expect the crowd to be just as hot as the weather. ''It's going to be 90 minutes and that's true for their fans,'' said assistant coach Dave Sarachan. ''They're behind them 90 minutes, win, lose or draw, whether they're behind or ahead. It's going to be a long day at the office.'' Claudio Reyna, who sat out the Portugal game with a quadriceps strain, has been training and will probably be available to start, but a groin strain has sidelined Earnie Stewart, who could only stretch and do some light jogging at Friday's training session. Arena has not named his lineup and is not expected to do so prior to the match. He did say prior to the tournament changes were likely between the first and second matches regardless of injuries or suspensions. Keller could get the start in goal in Arena's scheme to keep both keepers mollified if not totally satisfied with sharing time, but Keller said he'd not been told one way or the other. Clint Mathis who had been bothered by a knee injury but is now healthy, may once again watch from the bench. Arena has questioned his fitness and is unlikely to gamble in a game in which the temperatures, pace and intensity will be searing. South Korea has injury worries as well. Yoo Sang Chul and Hwang Sun Hong, the goalscorers against Poland, picked up minor injuries but are expected to play against the United States. Both teams are buoyed by the prospect of possibly clinching a second-round spot on Monday. They are tied atop Group D with three points apiece, with Poland and Portugal at zero. If Poland and Portugal, which meet Monday night, play to a tie, the winner — if there is one — of the South Korea-USA game would be assured of a spot in the round of 16.