USMNT v. Turkey: A Tale of Two Halves

After enjoying the USMNT's send-off series finale in front a fantastic crowd of over 55,000 at the Linc yesterday, I've put my post-game thoughts into words.  Enjoy:

I've made it no secret that I wasn't impressed with what I saw out of Robbie Findley in his January, February, and March USMNT appearances.  He looked like he was in over his head, which made me skeptical of his preliminary roster chances, let alone his shot at earning a ticket to the World Cup.  I am very happy to say, though, that he really did a lot to change my opinion yesterday.  His insertion into the match was one of the key sparks for the Yanks, adding some speed and energy up top while also allowing Clint Dempsey to drop back into the midfield, where he was a lot more effective.  Findley made his intentions known right way, freeing himself up for a good shot from 20 yards out just a couple of minutes after the half started, a play that was in stark contrast to the US' stagnant attack in the first half that often stalled once it go in and around the 18. 

While at times Findley was guilty of putting his head down and running himself into trouble (i.e. the endline), there were a number of positive contributions from the RSL striker, not the least of which being his perfectly weighted chip to Landon Donovan on the opening US goal.  What endeared him to me most, though, was a 60 yard tracking run back into the defensive half to break up a counter attack with a toe poke.  He might not be the most polished option, but if Findley can provide the same speed and work rate in the attacking third, we just might see some of him in South Africa after all.

Big ups, Robbie; you played well yesterday.  Now keep it up.

As Findley's stock rose, Jonathan Spector's took a big hit.  The West Ham defender had a rough 45 minutes at right back, getting beat on a couple of occasions and getting caught well up field on Turkey's lone goal (though, to be fair, he didn't really get much cover from anyone in the midfield when he made his long run forward).  While he may be the speedier option at RB, his 1 v. 1 defending and positioning was inferior to that of Steve Cherundolo.  Cherundolo had a good second half, positioning himself and anticipating well, something that Spector did not do particularly well.  While the speedy wing options of England may make Spector a more appealing option on the right side, I stand by my belief that Cherundolo is a better right back at this point in time and would be the better choice come June 12th. 

Elsewhere in the back, Oguchi Onyewu helped quell a lot of fears yesterday, looking much more comfortable and explosive than he did against the Czech Republic on Tuesday.  He didn't have too much to do thanks to the US' improved  attack, but he won a number of aerial battles with strong leaps and made a couple of good plays in the defensive third, most notably his sliding block on a shot from 12 yards out.  The progress from Tuesday to Saturday has me confident that Gooch will be ready to go against England. 

His center back partner, Jay DeMerit, had a good second half after getting beat in a couple of 1 v. 1 situations in the first half.  Only DeMerit can really tell how much of an issue his eye really is, but based on his second half performance, it doesn't seem to be much of an issue.  His struggles in the first half seemed to be more the product of huge spaces in the midfield and panic at the back after the aforementioned Spector miscues rather than misjudging balls because of depth perception problems.  Again, though, that's just my opinion of it; only DeMerit really knows where he's at. 

Carlos Bocanegra had a solid game at LB and seems like a good bet to start there in the World Cup, particularly after Jonathan Bornstein's shaky performance as a substitute.  He got forward a lot throughout the match, as the midfield played very narrow at times.  While this style left a lot of space open for the outside backs, it did also make the US all the more susceptible to the counter attack.  With speedy wingers like Aaron Lennon or Theo Walcott, England could very well punish the US if Bocanegra or any other outside back get caught up field. 

The narrow midfield was one of the main reasons for the US' stagnant attack in the first half.  Landon Donovan and Benny Feilhaber drifted centrally on a number of occasions, leaving few options going forward other than hopeful long balls or forward runs from the outside backs.  Ricardo Clark and Michael Bradley didn't have the best of halves, with both looking a step slow on the ball and when making challenges.  This led to some pretty significant gaps in the midfield, allowing some Turkish attackers to run at the likes of Jay DeMerit and Clarence Goodson.  While Bradley's starting spot is still firmly secured, Clark may find himself further down the pecking order after Saturday thanks to Maurice Edu's good form and Jose Torres' very strong substitute performance.

Torres came on at halftime and proved to be a huge calming presence in the midfield, turning in what has probably been his best performance with the USMNT.  His distribution and soft touch on the ball helped the US get on the front foot and really control the second half.  In addition to his usual poise on the ball, Torres also did very well in the defensive half, making a number of tackles and helping usher Turkish attackers into double and triple teams.  The performance was so convincing that the Texan could very well find himself in the starting XI in the group stage.  If not, his calmness on the ball and intelligent distribution should at least earn him a substitute role. 

Jozy Altidore was one of the players that best exemplified the game's 180 degree turn.  In the first half, he got very little service, with his touch being a little off on the few occasions that he was able to settle the ball at his feet.  He really picked up his play, however, at the tail end of the first half with his superb solo effort that beat a couple of defenders and nearly set up Clint Dempsey for a tap-in goal.  Paired with Findley in the second half, Jozy benefited from a calmer midfield and back line, as he got more service and support in the attacking third.  He and Clint Dempsey also switched at times, with Altidore sliding out to the wing to receive the ball at his feet and run at defenders.  All in all, Jozy was much more effective in the second half.  Whether that has more to do with his strike partner or a more composed midfield, I can't say.  But if Bob Bradley deems it to be the former, who knows, we just might see an Altidore-Findley combination again in the coming weeks.

After not getting a lot of service or support in the opening half, both Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan turned in much stronger performances on the wings in the final 45.  Dempsey played on the left, the position he said he preferred in an interview during camp, while Donovan played on the right, a position he often played in his stint at Everton (which happened to include a stellar performance against Chelsea and England defender Ashley Cole...).  The duo linked up well on the game-winning goal, with Dempsey showing good poise inside the box with a defender challenging him. 

Because of Donovan's previous success on the right wing against Ashley Cole and Dempsey's preference for the left side, there's a good chance that they will start in those respective positions against England.  That would, though, mean that either Robbie Findley, Edson Buddle, or Herculez Gomez would partner with Jozy Altidore up front.  After his performance yesterday, Robbie Findley might actually be a lot closer to filling that void than a lot of us previously thought.  Do I expect him to get that call?  Not yet.  But it's definitely not out of the question.

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All in all, Saturday's match was a good note to leave on, as the Yanks put together a quality effort in the second half to secure a win in front of a large crowd with a loud American majority.  Let's just hope, however, that they sort things out in the next two weeks so that they don't need 45 minutes to wake up when Group C play rolls around. 

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International Recap: Tune-Ups and Tidbits

I've fallen behind on the international round-ups, so here's some abbreviated updates on the last three days.  Click on the scores for video highlights (or, in the case of the Chile match, a match report):

Netherlands 2, Mexico 1: Robin van Persie scored a couple of pretty goals, as Mexico once again had some issues at the back in their second consecutive friendly loss.

France 2, Costa Rica 1: The Ticos took a surprising early lead with an 11th minute goal from Carlos Hernandez, but their lead was wiped away just 10 minutes later.  The game stayed level until the 83rd minute, when Les Bleus added a second to secure the win.

Uruguay 4, Israel 1: Uruguay may have just eked out a World Cup berth after a tough qualification run, but things went very smoothly on Wednesday as they cruised past Israel in Montevideo.

Chile 3, Zambia 0: Chile rode three second half goals to a comfortable victory over the surprise quarterfinalists from January's Africa Cup of Nations. 

South Africa 2, Colombia 1: All of the goals in this match were scored from the penalty spot, as Bafana Bafana earned another good result ahead of their Group A opener against Mexico.  Also worth noting is that Colombia was robbed by hotel workers during their stay in Johannesburg. 

Denmark 2, Senegal 0: The Danes held a 1-0 lead for most of the match before doubling their lead in second half stoppage time.

Honduras 2, Belarus 2: Los Catrachos managed a draw against Belarus yesterday thanks to a 71st minute header from Georgie Welcome that leveled the score at 2-2.  Welcome, as you may remember, was the player chosen to replace Carlo Costly on the Honduras roster after Costly fractured his foot during club play. 

Ireland 3, Algeria 0: Algeria's World Cup preparations got off on the wrong foot this afternoon with a loss to Ireland.  They controlled possession but had difficulty finding the target, as just two of 13 shots were on frame.  Robbie Keane's second half brace secured the comfortable win for the Irish, who also defeated Paraguay earlier in the week. 

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Some other tidbits:

France was chosen to host Euro 2016, beating out Turkey and Italy in the process.  Click here to see the cities and stadiums included in the bid.

