Worst Fears Realized

“So who do we play and where?”

$64,000 question that should have been answered months ago, or at least had some kind of inclination of an answer.

Sad fact is we don’t have anyone who could change the pace of our game. Johnson and Wolff are mere bandaids. Arena built a team around “two way ” all around players. we have no specialists. No flanking attackers, ranging defenders, predatory midfielders etc who would make a difference.

What is Arena’s fault is that he thought the Czech Republic would play differently. The Czech Republic played predictably to their ability. WE didn’t plan for that.

Posted from  United States

“I always said the worst mistake Freddy Adu made was signing with the MLS, he needs to get away now and go to Europe. Arsene Wenger can make him a great player some day.”

spot on. Adu’s good but whit a $21million contract from Nike he’d be making more per week than most EPL youth academy team coaches.

In fact we should be sending more players teams (and coaches BTW) overseas to learn how its done.

Posted from  United States

that should be:
In fact we should be sending more players (and) teams (and coaches BTW) overseas to learn how its done.

Posted from  United States

It starts with having the national team playing teams in friendlies that actually challenge us and prepare us for our draw in the WC. We can’t get better playing Venezuela.

We have junior players in clubs like Liverpool and Man U that have been in Europe since they were 10 and 11. I wonder when they will be integrated into the squad.

Posted from  United Kingdom

It sucks. We really need game like that of holland. The only way to win is by attacking, by scoring, If opponent scores 2, you need to score 3. That is how a game can be won. Whole world play football, we play soccer. I found only one guy watching worldcup game today out of 10. This shows, where a football (soccer) is in US. We need soccer culture. Present coach should be fired, the real problem is with style of game. we need attacking game not those old school game.

Posted from  United States

Basically this is not the U.S. squad we are used to seeing as they impose fear even from the top class teams as a team that they no longer want to face. Today however, was a totally different story, who knows what is going on internally but this team play with no heart, this team looked sloppy in the defense, and simply looked like they did not come out to play. If this squad is known for one thing its that it plays every team the same (to win) no matter what be it Brasil or Canada. This game put the team in evidence in areas that it needs much improvement not just on the naitonal team level but stemming from the basic structure set up in the U.S. to the national team level.
The U.S. will take over “soccer” or rather football someday but until then they will have to let go of their ideal of making it American and just let it happen. Americans will fall in love with the sport naturally if it is played beautifully and everyone is incorporated. In the rest of the world soccer is enjoyed by everyone and their5 is no distinction in class or race.
Yet if we look at the structure in the U.S. there is too much of a dream to produce an “All American” team and what that embodies is an archetypical team made up of middle class America. The inner city youth that excel in other sports and the lower classes in the nation as well as the immigrant soccer community need to be integrated even more into the framework of American soccer if it is to flourish. Until then it will be very hard to progress. There is plenty of talent that is untouched as their are Asian American, Brazilian American, Mexican American, etc. etc. of American soccer players which do not have the opportunities within such a system.
Times have changed and four years do make a whole lot of a difference as a counter attacking style can work on some occasions but it stops being practical when there are no other alternatives and you get stuck in that same boring play where you counter attack on the flanks and center the ball for a header. It’s time to stop mimicking the European teams as they onced played and if they were to mimick them they would notice that they are playing more total footbal and incorporating more Latin American style of play by keeping the ball on the ground and making sure everyone gets a touch on the ball.
Negative comments do no thelp at the moment butit is time to talk about the real issues that we all know about but do not talk about. Maybe it takes something like this to put these issues in the forefront. I would love to see African Americans take onto soccer and totally dominate as they do in baseball, basketball, football, golf, etc. And as I mentioned the rest of the diverse Americans in our nation as well. This would avoid the need to keep the need “for a great white hero” that has not worked and would avoid having to import/naitonalize soccer players to stabilize the team. Tons of people root for the American team as their second team and I bet if they could they would root for it as the team they love, but they simply cannot fully relate to it. Until we see more players such as Eddie Johnson and develop the untouched pool of players we have the development will be slow and even if we are to do ok in the tournament the respect aroudn the world will not be there if it is not truely earned.
I for one love the U.S. and the national team though I feel that the process of development of the sport in the nation needs to change for the better and I am a true believer in that the U.S. will then dominate soccer as it has dominated every other sport.

Gooch, sucked. First two goals were his fault. Johnson better start the next game.

