Gold Cup Disaster in Tampa

I decided there was no reason to write about America’s 2-0 opening Group Play Gold Cup victory over Canada because, well, it was Canada. No disrespect to our neighbors to the North, but Canada is not exactly the benchmark the U.S. should hold its soccer program up to in order to measure progress and ability.

I could say the same thing about Panama, but last night’s humiliating 2-1 defeat showed that the U.S. continues to have so many holes and cracks to fill that our time may never come. Seriously. How many times can we write about piss-poor starts in the first half?

It is a recurring story. The defense cannot close holes and shut down gaps. Lord knows Tim Ream’s inexperience and a total lack of awareness (I was going to say judgment, but that would be too harsh) cost us a penalty. With the exception of the always attacking Dempsey, the midfield is not able to contain, control possession, and readily counter. Finishing? Nope; we can’t do that either have ever suffered from not having a world class striker.

Losing 2-1 was bad enough, but it was the way we lost. In the first half we looked like we were dazed and confused. The second half was much better; we had plenty of chances, but could only manage to put the ball in the net on a single set play. How much of the U.S.’s second half effort and ability to look like they were constantly on the attack can be attributed to Panama going up 2-0 in the first half? In other words, when the U.S. finally did start to look impressive, how much of that was because Panama dictated the game?

Unfortunately the Panama game thought us that the U.S. nowhere near ‘breaking’ through and pushing forward as a soccer nation.

The obvious lesson to be learned from this game is that the U.S. needs to start matches better, but it’s a lesson that was also obvious at last year’s World Cup. Indeed, it’s something the Americans have been guilty of countless times in Bob Bradley’s tenure. It calls into question just how effective he and the senior players are in getting the team prepared to play.

Every time I watch this team I hope to see improvement on the pitch, especially on defense and closing ability; it is just not there. You have to ask, why is this the case, and when will it come? You can look for singular examples, and point to some recent remarkable (call it lucky) tournament play. Some will argue that you make your own luck, and I actually agree with that point of view.

For the U.S., tournament-to-tournament improvement is just not showing on the pitch, which can easily be expressed in the last 25 minutes last night; too little, too late.

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Spain Exposes and Embarrasses Team USA

The U.S. National hosted Spain with great fanfare; over 60K in attendance in New England to watch Team USA warm up for their Gold Cup. Too bad no one reminded Spain this was a ‘friendly’ because Spain just totally kicked the snot out of our National team, exacting revenge over a 2-0 loss to the U.S. in the 2009 Confederation Cup.

Actually there is revenge, and then there is 100% humiliation, which is what happened to the U.S. I did not get to watch the game due to other commitments; however I did watch some highlights and read some commentary. Not pretty.

I understand that the U.S. ‘rested’ some players, but when your only noteworthy highlight, is almost having a ‘chance’ there are serious troubles afoot in the kitchen.

The U.S. team took advantage of their fresh legs and increased its possession during the second half. The veterans made an impact on the game and nearly created a goal in the 70th minute. A streaking Sacha Kljestan got behind the Spanish defense, but Joan Capdevila caught up to him and slowed him down. He cut the ball back from just outside the box for Dempsey, who had continued his run straight down the center of the field, but lost his footing while trying to control the pass and the defense was able to clear.

Tim Howard wore the Captain’s band, and while the 4-0 spanking was not his fault (continued piss poor defense and sloppy midfield play are major culprits), I don’t really agree with the ‘brave’ face he tried to spin after the game.

“When you get knocked down, you see what you’re made of,” Howard said Saturday after World Cup champion Spain overwhelmed the U.S. 4-0 in an exhibition that the Americans used to tune up for the Gold Cup. “I put it behind me. I’ve been at this a while. When you play the best team in the world, they can make you look silly at times.

Silly? U.S. should have went into this one attempting to earn a hard-fought draw, but realistically expecting to come up short; 2-0 or perhaps 2-1. 4-0 never crossed my mind as a possibility.