The USMNT has already lined up its first post-World Cup opponent, as they will take on Brazil at the new Meadowlands Stadium on August 10th.  The date is the first of two FIFA match days for friendlies following the World Cup, so all players will be available for selection.  (For those curious, the second post-World Cup FIFA match day for friendlies of 2010 is on November 17.)

Last, but not least, Bob Bradley has stated that he will field his starting lineup against Turkey tomorrow in Philadelphia after resting a number of key players against the Czech Republic.  Approximately 50,000 tickets have been sold for the match, so expect a great atmosphere at the Linc.  Yours truly will be in attendance to cheer on the Yanks in their final match before heading off to South Africa.

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Video Daily Double: White House and SportsCenter

I'm a little behind on posting both of these, but better late than never:

It's not everyday that the USMNT gets to go down to the White House, so here's a brief look at their visit with President Obama, Vice President Biden, and former President Clinton:




Next, here's Landon Donovan's "This is SportsCenter" commercial:




Stay tuned for an international round-up post or a look ahead to tomorrow's USMNT-Turkey friendly, or maybe even both if I'm feeling up to it.

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The Day After: Trusting Bob on Ching

Well, as you all know by now, the final World Cup roster was announced yesterday by way of a cheesy, slightly awkward ceremony at ESPN's campus in Bristol, Connecticut.  While the actual announcement process drew a fair share of remarks similar to my own, I think we can all agree at least that it was pretty cool that ESPN put something like this together for what once flew under the radar of the average sports fan.

There really weren't any big surprises on the roster other than the exclusion of Brian Ching and the inclusion of Real Salt Lake striker Robbie Findley.  Many pundits and fans expected that the big Hawaiian would be one of the final 23 standing prior to yesterday's announcement, which dashed his hopes of making a second World Cup squad and simultaneously ended my hopes of using puntastic headlines such as "Cha-Ching" or "Ching Kong" in June or July.

Initially, I felt this was an awful decision by Bradley, opting to bring an inexperienced striker who showed few encouraging signs in his three international appearances this year over an experienced player who has effectively filled his role with the national team throughout the cycle.  What particularly puzzled me was that Bradley would decide against bringing a target forward after having so frequently utilized that role in his tenure (Ching or Conor Casey started 7 of 10 Hex qualifiers and appeared as subs in one other Hex qualifier and four of the five Confederations Cup matches).   Needless to say, I was very surprised and, to be honest, angry about this choice.

But that's why you should never post when your angry.  Following the cue of our friend over at WVHooligan, I decided to give myself a night to think about the roster decision before jumping to any wild conclusions (back in the box, you go).  After giving it some more thought and closer examination, I've come to a point where I can at least say that I trust Bob's judgment on this one.

I was impressed with Ching's performance against the Czech Republic; he put himself in good spots, held up the ball well, and connected with his teammates well.  Naturally, this only added to the surprise that was to come.  Yesterday, in response to the Ching snub, I saw a couple of people (most notably Grant Wahl of SI.com) cite a second half 2 v. 2 where Ching didn't exactly look comfortable when making a supporting run, which was most likely the product of his relatively recent hamstring injury.  At first, I was tempted to look past this, as speed has never really been a part of Ching's game.  But then I realized that an less than full-strength hamstring could still have substantial implications for someone whose game is less speed-dependent.

Clearly, to think otherwise was a little naive on my part, which mostly comes from the fact that I have been fortunate enough not to have dealt with a hamstring injury throughout the years (knocks on wood).  But when you think about it, while a weak hamstring might be masked by some hold up play and one touch passing, it becomes an issue when the ball is up in the air.  If Ching isn't able to battle in the air for long balls from the back or crosses from the wing due to a lesser leap, that's a pretty significant part of his game that is missing.  When I think back to the Czech Republic friendly, I can't recall too many instances of Ching battling in the air, which may explain why it slipped my mind to begin with. 

As much as we all love to play doctors when we hear of an injury and timetable for recovery, the US Soccer staff (Bob Bradley included) have the best idea of where a player stands through the training and testing that most of us are not privy to.  If Ching's hamstring was limiting aspects of his game (some of which were not glaringly obvious on Tuesday night), Bob knew about it.  So, it seems as if the decision came down to a choice between a somewhat limited Brian Ching and a healthy, speedy Robbie Findley as the fourth striker.  Bob chose the latter, and all we can do is just trust his judgment on this one.  No one knows the players better than he does, and, despite his hordes of critics, Bradley has been pretty successful when it matters most.  So, just take a deep breath and believe in Bob.  It's also worth mentioning that Jozy Altidore's hold up play has improved a good deal thanks to his time at Hull, where he was often left on an island up top with little support, which may have factored in to the final decision.

When it comes down to it, I really don't expect to see much of Findley in the World Cup (that is, if we even see him on the field at all).  With DaMarcus Beasley's resurgence and Stuart Holden's quality, Bradley has the freedom to push Landon Donovan up top late in a match if a goal is needed and/or speed at striker is desired (after all, no one is a better "speed" player on this roster).  The presence of Edson Buddle and Herculez Gomez could also mean that there's not even room on the bench for the former Oregon State standout.  Nevertheless, I'm holding out hope that Findley can do more than he did in his previous caps should he find himself on the field in South Africa.

Whether I think he's international material or not at this point, I want to say that I am happy for Findley, who has been very humble and appreciative about his selection.  As much as he has been almost vilified for "taking" Brian Ching's spot, we have to remember that he didn't pick himself, Bob did, so we should only be congratulating Robbie on what is really one of the greatest personal achievements that any professional soccer player can hope to attain. 

The World Cup begins in two weeks, and with the final roster selected, it's time that we put all of our support behind each and every one of the 23 players that will be representing the Stars and Stripes, whether we think they should be there or not.  I fully expect that to be the case, but I figure a reminder never hurts considering some (myself included at one point) were pretty upset about the one big surprise from yesterday's roster announcement.

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5/25 International Round-Up

More updates on friendlies involving World Cup teams:

Cameroon 0, Georgia 0: Without Samuel Eto'o in the match day squad, the Indomitable Lions played out a scoreless draw against Georgia in Austria.  Cameroon will take on Slovakia (5/29), Portugal (6/1), and Serbia (6/5) before heading down to South Africa.

Nigeria 0, Saudi Arabia 0: The Super Eagles took on Saudi Arabia at Craven Cottage yesterday, and like Cameroon, their match ended without a goal.  They will continue their preparations with a friendly against Colombia on Sunday before heading down to South Africa, where they take on North Korea in one last tune-up before group play begins.

Greece 2, North Korea 2: This was only game of the day that featured two World Cup qualifiers.  While both sides were able to get on the score sheet, this match also ended in a draw.  All four goals were the product of set pieces, with the relatively unknown North Koreans holding their own against the Greeks.  Of all the goals (which can be seen here), perhaps the prettiest was this second half settle and strike by Jong Tae-Se:



Ireland 2, Paraguay 1: Paraguay joined the US as the only World Cup qualifiers to lose yesterday, as they fell to hosts Ireland after surrendering a pair of first half goals.  You can see all the goals here.

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USMNT Final World Cup Roster Announced

After months of speculation and countless roster predictions, the USMNT's 23 man World Cup roster has finally been announced.  Here is who Bob Bradley is taking to South Africa:


Goalkeepers: Tim Howard, Marcus Hahnemann, Brad Guzan

Defenders: Oguchi Onyewu, Carlos Bocanegra, Jay DeMerit, Clarence Goodson, Jonathan Spector, Jonathan Bornstein, Steve Cherundolo

Midfielders: Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley, Benny Feilhaber, Stuart Holden, Ricardo Clark, Jose Francisco Torres, DaMarcus Beasley, Maurice Edu

Forwards: Jozy Altidore, Edson Buddle, Herculez Gomez, Robbie Findley


Some of the notable snubs are Brian Ching and Alejandro Bedoya.  More to come on this later today or tomorrow.

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USMNT v. Czech Republic: Post-Game Thoughts and Final Roster

Before I get into player recaps, let me just say one thing: the result doesn't matter.  Yes, we lost to the Czech Republic, but how much does a game without most of our starters really tell us?  Last night's match was about evaluating players, not evaluating the team's preparedness.  Just think of it this way, it could have been a lot worse: Portugal tied 117th ranked Cape Verde despite fielding a full-strength squad.  


