Ghana-USA: On Forwards, Bob, and the Future

48 hours later and the wound is still fresh.

The extra time loss to Ghana marked the end of an eventful cycle and a gripping couple of weeks for US soccer fans.  For everyone involved, it was a couple of weeks too soon.

The big talking points of the weekend (during which I was at a wedding in Jersey, away from a computer) were Bob Bradley's starting lineup (namely Ricardo Clark) and yet another slow start from a team that has frequently been guilty of them over the last couple of years.  I gave everything time to sink in before trying to put any thoughts down on paper, but even now I feel as if I'm not completely settled down, so forgive me if this is more jumbled collection of thoughts than organized post.

While some have come out and completely destroyed Bob Bradley for his lineup against Ghana, I'm inclined to take a more middle of the road approach.  There's no denying that Bradley made some mistakes (or perhaps just one big mistake that left him handcuffed), but at some point we also have to hold the players liable for poor execution.  It clearly was a mistake to start Ricardo Clark, whose turnover in the midfield started the break on Ghana's opening goal.  But let's not gloss over the fact that, as has so often been the case in qualifiers and other competitive matches, the back line continued to drop off and drop off until Kevin-Prince Boateng was at the edge of the box and able to pick his spot (on a shot that Tim Howard probably wishes he had back).  Did Bob Bradley contribute to the goal with his choice of Clark?  Yes.  But unless I'm missing something, Bob doesn't play center back, so he wasn't completely at fault. 

With that being said, don't get me wrong, Bob did make a mistake in starting Ricardo Clark, and it proved to be quite a big one in the grand scheme of things (bolded so folks don't go nuts and start accusing me of trying to let Bob off the hook).  At least he wasn't too stubborn to stick with what was clearly a poor choice in an elimination game, though, instead swallowing his pride and making the necessary substitution in the first half.  Mo Edu was an upgrade in the middle, and the Yanks managed to equalize and force extra time, but I continue to wonder what might have been if Bradley had another substitution at his disposal in extra time, allowing him to bring on Edson Buddle or perhaps an attacking midfielder and pushing Landon Donovan forward. 

Would starting Maurice Edu or Benny Feilhaber have led to a different outcome?  Perhaps.  Feilhaber was fantastic off the bench throughout the World Cup (and had been during the Confederations Cup and qualifiers), but we can't say with certainty that he could have the same effectiveness in the first half (he's had some poor starts with the USMNT in the past, if memory serves).  Edu was probably the safest choice in hindsight and was who I expected would get the call, but alas he did not.  I guess this decision will remain one of the big "what ifs" of this World Cup going forward.  And even if regulation would have played out the same, one has to wonder if the US would have been able to grab a goal in extra time if they had another substitution and were able to bring on an additional fresh striker.  

I feel like some are choosing to see what they want to support the belief that they've held all cycle: that Bob Bradley is a terrible coach that hasn't no business being the head of the USMNT, etc. etc.  What I would say to that crowd is that you need to realize that, yes, this team might not have made the quarterfinals in part because of Bob Bradley, but they didn't make the Round of 16 in spite of Bob Bradley.  The Princetonian's tactics and style have led us to one of the most successful cycles in national team history, and people really shouldn't lose sight of that in the immediate aftermath of a gut-punch of a loss.  I'll leave it at that for now and touch on the issue of the future of the US head coaching position in more detail tomorrow. 

Again, though, it must be said that the players failed to execute as well.  Robbie Findley missed a glorious opportunity in the first half that he probably would put away most of the time with Real Salt Lake.  Jozy Altidore again put himself in dangerous positions but was unable to find the back of the net.  Sunil Gulati made it a point after the match to bring attention to the fact that the US hasn't had a striker score a World Cup goal since 2002.  Bob Bradley gave all of his strikers a chance, and ALL of them blew golden opportunities to open their account.  It's hard to fault Bob when none of his strikers are putting the ball in the back of the net, and that was no different on Sunday.

The goal in extra time was yet another example of the defense's inconsistency; throughout the cycle, they have been just as capable of the stunning goal saving play or shutdown performance as they have been of the mind-numbing lapse.  Say what you will about Gyan's speed, but Carlos Bocanegra and Jay DeMerit got punished for a slower reaction and the distance between them. We really shouldn't be overly surprised from what ended our Cup dreams because it was the same stuff that threatened to derail it for two years. 

Sunil Gulati came out today and said that the US didn't live up to expectations in South Africa, and I think that's a fair thing to say.  At the same time, though, I think this was a step forward, as disjoint as those two statements might seem.  2006 was an abject failure, and we managed to climb back from that to not only advance to the knockout stages, but finish atop our group.  Still, was it what I was hoping for?  No, not at all.  To be honest, I thought a semifinal spot was feasible before the actual knockout round bracket was set.  Let's just hope that the alternating pattern of getting eliminated in the group stage in one World Cup and making the knockout rounds in the next doesn't continue in Brazil.

Ultimately, we just ran out of magic, and you have to figure that the team was a little drained after the emotional roller coaster that was the group stage.  Not a single one of our three matches wasn't accompanied by some extreme hype or atypical post-match attention (the former referring to the England match and the latter referring to the outrage after the Coulibaly call and the heart-stopping finish against Algeria), which surely took its toll on the US camp (hell, I was mentally and emotionally exhausted too, and I didn't play a minute). 

It's hard to admit, but we just weren't good enough this time around.  But the talent is there and should only improve in the coming years.  When you consider the ages of some of the players on this team, it's mouth-watering to imagine where the likes of Michael Bradley, Benny Feilhaber, Stuart Holden, Jozy Altidore, Jose Torres, Maurice Edu, and many others will be in four years time.  At the same time, however, I wonder where players like Carlos Bocanegra, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, and Oguchi Onyewu will be with four more years of games on their odometers.  It's the same worrying I go through after every World Cup, with the answers only coming four years later because of the unpredictability of football.

I'm drained, I'm sad, I'm disappointed, and I'm exhausted.  I'm in a daze still, half-expecting to get ready for another US game only to realize that I'll have to wait until August for the next one.  It's the same somber ending that fans of 31 other teams will deal with when all is said and done in South Africa, and it'll probably sting for a long time because it really seemed like a lot was in reach this time around. 

I apologize for the length of this post and its rambling nature.  It's the bi-product of mental exhaustion, disappointment,  and far too much time out in the sun yesterday.  I'm sure a few of you out there are still trying to rewire your brains as well.

For now, all we can do is sit back and enjoy the rest of the spectacle that is the 2010 World Cup. 

After that, it's onward to the Gold Cup...