Howard is right on one account,

“We got our butts kicked,” Howard said afterward, adding with a smile. “If we win the Gold Cup in a couple of weeks, nobody will remember this.”

In a couple of weeks I hope we are talking Gold Cup champions, and not ‘what is wrong with U.S. soccer’ – because we already know the answers. The U.S. lacks creativity up front. Quality world class strikers are few and far between, but one would think the U.S. would be able to produce a top notch striker that would be the envy of the top European Club teams. The midfield at times shows lapses in judgment; too slow to get back on defense and not cohesive enough to maintain possession. The defense is just old and slow; it is time to move on with a backline that can hold their own and assist with a counter attack.

If you think I am down on this team, I am and have been for a while. I always surprised when they manage a good result because it often seems more due to luck. Of course I am still a big fan, and want to be proven wrong.

Everyone keeps waiting for the U.S. to take the next step, and instead we keep bailing water out of the boat.

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Bitter Disappointment At The Hands of Ghana (Again)

How disappointing. Yes, as the announcers said, this US team should not hang its head in shame; hold ‘em high boys. Still. What could have been?

Once again the US went down early; this time inside of the 5 minute mark. I just do not get how we can have such poor defensive lapses, which is what happened again on the winner in the first few minutes of extra time as Ghana easily split the last two US defenders.

Making matters worse is that the US just does not have a top notch striker; a finisher who can consistently find the net. We had some chances, but there comes a time and a place where the chances have to find the back of the net. The US just does not have that quality up front that you know given the chance will win the day.

I am not sure where to from here. I’ll have to reflect on the bitter sting of this one for a while, as I am sure Team USA will be doing the same, with the realization that they squandered a golden opportunity.

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Team USA Looks to Thwart Ghana

So this is it. Semifinals or bust. Ah, but first Ghana, a team that ruined the US in the 2006 World Cup.

In the 2006 World Cup, after finishing top of the CONCACAF qualification tournament, the U.S. was drawn into Group E along with the Czech Republic, Italy, and Ghana. Since three of the teams were ranked in the top 10 of the FIFA World Rankings at the time, it was considered a Group of Death.

The United States opened its tournament with a 3–0 loss to the Czech Republic. The team then drew 1–1 against Italy (ending up being the only opponent the Italian side failed to defeat in the tournament). The United States was then knocked out of the tournament when beaten 2–1 by Ghana in its final group match.

This time things are different, right? The US is playing well as a team, which was really the talk most often while I was in England and Scotland earlier this week. Of course, for the most part the US and our chances were dismissed, however to a man almost everyone I spoke “football” with was complimentary of the way the US plays as a team.

But more important, what’s truly caught the soccer world’s attention here, is how the Americans have played: not necessarily the results of their play, but the character of it. Their mistakes have been large, but they’ve recovered from them. When they might have given up — down against England, down against Slovenia, all but down and out against Algeria — they persevered. While other teams have suffered personality rifts or even outright mutiny, there hasn’t been a whisper of discontent out of the U.S. camp. They’ve become the embodiment of optimism here, of the power of hope and belief.

So there is hope, because a true breakout win today against Ghana means the US can actually make a run as the US are on the “easy” side of the bracket. The winner of US/Ghana will play the winner of Uruguay/South Korea, both of which are winnable games for this US squad. A win in the quarterfinals would take the US to the semifinals to most likely pair up with Brazil or the Netherlands. And then? Well, I am getting ahead of myself. First Ghana.

I have a feeling of hope and optimism that the US will actually put together a full game today, and not get behind early on a defensive lapse. If the US can continue to attack and actually land something in the net I think we will advance 1-nil, nay, maybe 2-1.

This is it! Go USA! USA! Let’s cheer for our boys and the Red, White, and Blue!

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U.S. 2 – 2 Slovenia

I have been trying to collect my thoughts on this one for the past couple of hours, and other than saying we were completely screwed by the ref, I am not sure what else to post.

The funny thing about such a poor call was all the other poor calls. We actually drew a yellow card after a ball hits Findley in the face?