So, since last night was about looking at individual players, here's my take on how each of the 17 who took the field fared:

While Jonathan Bornstein turned in yet another maddeningly inconsistent performance out wide, Clarence Goodson turned in one of the strongest performances of all the USMNT players.  He was solid in the air on both ends of the field, helping create both goals while clearing a number of dangerous balls in the defensive third.  Though he had one serious miscue lead to a goal in the second half, overall I think USMNT fans should be very pleased with Goodson, who showed that he is an adequate option in the event that one of the starting center backs cannot play.  With that being said, one center back who didn't have the strongest game was Oguchi Onyewu, who still looks to be well short of 100%.  He did appear to have a hitch in his stride and got outleaped on a couple of occasions, including on the Czech Republic's late first half goal.  Gooch's health is worrying, but at this point all we can do is hope that he continues to progress in the next two weeks. 

Elsewhere in the back, Steve Cherundolo played well at RB while sporting the captain's armband, showing good poise on the ball.  Brad Guzan, meanwhile, didn't get too much help from the back line in the second half, when he surrendered three goals in the span of a half hour. 

The starting midfield turned in a very strong performance, with Maurice Edu and Jose Francisco Torres teaming up well in the middle.  Edu continues to make a case for the starting spot next to Michael Bradley, showing an ability to destroy in the middle as well as some skill going forward.  Stuart Holden, meanwhile, looked very sharp on the wing, and his dangerous set piece deliveries led to both US goals.  His performance only reinforces my belief that Bob Bradley will start him out wide against England on June 12th, allowing Clint Dempsey to slide up top with Jozy Altidore.

On the opposite wing was one guy who really needed to help his case for a World Cup ticket after an abysmal spring at the club level: DaMarcus Beasley.  Much like his March 3rd USMNT appearance against the Netherlands, Beasley rose to the occasion last night, turning in an active, involved effort on both ends of the field.  He whipped in a couple of quality crosses in the attacking third and drew a number of fouls, doing a lot of little things right along the way.  Beasley deserves to be on the final roster, and I fully expect Bob Bradley to choose him this afternoon.

Eddie Johnson didn't do himself any favors last night, displaying the same kind of misguided effort and slow decision making that has frustrated so many national team fans in the past couple of years. His strike partner Edson Buddle, meanwhile, had a solid showing in his first international start. Despite missing a decent chunk of time due to a cut above his lip, Buddle had some bright moments and showed a good work rate up front.

Robbie Rogers came on as a second half sub and had some bright moments, including a 30 yard bullet that forced Petr Cech into a diving stop.  All in all, though, I think it's just too little, too late for a player who has been very inconsistent with the national team over the past eight months.  Rogers can at least take solace in the fact that he stood out, unlike Sacha Kljestan, who was was barely noticeable for much of his time on.  Both he and Heath Pearce had rough outings, with both making mistakes that directly led to goals (two in Pearce's case).  Though I expected nothing more from Kljestan, who was always a long shot, I was very disappointed in Pearce's performance.

With Carlos Bocanegra's health still a point of concern, LB options aren't exactly bountiful, so I figured that a decent outing by Pearce would lead to Bob Bradley bringing eight defenders to South Africa.  But the FC Dallas defender was utterly awful in his time on, to the point that I think he killed any chances he had of earning a spot on the World Cup roster.  Both Bocanegra and Bornstein would be better options at this point, and while Jonathan Spector was far from impressive in his time at LB with West Ham this season, he too would still be a much better option than Pearce at the international level.

Both substitute strikers made their mark on the match on for all the right reasons. Brian Ching added some energy up top, holding up the ball well while also linking up with his teammates with some clever passing. He did the dirty work and showed his ability to be an offensive facilitator. Though I think Ching already had his World Cup spot secured, his performance last night was convincing in its own right (and as I'm writing this, I'm seeing multiple people on Twitter saying that they saw Ching at the Hartford airport, implying that he was one of the seven cut.  I'll wait until it's official to make any comment on what seems to be a poor roster decision, but could very well just be Ching meeting or seeing off some family).  Gomez, meanwhile, continued to do what he did so frequently at Puebla: put the ball in the back of the net. While his second half header from two yards out was largely the product of a great Clarence Goodson set up, the fact still remains that Herc put himself in the right spot at the right time, something that in-form strikers have a knack for doing. And when it comes down to it, it's hard to leave someone like that home, so I expect to see Gomez's name on the final roster.

Rounding out the group is Alejandro Bedoya, who came on for Oguchi Onyewu in the 66th minute.  Bedoya's name wasn't called too much during his time on, and I expect him to either be the last guy in or the first guy out when the roster is announced.

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So, without further ado, here's who I think will be on the final roster:

Goalkeepers: Howard, Hahnemann, Guzan

Defenders: Onyewu, Bocanegra, DeMerit, Goodson, Bornstein, Cherundolo, Spector

Midfielders: Donovan, Dempsey, Holden, Bradley, Edu, Torres, Feilhaber, Beasley, Clark, Bedoya

Strikers: Altidore, Ching, Gomez


There's only one change from my pre-camp prediction: Herculez Gomez in place of Edson Buddle. 

Tune in to ESPN at 1:20 PM ET, when Bob Bradley announces his final 23 man roster.  If you can't access a TV, then just come back to US Soccer Daily, where I'll post the final roster as soon as it's announced.

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5/24 International Round-Up

Here's a look at some of the other teams headed to South Africa fared yesterday in their respective tune-up friendlies:


England 3, Mexico 1: USMNT fans everywhere had an eye on Wembley yesterday, as their CONCACAF rivals met up with their Group C opponents in a marquee match-up.  England secured a victory, but the scoreline doesn't reflect a very strong performance from Mexico, who very well could have scored three or four goals in the first half.  Peter Crouch's height helped create two goals for the Three Lions, while Glen Johnson curled a shot past the keeper from 18 yards out at the end of a solo slalom run.  All in all, England were far from impressive, but it must be said that there lineup will likely be different by the time June 12th rolls around (as Bob Dillon alluded to in his post earlier today).  This may, however, provide more fodder for the English media, who will turn up the pressure even more on Fabio Capello's squad with the World Cup just around the corner.



Mexico, meanwhile, looked good going forward, but ultimately ended up giving up the opening goal against the run of play (as is often the case against another set of anglophones, the United States).  Despite the loss, El Tri should take a lot of positives out of their performance yesterday, though I'm sure Javier Aguirre is not too happy about giving up two goals off of set pieces.


Australia 2, new Zealand 1: Former OFC rivals met up in Melbourne yesterday, with the Aussies not looking overly impressive in front of their home fans.  The result was an unkind one for the Kiwis, who took an early lead and probably should have been up two men after two horrific tackles from the Socceroos, which only resulted in yellows.  Ricki Herbert's men created some good scoring opportunities and held their own on the road, once again displaying a sense of confidence that has followed them since their 0-0 draw against Iraq in last summer's Confederations Cup.  The Aussies managed to overcome the early deficit with two second half goals, the latter of which came deep into stoppage time to steal the win.



South Africa 1, Bulgaria 1: Bafana Bafana picked up a decent result yesterday, drawing against 39th ranked Bulgaria on the strength of a Siyabonga Sangweni header.  Nevertheless, Bulgaria are a far cry from the opponents that South Africa will face in Group A, and pressure is surely mounting on the hosts with just two weeks until they kick off the World Cup.


Portugal 0, Cape Verde 0: Portugal's World Cup preparations kicked off with a whimper, as they were unable to break through against Cape Verde (ranked 117th in the last FIFA rankings).  To be fair, Cristiano Ronaldo and company created a number of good scoring chances, but the result will nevertheless raise some eyebrows.  I'll give the USSD Man of the Match honors to GK Fredson Tavares for this one, who made a number of good stops to preserve the clean sheet and secure an unlikely draw for the African minnows.


Argentina 5, Canada 0: Diego Maradonna has taken plenty of heat for his World Cup roster selections (really, no Cambiasso or Zanetti?), but his group got the job done yesterday with a blowout win over Canada.  No one will get too crazy about this result, however, particularly considering Canada's comparative lack of quality; serious questions will likely follow La Albiceleste into South Africa where they will play in a very wide open Group B.  You can see all of the goals from the match here.


South Korea 2, Japan 0: The two hosts of the 2002 World Cup met up yesterday, with Park Ji-Sung giving the visitors a 6th minute lead that they would not relinquish.  South Korea doubled their lead with a stoppage time penalty, giving them their second 2-0 win in as many weeks.

