The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

Final Thoughts on our World Cup team.

In 2002, the US player who saw his stock rise the most during the World Cup was probably Pablo Mastroeni. The player who saw his stock drop the furtherest was Jeff Agoos. So who was it this time?

THE GOOD: CLINT DEMPSEY.
He got to start against Italy and showed he belonged there. An attacking midfielder with a flair for the creative, Dempsey was the brightest of the very few bright spots for the US. He has secured his place with the national team for the next four years and hopefully will get some offers from Europe soon.

THE BAD: LANDON DONOVAN
No one really embarrassed themselves the way Jeff Agoos did in '02. But so many people seemed like bland non-entities. I would say Cherundolo, Pope, Bocanegra, Mastroeni, Lewis, Convey, Beasley, Donovan, Conrad and Wolff all failed to make any kind of significant impact.

Donovan, the heir apparent to Reyna's armband, is the most disappointing because so much is expected of him. He needs to continue to develop into a world class player and into a strong leader on the field. If I should give this mark to any one player it should be Donovan. I say he's on probation: Yeah, he's got a lot of good will going for him, but he needs to show improvement and maturation as a player. There's not much of either right now compared to his great 2002 showing.

THE UGLY: CLAUDIO REYNA
He has announced his retirment from international play. A prediction I made before the start of the Cup. Sadly for him, his international career ended, almost literally, in a whimper. Our final image of him in the US jersey is watching him crumple to the ground with an injured MCL as the Ghanian took the ball from him and scored. It is unfortunate that one of our greatest players must end it all like this. I look forward to at least one year of him in the MLS before he hangs up his boots for good.

THE BAFFLING: BRUCE ARENA
Where is the real coach of the US team? There was an imposter with the group in Germany. I want Bruce Arena back. The one with the genius game plans and such a brilliant mind for tactics. The one that could always find the perfect mix of players and roles for them. I didn't see that guy anywhere. The only question is will he return to the MLS or will he look for a national team coaching job in another country somewhere. Because I'll bet dollars to doughnuts he's done with our squad.

SPECIAL TRUE GRIT AWARD: Who else? BRIAN MCBRIDE. See his game against Italy. 'Nuff Said.

Arena Football

The US Men’s National Soccer Team has followed up their quarterfinal appearance in the 2002 World Cup with a miserable showing in 2006. They went 0-2-1 in the first round and quietly returned home. The first game against the Czech Republic was disappointing, not so much because they lost but because they looked so horrible. They seemed so… disinterested. It was as if they couldn’t get motivated to play. Then in the second game against Italy, they looked much better and held their own short-handed against a great team. But even though the team looked good and fought hard, we only managed a 1-1 draw thanks to Italy scoring an own goal. So we enter the Ghana game needing a win. Which team would show up? As it turns out, sadly, it was the team from the Czech Republic game. The disinterested one that didn’t look very good.

There are several ways a team can lose in an upset. One can simply be being victimized by bad officiating. Another is the team can fail to show up motivated to play, with big time players showing poorly. And a third possibility is bad coaching. I would say that all three of these happened. I think the US team is good enough to overcome one of those on a given night. They might even overcome two of those occasionally. But when all three converge, it’s just too much.

Ghana scored their game-winning goal on a penalty kick that should never have been called. Oguchi Onyewu did absolutely nothing wrong. His defense on the play in question was perfectly legal. Both players were going for the ball, and his arms were away from his opponent. There’s simply no foul there. But a PK is awarded nonetheless and the whole complexion of the game is changed.

But we can’t just gripe about that call, no matter how huge it is. We have to look at the players and the coach. Seconds before Onyewu was called for the foul in the box, Carlos Bocanegra had misplayed the ball. He had kicked it straight up (it landed in the box), when the proper play would have been to knock it out of bounds. But more than that one play, our entire team showed a lack of intensity that is both mystifying and dismaying. Two stars in particular failed to deliver performances we have come to expect from them: Landon Donovan and DeMarcus Beasley. There’s no denying their talent, but we must now question their development. Donovan, in particular, quit his club team in Europe, where the going was tougher, for a return to the MLS. Maybe Donovan needs to stay in the kitchen a bit more and learn to handle the heat. I think every US player that was on the field against Ghana needs to take a long hard look at himself and ask if he really did everything he could have done. This is the WORLD CUP! There’s nothing else to play for. If you can’t get motivated to play during the Cup, when will you get motivated?