Robbie Findley got a yellow card in the 40th minute for a hand ball in Slovenia’s penalty area, an automatic suspension for the Algeria match because he also was cautioned against England.

I would love to see the replay again because I saw a face-plant, not a handball. I don’t think it is a horrible thing that Findley will not be around for the next match because he just does not have the experience to know WTF to do with a quality ball.

There were other poor calls, but ultimately the U.S. put itself in a poor position going down 2-nil at the half. The first goal was completely unmarked; nice riffle shot which froze Howard. The second was typical of a U.S. defensive lapse on a counter attack.

As poor as Team U.S.A. played in the first half, they were great in the second half. Loved the emotion and the attacking style of play. Hope they come out for more of that against Algeria next Wednesday, a game I am sure to miss due to a work assignment in Scotland. Oh well.

So it goes. The U.S. is still in the hunt, but has to hope for some sort of miracle. I think the U.S. can advance with a U.S. win over Algeria and two England wins (Algeria and Slovenia).

Go U.S.A. !!!

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The Luck of the Draw (England 1 – 1 USA)

Well, the defense let us down again in the early going, but all was made right with the world when Dempsey squeaked one into the net in the 40th minute.

Sure it did not exactly happen that way, but one of my favorite sayings that I learned from my dad applies. Sometimes I would rather be lucky than good.

A draw is a great result for Team USA, and it was well earned, improving our chances to advance.

Going forward I think it is imperative to pull out Ricardo Clark, and get Herculez Gomez into the mix at some point. I am not even sure what we can do different on defense, but thank God Onyewu is fit.

Go USA!

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U.S. vs. England – World Cup 2011 is finally here!

Here we go. The schedule is set – Team USA takes on England today at 2PM EST. All hope is not lost if we cannot beat England; in fact, I would be thrilled if we salvaged a point. I think Slovenia is a must win, with Algeria being the critical game to determine if the U.S. advances out of Group C.

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U.S. – Australia Final Thoughts

Today was an overall good showing for Team U.S.A. with a 3-1 victory over Australia. I agree with most of the points in this SI article.

I am scared about our defense; too sporadic for my taste. If Australia could have finished some of their chances, it could have been a different game. I am excited about our possibilities up front. Buddle was fantastic and Gómez has been fantastic.

Cannot wait until next Saturday when we take on England!

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U.S. – Australia Halftime Thoughts

Team U.S. is up 2-1 at the half with mixed results. On the one hand, we took an early lead, lost it, but quickly managed to pull back up front. That has to be encouraging after a trend of falling behind in so many recent games. In the negative ledger is the continued concern with poor defensive play.

Buddle had a great header at the 31 minute mark to pull the U.S. up 2-1. Buddle is easily the man of the match at this point with two goals. Dempsey missed an earlier opportunity, as the Australian keeper just managed to push the ball past the post. I do not really know much about Australia, but getting chances against any team is a lovely sight to behold.

The defense just looks so shaky. While the U.S. missed their share of chances in the first half, we also gave the Australians too many opportunities. Hopefully this can just be attributed to Onyewu being out.

On another note, I really like the spunk Dempsey showed when he received a hard hip check; however if the yellow carries over under international rules, I have a feeling it will be one that he later regrets picking up.

Go U.S.A.!!!

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U.S. – Australia Early Thoughts (First 20 minutes)

It was nice to see Buddle put the U.S. up 1-nil in the first three minutes, but how on earth does Findley miss a wide open net?  Chances to score international goals, even Friendly tune-up matches before next weekend’s World Cup opener against England are few and far between.

Of course Team U.S.A. needs to come out of this one with a victory to give the team confidence and momentum going into England, but the defense has to come together.  What a shame that Australia was allowed to easily take things to 1-1 at the 18 minute mark with a nice corner that should be been stopped.  Without some significant improvement on defense, we are not going to make it out of group play.