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Some Thoughts on England-Mexico

Like yours truly, Bob Dillon took advantage of the opportunity to scout one of the USMNT's Group C opponents yesterday by watching England take on Mexico at Wembley.  Here are some of his thoughts on that match, as well as some things he's hoping to see from the USMNT tonight:

With no opportunity to watch Algeria play yesterday, I settled for streaming the England v. Mexico friendly. The game was interesting as Mexico had a strong first half that didn't show up on the scoreboard, and this new look Mexican team actually played like Arsenal for a long stretch, controlling possession and stringing together pass after pass. On the England side, they had three different goal scorers, Peter Crouch, Ledley King, and Glen Johnson. I really hope that Fabio Capello liked having these three guys in the starting line-up along with the speedy Theo Walcott on the right in the midfield because having these four in the starting line-up would actually give the United States its best opportunity to upset England in round one.

Here is my thinking on this. Ledley King looked dangerous on set pieces, but really slow in the back. I think that the United States will be much more organized in the back than the Mexicans, and the possibility of Donovan making some runs through the middle on King could create some instant scoring opportunities. I know that Theo Walcott can look scary with all that speed, and he will probably be the reason that Jonathan Bornstein plays the first game of the World Cup, but trust me, I watch this guy every week in an Arsenal jersey, and he just doesn't have the touch in the final third to cross the ball or make the right decisions on when to get Wayne Rooney the ball.

As for Peter Crouch, he is a miserable partner for Wayne Rooney as his passing is not good. His head is a huge weapon, but it complements Gerrard and Lampard instead of Rooney. If the United States is up a goal with ten minutes to go, I don't want to see Crouch.  But let him start and then get physical with him right away, and there's a good chance it will work out in the US' favor. As for Glen Johnson, his wonder strike today against Mexico will probably be the highlight of his international career. He wanders in the back, and Clint Dempsey or Landon Donovan have a chance to exploit this aspect of his game. I'm sure, though, that Fabio Capello has a different game plan for the U.S. team; John Terry, Aaron Lennon, Ashley Cole, and Emily Heskey or Jermaine Defore will probably round out the starting XI for England instead.

English Beanpole

A few notes to extend on the things to watch for tonight.  I want to see energy.  The energy that Beasley can bring to a run down the flank, or the passion that we saw Altidore play with the game after Charlie Davies' accident. It is time for Michael Bradley to win some balls by running through people (legally, of course) and see Landon and Dempsey play with that look in their eyes. If they play with the quiet confidence of Bob Bradley, then I'm not sure that this team is ready for the big show. It would also be nice to see our midfielders string some passes together like I saw in the England v. Mexico from the Mexican side. Finally, the US gave up too many early goals in qualifying, no early mistakes please.

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USMNT v. Czech Republic: What I Will (And Won't) Be Watching For

We'll check off another item off of the pre-World Cup to-do list tomorrow night, as the USMNT kicks off it's final batch of friendlies with a match against one of their group stage opponents from 2006, the Czech Republic.  With the World Cup now just two and a half weeks away, a lot of people will be watching intently to try to gauge where certain players stand after months on the sidelines, not to mention how the team is gelling as a unit.

Here's what I'll be keeping my eye on at Rentschler Field:


Injured defenders: One of the obvious points of focus for tomorrow's match (and all of the tune-up friendlies, for that matter) will be Oguchi Onyewu's match fitness and sharpness.  With his last competitive appearance coming in that fateful October qualifier against Costa Rica, you have to wonder how Gooch will cope with the speed of play and pressures of international duty that can't be exactly simulated on the training pitch.  While plenty of folks on the ground in Princeton last week made mention of a visible limp in his stride, Onyewu insists that he's good to go and is a better player than he was prior to his injury.  That's all well and good, and I like the confidence, but at the same time I (and I'm sure I'm not alone on this) won't believe it until I see it.  Watching Peter Crouch create two England goals against Mexico this afternoon with his height only reinforces the obvious: having a healthy, sharp Gooch in the lineup will be a big asset come June 12th.

Beyond Onyewu, though, we now have the health of Carlos Bocanegra and Jay DeMerit to concern ourselves with.  Throughout my Yanks in Europe posts towards the end of the Ligue 1 season, I speculated that Bocanegra's exclusion from several Stade Rennes match day rosters must have been minor, as no real news had reached this side of the pond about some kind of serious setback.  Then we found out this week that the former Chicago Fire star actually underwent surgery for a sports hernia at the beginning of May, adding another wrinkle to the USMNT's World Cup build up.  DeMerit, meanwhile, had to deal with an abdominal strain down the stretch of his club season, which kept him out of Watford's final games and limited him in the first days of camp.  Both participated in full training in Princeton, but doubts still remain about their health.  Hopefully, any fears regarding their fitness will be allayed this week, though we may have to wait until the Turkey match for that if the pair is kept out of tomorrow's lineup for precautionary purposes.


The "new" forwards: While Edson Buddle and Herculez Gomez both have caps to their name, it feels as if they are newcomers to the national team set-up due to their long respective gaps between call-ups.  Jozy Altidore is a lock for South Africa, and I stand by my belief that Brian Ching will also be on the plane thanks to Bob Bradley's frequent utilization of the target forward role, but after that it's still up in the air.  While Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey provide two solid options at striker, both have expressed in the past week that their preferred positions are out on the wings.  So, to allow Bob Bradley to keep the midfield in order and add depth up top, someone will need to step up and show their worth.  I expect Buddle and Gomez, arguably the most in-form players of any of the 30 on the roster, will get some minutes against the Czechs as a final audition (Bradley has stated that the final roster will be announced after tomorrow's match), so it will be interesting to see who shows well and who is able to mesh with some of the key starters.


DaMarcus Beasley: Beasley's career has been a roller coaster over the past year, with his rapid fall from grace at the Confederations Cup followed by a rise to Rangers stardom in the winter, which was then followed by a dip back down into the depths of unused substitutedom.  He had a brief resurgence with his solid showing against the Netherlands, only to remain rooted on the bench at Ibrox for months before one final (unimpressive) performance at the end of the season.  Despite those struggles, Beasley made it to camp, where he could ultimately show off his stuff to Bob Bradley, the man's whose opinion really matters in all of this.  I've heard that Beasley has looked pretty good in camp (despite turning the ripe old age of 28 today), and I think he has a good shot of earning a roster spot if he can turn in a good performance tomorrow night.  As much as we want to look at club performance to gauge a player's preparedness at this point, the only thing that really matters is what they are doing right now.  Beasley can quickly wipe away months-old concerns (for fans and coaches alike) by capping off the preliminary roster period with a quality appearance against the Czechs.  Of course, there is the chance that he doesn't even see the field tomorrow, but I have a feeling he will given his lack of game play over the last couple of months.


Clarence Goodson: With three center backs dealing with injuries, the fourth man on the depth chart suddenly becomes a lot more important.  Thanks to his good run of form with the national team this past winter, I think Goodson has the inside edge on that fourth spot, with his strong play at the club level with IK Start only strengthening his claims for a ticket to South Africa.  There's a good chance that he'll see some minutes tomorrow night, and I'll be eager to see how he fares for depth's sake. With that being said, I also wonder if we may see Maurice Edu slide into the back line at some point as another back-up option.


Those are just a couple of things that I'll be watching for, because really, I'll be watching for almost everything, and I don't want this post to get too long.  But there's one thing that I won't be watching for, and that is...

The scoreboard: The result doesn't matter.  Teams can play poorly and win, and teams can dominate and lose or draw.  All I care about is how the Yanks play, particularly the first XI.  If they move the ball well, defend well as a unit, and create some scoring opportunities, I'll be happy.  If their attack is stagnant and the back line is a mess, I'll be worried.  And that's regardless of the score.  What matters most is that the team is playing well ahead of South Africa, not whether they are ekeing out results in tune-up friendlies.  Hopefully, good play translates over to the scoreboard, so USMNT fans in attendance can go home happy, but all I'm looking for from tomorrow's match is quality team play from Landon Donovan and company.  A win would just be icing on the cake.



If there's something that you'll be watching for tomorrow night that I didn't mention, feel free to mention it in the comments section. 

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USMNT Takes Over ESPN

The USMNT has migrated north to Connecticut ahead of their friendly in Hartford against the Czech Republic tomorrow. Along the way, a number of players have stopped off at ESPN's campus in nearby Bristol to appear on a host of programs to talk about the World Cup. Here are a couple of those segments for those who may have missed them:

Landon Donovan on SportsCenter: Landon talks camp preparations, Charlie Davies, England, and the team's expectations.



Tim Howard on ESPN First Take: This one is on the lighter side, with a little soccer discussion mixed in with some other topics.