Posted from  United States

A great game by the Czechs. Great ball control, good agression, great plays to make scoring opportunities, and 5/10 shots on goal versus 1/6 for the US. The US midfield had decent ball control but they consistently lost control when moving the ball forward, they failed to react to the ball – very little agression to be seen in this regard even whehn trailing, and when they got close to the Czech goal they finished poorly, more often than not wither hitting it right into the hands of their goalie or sending it wide. Defensive ball control was horrid – I can see sending the ball back to the goalie when you’re in trouble but they did this almost every time one of the Czeck forwards even started towards them. Mind you, there were moments of individual brilliance that were worth watching, but as a whole the US team lacked confidence and teamwork. No way they deserve a top 10 FIFA ranking if they continue to play this poorly.

Posted from  United States

I think most of the comments are far too negative here.

The US was the underdog in this very hard group. The czech team was the best team at the Euro 2004. They have a old but very very good team and the main question is about their pysical condition and not about their talent.

That´s football. italy and germany did not make it inot the second round at the Euro 2004. the same was true for Argentina and France at the WC 2002.

The US football is getting better and disapointments are the norm given the fact that the whole world plays football. Look at England and their performance at international tournaments.

Posted from  Germany

Arena needs to take a lot of the blame himself. Every match he runs a different scheme, 4-3-3, 3-4-3, 123…. WHATEVER! Sure it keeps the opponents guessing, as well as Team USA. As a player you need to know X is on your right and Y is on the left. This way passing comes naturally You know they will be there be cause they have a been a hundred times be for. You don’t have to even look you just know. The USA should have picked a scheme that best suited them and the stuck to it. I afraid it’s two more and we are out. Besides is anyone looking forward to getting blasted by Brazil in the next round?

Posted from  Belgium

Otariq

I think that things work differently in different cultures. Danish world class players like Michael & Brian Laudrup, Peter Schmeichel, Morten Olsen and Preben Elkjaer were, as almost every current or former danish (or scandinavian) player, from the middle classes. Even though they are few, we do have ghettos in Denmark filled with people from africa, asia and south america, but they produce boxers and dopedealers rather than soccerplayers. You can say that Denmark didn´t qualify for the 2006 WC, but after all we´re a nation of only 5 millions with a soccerleague in the lower end of the european standards. But despite we´re small in numbers, Denmark has produced many top players, and the national team have done quite well and even won international tournaments.
I don´t know if the US should recruit players from the suburbs or the ghettos. Basically they should recruit the most talented. But right now your biggest problem isn´t your squad, but the fact that your coach is named Arena, and australias is called Hiddinck.

Frank, at this point no comment can be too negative. The bottom line is that the team played terribly. Not enough can be said on that front. What’s the most heartbreaking is that we’re capable of so much more.

I refuse the lay the blame entirely on Arena, but it’s painfully obvious that the team was ill-prepared to face the Czechs. Arena’s choice in roster, formation, and style hurt us greatly. Everyone who has said that the players need to be allowed to play in their natural positions, and that we need to move to being more attack oriented are spot on. You’d think those two things would be obvious to a coach at the World Cup, but apparantly not.

In spite of the poor coaching, our players still could’ve shown some creativity and urgency, but besides a few flashes from Johnson, these two things were no where to be found on the pitch. Our professionals looked like lost high schoolers complete with a terrible first touch and the inability to settle the ball and use the entirety of the pitch effectively.

Despite all of this I’m hopefull that we can put together a decent showing against Italy, if not tie or beat them. I KNOW we’re capable of it, and like Arena said, we can’t let the Czechs beat us twice. We have talent, and I want to see it used!

Posted from  United States

Shuffling the players around won’t help US get out of this round. Yesterday we played with lack of heart and sloppy, quick play. Everyone focused on the sloppy lack of offense but our sloppy defense gave up the goals. The Czechs would have had to work harder if the defense and goalie wasn’t alseep the first 6 minutes.

Posted from  United States

Finn, Denmark,

How good are they? Players from your country are not at the top of the football world. You can hardly make it into the world cup, I mean no disrespect. Lets be serious the players that are the best in sports are mostly from the lower ranks of societies. Look at American basketball, Football and baseball? Take a look at Football in Brazil, Africa, and most of Europe. In America Soccer is a middle class sport and the kids that play the game have many options in life to be successful. In sports Poverty breeds success.