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FIFA 10 Ultimate Team

I missed out on last year’s FIFA, so my first experience with Ultimate Team was with Madden 10. I am so in love with MUT that I am really looking forward to FIFA UT, but it does suck that it is being offered as pay to play.

Test your skills as a player and manager to claim global football supremacy with FIFA 10 Ultimate Team, available to purchase for 400 Microsoft points or $4.99 as a download via Xbox LIVE and the PlayStation Network to FIFA 10 beginning this February, 2010. FIFA 10 and an internet connection is required for play.

I have not played FIFA 10 in months, but I am sure I will open it up this weekend to start getting familiar with the controls, play style, etc. I want to be able to hit the pitch running when UT is released in (hopefully) a few days.

U.S. Soccer Stars in the News …
It looks like Charlie Davies is on his way to making it back to the pitch in April, and hopefully to help Team U.S. to glory in this year’s World Cup.

In another bit of good news, Landon Donovan, currently on loan to Everton, picked up his first Premier League goal. It is always nice to see our boys doing well!

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U.S. has a chance with 2010 World Cup Draw

Team USA got the following 2010 World Cup draw:

June 12 England
June 18 Slovenia
June 23 Algeria

While the English are ranked ninth in the world and have stars such as Wayne Rooney, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, whose club matches are televised throughout the world, Algeria (28th) and Slovenia (33rd) both needed to win playoffs to reach the tournament and are ranked well behind the U.S. (14th).

If the U.S. fails to advance, it should be considered a huge upset, and another major failure for American soccer.

“This is the best draw we’ve ever had in any World Cup,” said former U.S. forward Eric Wynalda, now an analyst for the Fox Soccer Channel. “No disrespect to England, but this is an ideal group for us.”

I tend to agree. Even without knowing how Slovenia and Algeria match up with the U.S., I have to believe that if we are fit, we should manage to advance.

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Team USA overcomes adversity; U.S. 2 – 2 Costa Rica

When does a tie feel like a win? Last night it sure did, as the U.S. overcame plenty of adversity to escape their final World Cup qualifier with a tie. Since the U.S. had already qualified in their previous match against Honduras, this one did not matter, but in so many ways it did. The U.S. squad wanted to win for Charlie Davies, and in the process, they showed they could come from behind against a pretty good team that desperately wanted a win to qualify for South Africa and the 2010 World Cup.

With the Americans trailing 2-0, Michael Bradley put in a rebound in the 72nd minute. With Costa Rica just 20 seconds or so from getting the win it needed to qualify — and with the United States playing a man short after losing defender Oguchi Onyewu to a torn tendon in his left knee — Bornstein headed in a corner kick from second-half substitute Robbie Rogers from about 7 yards.

There is a lot of work to do before the trip to South Africa, and the team is starting to get injury plagued. Of course none of this mattered; Davies is alive and should recover, and Team USA showed some serious pride and determination on a rainy pitch when it mattered the most.

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Wishing Charlie Davies a speedy recovery

I had already decided that I was not all that excited about tonight’s Costa Rica/U.S. match-up. After all, we already qualified for the 2010 World Cup, so this match was unimportant, except to maybe get some of the younger guys some quality playing time. After the Davies accident was announced, the game really seems unimportant.

“Injuries of this nature usually require a recovery period of six to 12 months and extensive rehabilitation,” U.S. Soccer physician Dan Kalbac said in statement. “Due to Charlie’s fitness level, his prognosis for recovery and his ability to resume high-level competition is substantially improved.”

Here’s to wishing Mr. Davies a quick recovery!

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Team USA 2010 World Cup Bound

The game was not on here, so instead of watching the U.S. beat Honduras 3-2 in a hostile stadium, I was watching the likes of Colorado/Texas and Florida/LSU. Not that the college football was not enjoyable, but it just shows how far soccer has to go in the U.S. How could such an important match not be televised?

On this early Sunday morning I am lifting a cup of the black stuff (dare I say the morning version of the nectar of the gods) to a decent draw in South Africa. Still have a week and change before FIFA 2010 arrives.

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