Oguchi Onyewu on First Take: Gooch talks about his injury, the build up to the World Cup, and AC Milan, amongst other things.




It's good to see the Yanks getting a lot of air time ahead of the send-off series, and I expect the coverage to only increase from here on out as ESPN pushes to promote the World Cup and meet their lofty viewership goals.  If I find any more videos of these appearances, I'll add them here.

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Gomez Moves to Pachuca

With the Champions League final front and center for most soccer fans today, there was one bit of news regarding a USMNT player that might have slipped under the radar.  After scoring 10 goals for Puebla in Mexico's Toreno Bicentenario, good for a tie atop the golden boot standings, Herculez Gomez will be moving to Pachuca.  Per the report, the terms of the contract have not been revealed, but the signings will be made official next week.

Gomez, who is currently in Princeton with the USMNT, will join fellow World Cup hopeful Jose Francisco Torres (and his brother Guillermo) with Los Tuzos.  Even if the duo don't make Bob Bradley's final roster, they'll still get an opportunity to showcase their talents on a global stage, as Pachuca will play in the Club World Cup this December thanks to their CONCACAF Champions League triumph last month.

While yours truly hasn't been able to get to Princeton for a couple of reasons, hearsay seems to indicate that Gomez is holding his own.  Today, Ives Galarcep tweeted,"Herculez Gomez wasn't talking about Pachuca today. Word is he's having a good camp," sentiments that have been echoed by a couple of other people on the ground in New Jersey.  At this point, I expect him to at least earn some minutes as a substitute against the Czech Republic on Tuesday, with his performance in that time likely playing a significant part in deciding his World Cup fate.

For those who didn't get to watch much of the goalscoring exploits that vaulted Gomez from MLS castoff to USMNT prospect in a matter of months, these two videos show all 10 of his tallies with Puebla:







With his club status now settled, Gomez can focus all his attention on international duty. (While I doubt he's been materially distracted by any club level negotiations, they must have been in the back of his mind.) Gomez's rise to national team relevance has been nothing short of meteoric, and he is now just one hurdle away from earning an improbable World Cup berth. We'll see if he can continue his magical run in Hartford and book his ticket to South Africa.

Even if he falls short, though, at least his recent run earned him a nice payday.  Not the worst consolation prize should he end up on the outside looking in when the final roster is announced.

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Video Daily Double: Nike World Cup Ads

It's seems like the trendy thing to do lately (for good reason), so I'll join in on posting the newest Nike World Cup commercial.  Pretty awesome:



With that, here's an older one (from World Cup '98) that has always been one of my favorites:



As always, let me know if either video stops working for some reason, and I'll fix it as soon as I can.

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The US 30: By the Numbers

Here are some numbers on the 30 players in the USMNT's preliminary roster:

31.03: The average number of caps amongst the 30 players.

19.17: The average number of caps amongst the 6 forwards.

41.8: The average number of caps amongst the final 23-man roster for the 2006 World Cup.

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121: The number of caps for Landon Donovan, the highest of all 30 players, and more than all the forwards combined.

1: The number of caps for Edson Buddle, the lowest total amongst the 30.  His lone appearance came as a late substitute against Venezuela in 2003.

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6: The number of forwards on the roster.

3: The number of forwards without an international goal (Findley, Buddle, Gomez).

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9: The number of MLS players on the roster, making MLS the most represented league on the roster.

12: The number of leagues that the 30 players have played in over the past season, with the EPL employing the most Yanks out of the other 11 leagues represented in the group.

4: Chivas USA, the Columbus Crew, the Los Angeles Galaxy, and Rangers all have two players on the roster, the only teams with more than one representative.

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23: The number of players who have played in MLS at some point in their careers.

21: The number of players who played college soccer.

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14: The number of US states represented amongst the 30 players, in terms of place of birth.

3: The number of countries represented amongst the 30 players, in terms of place of birth, with Benny Feilhaber (Brazil) and Stuart Holden (Scotland) being the only non-US born players in the group.

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31: The average age of the goalkeepers.

27.33: The average age of the defenders.

26.17: The average age of the forwards.

24.67: The average age of the midfielders. 

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7: The number of players who did not play in any of the Hexagonal qualification matches last year:  Hahnemann, Goodson, Bedoya, Findley, Gomez, Buddle, and Johnson.

4: The number of forwards out of the 6 on the roster who did not play in any Hexagonal qualifiers.

5: The number of players who did not play in any 2010 World Cup qualifiers (Johnson and Goodson played in qualifiers in 2008).

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10: The number of players who were also on the final 2006 World Cup roster: Howard, Bocanegra, Cherundolo, Dempsey, Johnson, Ching, Beasley, Hahnemann, Donovan, Onyewu.

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Feel free to contribute some numbers of your own in the comments section if you can think of any that I missed. Also, if I made a mistake anywhere along the way, feel free to correct me; I know I'm not infallible.

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Fan Training Camp for 6/12

As the USMNT kicks off its World Cup training camp in Princeton, Bob Dillon is in the midst of his own camp, as he prepares for the day that we've all been waiting four long years for.

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I have started my fan training camp for the first game against England. It started last weekend when I watched the FA Cup final with my two daughters, who are five and two. They always ask who I am rooting for, and they root for the other team. Fortunately for me, I had no horses in the race, so they rooted for Chelsea because they like how the name Solomon Kalou sounds. While they were cheering the Blues, all I could think about was how glad I was that all of the US 30 were basically done for the season. There was no chance that someone would end up like Michael Ballack.



I finished the weekend training by digging out my Journey to Germany video, and over the last three days, I have worked my way through the lead up to the World Cup in 2006 including qualifying and the Gold Cup in 2005. Here are some observations from my viewing:

The core of our team looked young. Bocanegra, Onyewu, Donovan, and Dempsey seemed like little kids, not the professionals that have now become by playing at Rennes, AC Milan, Everton, and Fulham, respectively.

We qualified for Germany very quickly winning six of the first seven games including the game against Mexico in Columbus that clinched it. This resulted in our best players not getting as many games together in March and April as the hex wrapped up.

I'm not sure that we have replaced Claudio Reyna with a high quality passer in the midfield. I realize that Claudio's mistake against Ghana cost us in Germany, but his energy, precision passing, and poise in the midfield were quality, and they remain a question mark for the 2010 squad. Benny Feilhaber has never shown 90 minutes of high quality play.

There are a few guys that I forgot about: Corey Gibbs, Steve Ralston, and Bobby Convey.  Ralston scored the game winning goal to clinch the qualification, and he also scored against me in high school, but that's a whole different post:

Finally, I miss Eddie Lewis. He brought a sense of professionalism to our 2006 squad. He was a great spokesman, played in multiple positions for Bruce Arena, and always could be counted on to have intelligent insight during pressers.

Next week, training camp will be about setting the watch party at my house. I've decided to stay home for the England game with friends, and try to spread the passion for the beautiful game. Good luck with your fan training camp. We all need to be primed and ready when June 12 arrives. Stay focused, and push away all of those distractions from your calendar.

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CONCACAF Update: Honduras and Mexico

Since the USMNT's FIFA ranking will benefit in the long run by CONCACAF success at this summer's World Cup, I figured I should give some updates on what Honduras and Mexico are doing as their final preparations get under way.

Unlike Bob Bradley, Honduras head coach Reinaldo Ruega simply named his 23-man World Cup roster last week rather than bring the full 30-man preliminary roster in to battle it out for spots on the plane to South Africa.  The group he selected, which includes 14 players from the domestic league, is as follows:


Goalkeepers: Ricardo Canales, Noel Valladares, Donis Escober

Defenders: Victor Bernardez, Maynor Figueroa, Boniek Garcia, Sergio Mendoza, Johnny Palacios, Emilio Izaguirre, Osman Chavez, Mauricio Sabillon

Midfielders: Edgar Alvarez, Roger Espinoza, Julio Cesar de Leon, Amado Guevara, Ramon Nunez, Hendry Thomas, Wilson Palacios, Danilo Turcios

Forwards: David Suazo, Georgie Welcome, Carlos Pavon, Walter Martinez


One notable absence from this list is Carlo Costly, whose five goals in the Hex were the second highest total amongst all players, trailing only teammate Carlos Pavon's seven tallies.  Costly fractured his foot at the tail end of the Romanian Liga season, which ultimately cost him his spot on the final roster.

With that roster, Los Catrachos will play three tune-up friendlies before heading down to South Africa.  The matches, all of which will take place in Austria, will be against Belarus (5/27), Azerbaijan (6/2), and Romania (6/5).  They will then have 10 more days of preparation until their Group H opener against Chile.