Despite all this, the person I’m most surprised by, and most disappointed in, is Bruce Arena. I have long been a very loud and proud supporter of his. I think he’s a brilliant soccer coach, I think in the past his gameplans have been nothing short of genius. He has always known exactly how to use the players at his disposal to maximize success from them. America could not have asked for, or produced, a better man for the job these last eight years.

But…

I think we have to place the lion’s share of the blame for our World Cup showing squarely on his shoulders. I think he made a series of mistakes that hurt the team. Against the Czech Republic he had Beasley playing on the right side, a spot where the left-footed midfielder had never played before. He also had Eddie Lewis playing defense. This cost us. Against Italy, he took this best player, Clint Dempsey, off the field in favor of Beasley…again, on the right side. By the time the Ghana game came around, I was already baffled by some of Bruce Arena’s decisions. And the bad moves kept coming.

Here was a game that WE HAD TO WIN. We knew we needed GOALS. What did Arena do? He put us in a 4-5-1 formation. 4-5-1?! ONE FORWARD? This was way too defensive of a scheme. I’m sure he was thinking in terms of controlling possession through the midfield instead of defense, but we needed GOALS. Put your best goal-scorers out there! We need at least a 4-4-2, maybe even a formation that gave us three forwards. He tried to use a 4-5-1 against Italy, but 1) we don’t know how well it worked since we got players ejected; 2) this WASN’T ITALY AND WE NEEDED A WIN.

He finally decided to put Eddie Johnson in the match at the 60th minute. Well, guess when the US finally started showing some energy in going forward? That’s right, the 60th minute. Johnson should have been starting, plain and simple. Also on the bench were Josh Wolff, who only saw second half action against the Czechs, and Brian Ching, who never saw a minute of playing time in any of the three matches. I say you come out in a 4-4-2 and if you don’t have the lead at halftime you bring in a third forward to start the second half.

Both the formation and decision to not bring in Johnson until the hour mark are two decisions that possibly cost us the game.

But beyond that, when the team doesn’t show up mentally prepared to play the game, you have to look to the coaching. What was it? A lack of playing time together? Players in new positions not knowing their role on the field? Intimidation? A lack of big game experience? A lack of motivation or enthusiasm or confidence? With any of these, you can point the finger at Bruce Arena.

And then came the comments after the game. Arena said he told his players at halftime to play for a make-up call. His attitude seemed to be that 1) the ref had made a mistake in calling the penalty kick, 2) the ref knew it and 3) the ref was willing to award a make-up call if we could just make enough plays in the box. I’m sorry, that just strikes me as completely wrong. What about playing for the win, coach? Instead of playing for a make-up call. Arena also kind of lashed out at MLS. He’s always been a vocal supporter of the league in which he used to coach (and may very well again), emphasizing the importance of its role in developing American talent. But now he’s saying it’s not enough that we need to get more of our top players in European leagues, that the MLS isn’t good enough.

Well, don’t look now coach but your best player in the tournament was Clint Dempsey. Last time I checked, he was playing for the New England Revolution. In our equally embarrassing showing in the 1998 World Cup, the only players that looked good were Brian McBride and Frankie Hejduk…both of which were MLS players. And Donovan and Beasley were both plying their trade at home when they were lifting our team in the 02 Cup. So I’m not buying it. I agree that Donovan might need to join Beasley in Europe now. He’s someone we all need to see step up to the next level. But the MLS is doing just fine, Bruce. How about pointing the finger at yourself?

In short, I think it’s time for Bruce Arena to step aside. His contributions to our soccer program have taken us gigantic quantum leaps forward, it could never be overstated. We’ve grown exponentially under his guidance. No question about it. His place in the National Soccer Hall of Fame is a no-brainer. But now that he’s gotten us here, let’s get some fresh blood in to try and take us a little further. We need to do a little better than this in 2010.

World Cup: USA vs Italy

GO GHANA! Woo-HOO! With our draw, the group is wide open. Who knows how it will go?

I thought our match against Italy was about as packed with drama as you can possibly ask for. When you get right down to it, we werejust lucky. What are the chances of a player good enough to be starting for ITALY in the WORLD CUP whiffing on a ball so bad that it hits his plant leg and rolls into his own net? That's crazy.

But there is a WHOLE LOT to feel good about if you were pulling forthe US. This draw constitutes our first ever WC point on European soil andwe looked great, like we belong there. We just went up against aperennial power and held our own while playing short-handed. Thescope of that can't be overstated. That's amazing.