Mexico's situation, meanwhile, is somewhere between the two extremes that Bob Bradley and Reinaldo Ruega have employed.  Head coach Javier Aguirre named a provisional roster of 26 players, which he then proceeded to trim down to 24 after El Tri's May 13 friendly against Angola by cutting Adrian Aldrete and Juan Carlos Valenzuela.  The remaining 24 are as follows:


Goalkeepers: Guillermo Ochoa, Luis Ernesto Michel, Oscar Perez

Defenders: Paul Aguilar, Efrain Juarez, Jonny Magallon, Rafael Marquez, Hector Moreno, Ricardo Osorio, Francisco Rodriguez, Carlos Salcido, Jorge Torres Nilo

Midfielders: Israel Castro, Jonathan dos Santos, Andres Guardado, Gerardo Torrado

Forwards: Pablo Barrera, Adolfo Bautista, Cuauhtemoc Blanco, Giovani dos Santos, Guillermo Franco, Javier Hernandez, Alberto Medina, Carlos Vela


Some notable names not included are Miguel Sabah and Nery Castillo.  Sabah, who scored the late winner against the USMNT at Estadio Azteca last August, is dealing with an injury, while Castillo has had a rough go of it at the club level in Ukraine and England over the past couple of seasons. 

Much like the USMNT, Mexico have several players capable of playing multiple positions, so their roster isn't as unbalanced as it might look at first glance.  Javier Aguirre and company will complete their preparations with four more matches in what has already been a long, long line of friendlies this year.  They will travel to Wembley to take on England on May 24 before heading to Germany to take on the Netherlands (5/26) and the Gambia (5/30).  They will then face off against Italy in Belgium on June 3 before finally heading down to South Africa, where they will kick off the tournament against the hosts on June 11. 

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While the focus around these parts will, of course, be on the USMNT in the coming weeks, I'll be sure to also provide updates on our fellow CONCACAF qualifiers as they finish up their final preparations and play their tune-up friendlies.

Stay tuned.

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From 30 to 23: First Take

With all 30 guys set to be in camp by the end of the day, I figured I'd give a prediction on which of those players will be in South Africa when all is said and done.  Following the send-off matches, I'll take a look back at this and may revise it if I think I need to.

For those of you who are just sick and tired of these roster predictions from me and countless others, I apologize.  Just take solace in the fact that there probably will be just one more of these after this one, after which we will finally know the final World Cup roster.

With that being said, here's who I think will make Bob Bradley's final squad:


Goalkeepers:

Tim Howard
Marcus Hahnemann
Brad Guzan


Defenders:

Oguchi Onyewu
Carlos Bocanegra
Jay DeMerit
Clarence Goodson
Jonathan Spector
Steve Cherundolo
Jonathan Bornstein


Midfielders:

Landon Donovan
Clint Dempsey
Stuart Holden
Ricardo Clark
Maurice Edu
Michael Bradley
Jose Francisco Torres
Alejandro Bedoya
Benny Feilhaber
DaMarcus Beasley


Forwards:

Jozy Altidore
Brian Ching
Edson Buddle



That last forward spot was a coin flip between Buddle and Herculez Gomez, but for now I'll give the edge to the MLS leading scorer.  I expect the send-off series to play a big part in distinguishing those two.

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section.  Stay tuned for a CONCACAF update later this afternoon/evening, as well.

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Yanks in Europe: Gooch Offers to Play for Free

Okay, so I may have lied on Sunday when I said that that edition of Yanks in Europe would be the last one for awhile.  Here's one more short one with a couple of updates:

Yesterday, 28 of the 30 players on Bob Bradley's preliminary World Cup roster were in Princeton already, with one of the lone exceptions being Alejandro Bedoya.  Bedoya was still with Orebro, who squared off against last place Trelleborgs on Monday afternoon.  They earned a comfortable 2-0 victory, severely outshooting their opponents in the process.  The result pushes Orebro up to third place in the Allsvenskan table.  Bedoya played the full 90 minutes and took several shots of his own, though he did not score or set up either of his team's goals.  Nevertheless, it was yet another one of the energetic and active displays that have helped bring him into the final 23 conversation over the course of the past couple of months.

Elsewhere, Oguchi Onyewu made the news when he decided to extend his contract at AC Milan for one extra season.  The contract originally ran through June 2012, but it will now finish in June 2013.  The real noteworthy thing here, however, is that Gooch has decided to play that extra season without pay to make up for this past season that was lost due to injury.  Of course, there is a good chance that Onyewu might not even be in Milan by the time the 2012-13 season rolls around, but he is nevertheless being praised by the club for his "exemplary gesture".

Some have speculated that such an extension may have been some kind of concession from Onyewu's camp to convince Milan management to keep him around for at least another year; I won't say that's definitely the case, but I wouldn't be surprised if something like that did in fact happen.

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This duo will head to Princeton today to get their World Cup preparations underway, rounding out Bob Bradley's group of 30.

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What The USMNT Can Learn From The Philadelphia Flyers

I apologize in advance to any Boston Bruins fans who may read this post.

Growing up, I lived in a Flyers household.  Like all Philadelphians, we had a special place in our hearts for the Eagles, Phils, Sixers, and Big 5 basketball, but we loved the Orange and Black above all.  Needless to say, I've been thoroughly enjoying the Flyers' remarkable playoff run this year, particularly their historic comeback against Boston, and I will not pass up the opportunity to carry their success over to this site in one form or another.



For those who don't follow hockey, the Flyers defeated the Boston Bruins by a score of 4-3 on Friday night to win Game 7 of their second round playoff series.  The series win was made all the more impressive by the fact that the Flyers came back from an 0-3 deficit, but I'll focus this post primarily on that final game, and more specifically, what the USMNT might be able to learn from it ahead of their marquee match-up with England on June 12.


#1: There is such a thing as "bad energy"

With the crowd in full voice and both teams understanding what was on the line, the Flyers and the Bruins came out with a lot of fire in the opening minutes of Game 7.  Unfortunately for Philadelphia, that energy ended up hurting them, as two penalties ensued.  While the first may have been due to a lack of focus, the second was clearly the product of someone (Danny Briere) who was just a little too amped up and not playing intelligently.  These two setbacks proved to be very costly, as the Bruins jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead thanks to goals on both power plays.

The USMNT will have to be smart in the opening moments of their match against England so as to avoid getting caught up in the crowd and doing something stupid.  For a team that has developed a little bit of a reputation for its red cards in its past two FIFA tournaments, the last thing we need is for someone to get caught up in the excitement and be to hard or overzealous with a challenge; otherwise, a penalty, card, or early deficit might just be the result.

A fair share of players will be making their first World Cup appearances, so it's up to veterans like Tim Howard, Carlos Bocanegra, and Landon Donovan to keep the troops calm and level-headed in what will surely be an electric and boisterous venue.  There is a fine line between aggressive play and recklessness, and that group, along with Bob Bradley, will have to make sure that the US is on the right side of it.


#2: The best offense is a good defense

Throughout Game 7, the Flyers caused the Bruins a number of issues by constantly pressuring the puck wherever it was.  By aggressively forechecking (pressuring the Bruins in their defensive end, for the non-hockeyites), the Flyers stopped a lot of Boston attacks before they even started and created a number of turnovers that generated instant offense.

It might not be the prettiest method, but hard work from the midfielders and forwards to apply pressure to England's back line could very well create a number of offensive opportunities, if not a goal.  Such effort could also force England into some fouls in their own half, which could produce a card as well as a scoring chance. Of course, the US players will have to pick and choose their spots to apply such pressure since they don't have the benefit of line changes and 45 second shifts, but the idea still has some merit, I feel.

I know most fans wish that the US played a beautiful, free-flowing style that picked apart opposing defenses with creativity and crisp passes, but the fact of the matter is that their recent success has been predicated on a defensive style.  Thus, goals from scrappy play, high pressure, and defensive discipline will probably be more likely than a Barca-esque attack.  Cutting the field down by applying pressure in the offensive half could go a long way towards getting those crucial goals.


#3 Don't get caught up in an officiating decision

Trailing 3-2, the Flyers appeared to level the score in the second period during a goalmouth scramble in which the puck seemed to cross the line.  Upon further review, however, the play was ruled as no goal, as replays could not confirm what was probably a goal.  Instead of losing focus in the wake of the decision against them, though, the Flyers continued to do what they had done up to that point, and they created a couple of quality scoring opportunities in the following minutes.

Of course, an identical situation won't happen in South Africa since replay is a ways away from being implemented in the beautiful game, but something similar could occur.  A questionable penalty call, card, or disallowed goal could all happen, but the Yanks will just have to push on and continue the momentum that they had built up to that particular point in the match.

Fortunately, the US has shown an ability to bounce back well from situations like this in recent times, as they were able to take the lead just minutes after Ricardo Clark's first half red card against Italy in the Confederations Cup.  Should some questionable officiating arise in South Africa (and I'd be shocked if it didn't, to be honest), Bob Bradley's men will need to have a similar response to avoid taking a huge step back and making things easier for Rooney and company.


#4 Take small steps to victory

With the Flyers trailing 3-0 in the first period, head coach Peter Laviolette called a timeout to help his team regroup after their disastrous start.  As I sat there frustrated and dejected, I could read Laviolette's lips in the huddle, as he yelled to his team that just one goal would get them back in the game. Surely enough, the Flyers got that first goal just a few minutes later, giving them a boost going into the first intermission that would eventually result in a 4-3 comeback win. 

England is a very talented team, and the USMNT might find themselves in an early hole.  They'll have to understand, however, that they won't be able to make up two or three goals all at once.  Just focus on getting the first, and only after that has been done should you move your focus on to the second.  Breaking the game down into smaller steps can help re-energize a team that might be a little down on itself after a rough stretch, and it can keep them from trying too hard to make up the deficit in one foul swoop, which can often lead to poor, overambitious decision-making.

Unlike Laviolette, Bob Bradley doesn't have a timeout at his disposal, so the halftime team talk is really where he'd have to step up and get everyone on the same page.  That doesn't preclude, however, someone like Bocanegra or Donovan from gathering their team after a goal and relaying a similar message in the meantime.

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I'm pretty sure most of what I just said goes without saying, but I figured it was worth connecting what helped one team to success in a high-stakes game to what the USMNT might face against England in their Group C opener.  All of this could probably be extended to any of the Yanks' other World Cup games; I just decided to keep if focused on England because that is the match that will likely attract the most excitement and scrutiny for a number of reasons.


And, besides all that, I just enjoyed reliving the Flyers' unbelievable Game 7 win.  What a night...

 

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Yanks in Europe: Feilhaber and Aarhus Relegated

This will probably be the last Yanks in Europe post for a little while, as most European seasons draw to a close and USMNT players start to file into Princeton, NJ.  While there weren't too many Americans in action this past weekend, there were still a couple of things worth mentioning:

Entering their final match of the season, AGF Aarhus needed a win at home against second place Odense BK and some help to avoid relegation.  Benny Feilhaber came on as a 57th minute sub with his side trailing 1-0 and in need of a miracle.  Unfortunately, that never came, as Aarhus squandered a couple of opportunities and Odense added two more goals to secure the win.  The result means Aarhus will be playing in the Danish 1st Division next year, an outcome that not too many people would have expected after they finished in the top half of the table last season and started off this season on a seven game unbeaten run.  I expect that, as a result of the drop, Feilhaber will be on the move this summer, meaning his time with the national team in the coming months will also double as an audition for potential suitors across Europe.

In Norway, meanwhile, Clarence Goodson started and went the distance for IK Start as they picked up a 3-0 win over Kongsvinger.  Goodson has continued to turn in solid performances at the club level since his strong showings with the national team this winter; he will provide much needed depth at the center back position in the coming weeks.

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Injured/Did Not Play

After suffering a hamstring injury in a midweek playoff match, Eddie Johnson did not feature in Aris' encounter with Olympiakos today. 

Oguchi Onyewu, meanwhile, was not in the match day squad for AC Milan in their final match of the season.

Last, Charlie Davies was not involved in Sochaux's final match of the season, which was expected in the wake of the whole medical clearance situation from last week.


Eddie Johnson (hamstring)
Freddy Adu (unused substitute)
Carlos Bocanegra (abdomen/rest)
Oguchi Onyewu (not in match day squad)
Charlie Davies (fitness)

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Video Daily Double: Landon on Kimmel and Jozy's SC Commercial

Okay, so it's actually three videos, but that's only because I couldn't find Landon's Kimmel appearance in just one clip.  Just pretend the first two are just one long video so I can still use the same title I've been using for posts like this. 


First, as I just alluded to, Landon Donovan appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Wednesday night, discussing the USMNT's chances at the World Cup and England, among other things:

Part 1



Part 2




Next, check out Jozy Altidore's Sportscenter commerical:

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Yanks in Europe: Cup Finals, EJ, Ale, and More

Here are some midweek updates on Yanks plying their trade on the Old Continent:

The big match that had everyone's attention this week was the Europa League final, as Clint Dempsey looked to become the first American to win a European club competition.  Deuce came on as a striker in the 55th minute of a 1-1 game and was involved in a couple of scoring opportunities just a couple of minutes after entering the game.   Ultimately, however, neither side was able to break the deadlock, with the match going to extra time.  It looked to be headed for penalties until Uruguay's Diego Forlan found the back of the net in the 116th minute (with a little help from the leg of the Texas-born honorary Yank in Europe, Brede Hangeland).  The loss ended Fulham's magical Europe League run, one that claimed the likes of Shakhtar Donetsk, Juventus, Hamburg, and Wolfsburg.  After finishing 12th in the EPL standings, the Cottagers will not be involved in European play next season.  The goals from the match can be seen below:





While Dempsey was on the wrong end of the Europa League final, another American took home a trophy this week.  Today, Michael Parkhurst (8 caps) and FC Nordsjaelland defeated FC Midtjylland in extra time by a score of 2-0 to win the Danish Cup.  The former New England Revolution standout went the full 120, primarily as a defensive midfielder, picking up a yellow card in the 74th minute.  The trophy is FCN's first in their 19 year history.  Thanks to the win, Parkhurst and company have also earned a spot in next season's Europa League.

Elsewhere today, Alejandro Bedoya played 90 minutes for Orebro in their 0-0 draw with IFK Goteberg.  Bedoya was involved in a couple good scoring opportunities, including his second half volley that smashed off the crossbar (see highlights here).  The World Cup hopeful also picked up a first half yellow card in the tie. 

In Greece, Eddie Johnson left Aris' playoff game yesterday with a hamstring injury.  At this point, Aris is expecting that the injury will keep EJ out about 1-2 weeks, which could cost him his shot at the World Cup team given that he'll likely miss a large chunk of the national team camp.  Eddie Johnson's agent, meanwhile, has said that he doesn't think the injury is that bad, and that his substitution yesterday was mostly precautionary.  US Soccer officials have said that Johnson will be evaluated in Princeton.

Freddy Adu also featured in the match, playing 72 minutes in what finished as a 1-1 draw. At this point, Aris are no longer in Champions League contention, but they still have the opportunity to avoid some of the earlier Europa League qualification rounds if they can pull off a couple of positive results in their final two matches.

Charlie Davies, meanwhile, has expressed some anger at his club after their actions help keep him off of Bob Bradley's 30-man roster.  As much as some have said that Charlie's exclusion might ultimately be the best decision, this still remains a significant "what if" for me.  It also looks like I had some reason to be suspicious of Sochaux's involvement in all of this.  Who knows where this will go in the coming weeks, but I expect to hear more from those close to the situation.

Last, but not least, it's Oguchi Onyewu's birthday today!  Gooch is now 28 years old.  Happy birthday, big guy.

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The Best of the Rest

Bob Dillon is back and telling us that the times, they are a-changin' (sorry, awful joke), but the USMNT's depth is still no where close to that of the international elite.  He gives us a look at the best of the best who were left behind when preliminary rosters were announced.

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Growing the Depth

As I looked at Bob Bradley's selection of 30 players, the first thing that jumps to mind is that we have a legitimate group of internationally tested players to field a starting eleven in the World Cup. It seems a bit silly to say this, but we aren't too many World Cup cycles in the past where we were lucky to have a handful of European based players on the roster (see 2002 roster here). This says a ton about the growth of US Soccer including youth development, MLS, training facilities, the coaching staff, and collegiate soccer, but digging deeper into the list exposes the hard truth about the possibility of United States breaking into the top ten soccer countries, planting our flag, and saying that we are there for good.