The US played so much better as compared to their first match.There really weren't as many changes in the lineup as I expected tosee, but everyone showed up with the energy and game speed that wasso lacking against the Czechs.

I guess that was a 4-5-1 we came out in, although Balboa (the coloranalyst) called it a 4-1-4-1. This scheme really paid off for us.Well, at least for as long as we had our full complement of players,that is. We outmanned Italy in the middle of field and this went along way to allowing us to control much of the flow of play.

Also, McBride is the right choice in a scheme like this because heneeds good service from the midfield, his specialty being to win theaerial battles and get his head to the ball by any meansnecessary. So you make him the target player and flood themidfield. Good choice. Chalk another one up to Bruce Arena's credit.

I was not surprised to see Bocanegra at left back. Nor was I surprised to see Dempsey on the right wing. But those were the only changes to the starting eleven from the first game. I would like to have seen Lewis out on the left, although Convey played well.

Bocanegra IS our left back for this tournament. He belongs in the starting line-up and I should think that's where we'll find him foras long as the US stays in this thing.

Dempsey, to me, had his most impressive showing yet for his country. He immediately got involved in the attack and continued that throughout. More than anyone else, IMO, he set our pace. He's emerged in the last year as a clear mainstay in the future of our midfield.

The ejection of de Rossi was very obviously justified. It was aneasy call for the ref once he saw McBride's impression of Ric Flair on a bad night.

I loved the shot of McBride getting taped up on the sidelines, helooked like a boxer ready to push his cut man away and run back intothe ring. I think that moment completely captures what BrianMcBride is all about.

Moments before being sent off, Pablo Mastroeni had that wicked shotthat was dipping dangerously above the goal. He had the keeper beaten but it just didn't dip quite far enough. Fantastic shot.And OH COULD YOU IMAGINE if that had connected....

I know I'm biased but I really don't think Mastroeni deserved thered card. It's a hard tackle and deserving of a yellow, but we've seen that play so many times in other matches and it's never resulted in a straight red.

Pope's ejection is a little more understandable, as it was his second yellow. His foul was yellow card-worthy. True, as Balboa pointed out, in most cases a ref would warn the player before resorting to the second yellow.

Regardless, I thought the US continued to dominate most of thesecond half despite playing 9-on-10. Italy mounted some threats late, but Keller came through for us. That diving, one-handed save of his was incredible, yet typical of him. Could be the best save yet in the WC.

Again, I was surprised at Arena for the substitution he made in the second half. He put Beasley in for Dempsey. One, Dempsey was hisbest player out there. And two, he's on the RIGHT SIDE. I don't know why he keeps putting Beasley in on the right. Unless Dempsey was just completely out of gas (which I didn't see), you keep him in the game. Bring Beasley in on the left wing. I don't get it.

Also, I agree with Balboa on the idea that Arena should have brought Eddie Johnson in for McBride. Once we were short handed we didn't need a target player up top, we needed someone with more speed who could drop back more into the midfield and help out.

Too bad we didn't score a goal. But I thought we played well enough to deserve a draw. Very exciting stuff. A hard fought battle thatcaptures in a nutshell everything about the high stakes of a WC match.

The absence of Mastroeni and Pope in the next match will hurt us alot. Mastroeni may even be the bigger loss. I say that just because Arena bases so much of his tactics and gameplans around agood defensive midfielder. For his first four years, Arena usedChris Armas in this role. Since WC '02, it's been Mastroeni. Now he's stuck with really no one on the roster that can completely take Mastroeni's place.

My prediction is he'll still use a defensive midfielder, and that the player will be John O'Brien. O'Brien is usually more of an attacking player, but I think he's versatile enough Arena will turn to him for the next match. All of that depending, of course, on O'Brien's fitness, which is a huge question mark.

I suppose with Pope gone we might see Bocanegra slide to a central position, with Eddie Lewis back again on the left side. I don't like Lewis in the back, but it's like to be either him or Gregg Berhalter. Either one is a better choice than Chris Albright, which I believe is our only other option.

We just gotta win. But then, if you can't beat Ghana maybe you aren't going to go far in the tourney anyway. (Tell that to theCzechs.) We take care of that business then pull for Italy. And from what I'm reading, it's very realistic that Italy should win.The aging Czechs don't even have an eligible forward at this point, according to one article I read.

Thursday should be verrrry interesting.