The hard truth is that our depth still isn't close to the level it needs to be. During the announcements of the rosters from around the world yesterday is was clear that we were having a different conversation then the top soccer nations. The top nations were talking about which players who started UEFA Championship League soccer games didn't make the provisional 30 lists while the United States conversation was about trying to get an injured Charles Davies healthy and the selections of Edson Buddle, Robbie Rogers, and Robbie Findley. We can call the 2010 squad progress, but let's keep a global perspective about how things are growing. As a means of illustrating our need for depth, I quickly cobbled together a starting eleven, plus a bench of nine that will be playing as many minutes as me in this year's World Cup, zero. I would love to hear additions to my starting eleven, and I left some space on my bench for players that I missed. Also I totally blanked on keepers, so I am showing my hand in playing my boyhood idol, Brad Friedel.


Goalkeepers: Brad Friedel* (Aston Villa, USA), Manuel Almunia (Arsenal, uncapped)

Defenders: Alex* (Chelsea, Brazil), Alessandro Nesta* (AC Milan, Italy), Roberto Carlos* (Corinthians, Brazil), Edmilson (Real Zaragoza, Brazil)

Midfielders: Patrick Viera* (Manchester City, France), Francesco Totti* (Roma, Italy), Samir Nasri* (Arsenal, France), Ronaldinho* (AC Milan, Brazil), Diego* (Juventus, Brazil), Thiago Motta (Inter, uncapped), Javier Zanetti (Inter, Argentina), Esteban Cambiasso (Inter, Argentina), Owen Hargreaves (Manchester United, England)

Forwards: Karim Benzema* (Real Madrid, France), Pato* (AC Milan, Brazil), Luca Toni (Roma, Italy), Ruud van Nistelrooy (Hamburg, Netherlands), Adriano (Flamengo, Brazil)

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How do you think this team would fare if it were actually in the World Cup?  Any suggestions for Bob's roster? 

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USSD Podcast #1: Roster Breakdown

Last night, with the help of Jason Davis from Match Fit USA, I recorded the first ever US Soccer Daily podcast.  Jason and I breakdown the 30 man roster, speculate on who will make it to South Africa, and, of course, discuss Charlie Davies' exclusion. 

It took me a couple minutes to get my podcast legs under me, but all in all I think my first attempt behind the mic went decently.  So give it a listen and let me know what you think; if the demand's there, I'll try to do this more regularly.  For now, though, I'll just play it by ear.



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Download this podcast here

Was this podcast interesting, or did it put you to sleep?  Would you want something like this more frequently, or should I just quit while I'm ahead?  Was my voice melodious and soothing, or did it make your ears bleed?  Let me know in the comments section.

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Charlie Davies Reaction

Well, the 30 man roster was announced, and there was one big name missing: Charlie Davies.

Now, before I delve into this, let me just preface it by saying that I have always been a Bob Bradley supporter; anyone who reads this site knows that.  But on this occasion, I'm really having a hard time backing his decisions, as some of the names on this roster in place of one Charlie Davies really have me scratching my head.

For starters, Robbie Findley got the call.  The same Robbie Findley that left Real Salt Lake's game last weekend with an injury and has struggled with knocks all season, failing to really produce.  The same Robbie Findley that wasn't very effective against Honduras or El Salvador, two "B" teams, let alone against a World Cup caliber squad like the Netherlands in March.  You mean to tell me that an 80% Charlie Davies can't add the same things that a dinged up Robbie Findley can?  What harm is there in getting an in-person look at Chuck to see what kind of progress he's making?  Why not use two weeks of camp, during which he could continue to make the stunning progress that he's already made over the last six months? 

Bob Bradley stated that Davies was not yet "medically cleared" by Sochaux, but this really smacks of a cop-out or a severe degree of information asymmetry.  I don't see how a player could participate in full-contact training if he wasn't medically cleared, and Charlie seemed to be under the impression that he was cleared as well.  Bob also said he wanted Charlie to continue to rehab; wasn't Charlie done rehabbing weeks ago?  And what will staying at Sochaux give him that working out with the USMNT won't?  He'll get fitness work and training in at either place, and at Princeton there's at least the chance that he surprises us (it's not like he hasn't done that before...) and shows everyone that he's actually ready to at least fill a substitute role in South Africa.  I'll say it again: I really don't see what the downside would have been to putting Charlie on the 30 man roster.  I don't think leaving Robbie Findley at home in favor of bringing Chuck would have been an egregious offense, particularly after everything Charlie has done and everything that Robbie really hasn't done.  I just don't get it.  Someone please explain it.  Bringing Charlie to Princeton doesn't force into bringing him to South Africa, and it's really not denying a noticeably better option their spot in the mix.

And on top of all that, Bob Bradley said that Davies hadn't been granted a full release by Sochaux, but that flies in the face of FIFA rules.  Sochaux couldn't have had the final say on the matter; if he got called up, they would have to release him.

I'm sure some of you reading this are out there on your high horse, looking down your nose at my reaction to this, thinking to yourself that it shouldn't matter what Charlie has done, just what he can do in June.  Well, to all of you out there who scoff at angry fans like me, I challenge you: tell me why Robbie Findley is a better option than bringing in Charlie Davies to get a look.  Convince me that bringing in a dinged up forward that has looked out of his depth at the international level, hasn't shown much in the way of form in recent weeks, and will likely not be in the final roster anyways is a better option than bringing in a player who has proven himself to be a quality international player and has the potential to continue his incredible progress and be ready to make an impact by mid-June.  Convince me that there would be severe negative repercussions to bringing Davies to camp and getting an in-person look at exactly where he's at.  Convince me that conferring with Sochaux, a club that is clearly going to want to be conservative with what essentially amounts to there long-term asset, is enough to support a decision like this.  Tell me what the downside would be to bringing Charlie.

I don't want to hear the distraction angle; the questions will be there regardless.  Instead of asking about how Charlie's progressing in camp, the questions will become "Why did you leave him behind?  Why did you choose player X instead?  Player Y, what do you think about Charlie Davies being left off the squad?"  And that's not even getting into what will happen if the offense sputters in South Africa, when all the second-guessing will begin.  Why not give him one last look and see, really see, what he's capable of at this point and get an idea of what he'll be able to contribute should he come to the World Cup.  I'm not saying he deserved to go to the World Cup, but, to beat a dead horse, I don't see why you don't at least bring him in to get a look.

I also don't want to hear the no matches angle.  Bob Bradley said he was pleased with the progress that Oguchi Onyewu was making, yet it was Davies who returned to full training first.  I find it hard to believe that the two are at materially different stages of their returns.  Once again, maybe this is just a big case of asymmetrical information.  But if you're going to take the chance on Gooch, why not do the same with Charlie?

Obviously, Charlie Davies making the World Cup was always a long shot.  But was it so different for Findley?  Will the potential drop in team morale really be worth bringing someone into the fold who looks far from ready for the international stage even when healthy?  After all, this a team that has been built on chemistry and cohesion this cycle; it'd be a shame if that took a blow just before the big show.  I guess we'll find out in the coming months. 

And to those out there who say that Charlie still has plenty of World Cups ahead of him and that he shouldn't be rushed into this one, I would say that that is far from guaranteed.  We all thought it was a lock that he'd be in South Africa not too long ago, and look how that turned out.  Anything can happen, from a tragic injury to a severe dip in form to a new crop of up-and-comers pushing him down the totem pole; we just don't know.  So while it's nice to reconcile this decision by saying that Charlie has plenty of World Cup opportunities ahead of him, we just don't know if he'll ever get this close again. 

I know Bob Bradley is in the business of winning games, not doling out sympathy and charitable considerations.  But I can't help but think that the expected value that Charlie Davies could add to the team with the progress he'd make in the next couple of weeks would be greater than what Findley could provide.  And if you really want to maximize the ability at your disposal, you take that chance to see if Charlie can provide even a quarter of what we were accustomed to seeing in 2009.  It's not as if we'd be short on forward options should he come up short; there's five others in the roster, plus Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan.  I just don't see it, Bob.

When you consider that there are SEVEN wing midfielder options on the roster as well, including Robbie Rogers and Sacha Kljestan, two players who have shown little to merit any kind of confidence from USMNT fans or coaches in their recent appearances, it also seems a little off that Charlie didn't at least get the call to camp.  The only way that Robbie Rogers or Sacha Kljestan make it to South Africa is if there are injuries, and if that is the case, they wouldn't need to be on the 30-man roster anyways.  Why do both need to be included?  Why not bring Chuck instead?

You know, I'm sure that a lot of this is more ramble and less logic than I'd like; too much heart, and not enough brains.  But hell, that's what tomorrow's for; for now, I'm just really annoyed with what's transpired.  If you agree or disagree, feel free to let me know in the comments section.


Stay tuned for the podcast and more coverage at USSD.  Tell your friends; I could always use more readers.

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