Posted from  Canada

i agree with otariq about “football will never be good in this country until its played by the poorest of the poor” poor kids cannot afford to play football (soccer)in america, just to play on a competitive youth team can cost upto $800,nowhere in the world football (soccer)is just for middle to upper class kids,check out where some of these top football (soccer) stars comes from, i lives next-door a football (soccer) complex, 98% of the kids are upper middle to high class white individuals, majority of them are there just to socialized and hangout ,they show lack of interest and enthusiastic ,the black and hispanic kids that make-up the 2% ,who have high hopes of making it to the top are been held back by the lack of knowledge by some of these coaches who never played the game,football (soccer) will be better only if: calling the game FOOTBALL and not SOCCER as all the country in the world do ,attracting more blacks and hispanics kids by cutting the cost of playing the game, lets start from poor class kids than middle class,allow individuals (foreigners)who knows the game to play key roles in organisations,especially youth organisation, because thats where it will start

Posted from  United States

Look you guys. It’s quite obvious that you just don’t seem to get it. Hype, pride and talk may win baseball games but playing this sport at this level requires serious commitment. I fail to see why anyone is dissaponited or even surprised at this result against the Czechs. They are one of the best teams in the world for some time, filled with talent and creative ability second to none. If Koller didn’t get hurt, and Baros was in the line up, it would have been a lot worse. If the US ever hopes to be competetive in this sport, they will first have to remove their blindfold of arrogance and false self confidence and realize that you can’t just throw a team together, send them to europe and expect to get somewhere. It takes generations for most countries to put a team together that has a chance at the cup. So forget the hype, keep playing, keep buying soccer balls for your kids, and just be happy that your team even got to go to the tournament….and one last thing….good coaches are a must! Take care.

Posted from  Canada

Genevieve was spot on. It wouldn’t have been so upsetting if more than three or so players had looked like they cared. For all that Convey didn’t have the size or skill to achieve much, I give himm credit for TRYING. Johnson looked good – as far as I am concerned he’s the first choice striker from now on – ahead of McBride, ahead of anyone. Reyna looked slow but also like he was trying. Onyewu woke up after about the first third. Hard to blame Keller – even for the third one – that was actually a nice bit of skill – he made it look like he was going low to the right and then neatly chipped Keller when he started to cover downward.

So those guys all get the benefit of the doubt. Everyone else is off the team after the World Cup – and off the team for good.

I could forgive a lack of skill but effort and grit have always been the something extra for the US – what we saw here was what they are like without it – and it isn’t pretty.

And, lest we think we are alone, Ronaldo, who is clearly far more skillful than any US player can ever dream of being, would also be dropped forever in my book after his performance today. He wasted a potential scoring opportunity because he couldn’t be bothered to run back to get onside – and he did it more than once.

Posted from  United States

Otariq

I don´t feel disrespected, and ofcause a nation of 300 mill. has the potential to produce a lot more talent, than one of 5.
Our current national team lacks desire and are at a low point, it really sucks right now. I think they need new inspiration in form af a new coach.
And how good are/were our players? Pele has praised danish soccer several times, and he should know a thing or two about soccer. He has called Michael Laudrup the best nr. 10 in the world, and in his active days Elkjaer was one of the(if not THE) most effective and unpredictable strikers. Morten Olsen, the current national coach, was a libero same caliber as Beckenbauer, and Schmeichel was the best keeper EVER! We´ve played some of the most beautiful and memorable WC games(Uruguay ´86, Brazil ´98), we were european champs back in 92, and have beaten just about every superpower over the years. We have no true international stars right now, but constantly produces players that are bought by top clubs in Italy, Spain, Germany, and England. Our national league is stronger than most nations´ of similar size(We´ve got american players too), but there are limits to how much money the sport can genrate in a small country. Though most players are pretty well off, even here, they are attracted by the higher payments abroad. All in all I think we´ve done quite well for a small country.
We also do have a strong and well organized soccer culture filled with younsters who breathe soccer from a very early age. No disrespect again, but when I see the US play it clearly shows that the team as a whole has a somewhat primitive approach to the sport, which I think comes from not being raised in a high standard soccer environment. Soccer isn´t a game where you can pound your chest and say, I´m an american- I got rights, and then win. Soccer is so simple and complicated at the same time, and too unpredictable to be dominated by one nation, like US dominates olympic basketball. Even Brazil can´t be sure of winning every time.
There´s no doubt that the US has plenty of athletic talent, but when it comes to soccer they still lack some finesse and deeper startegic understanding of the game, in general(no offence, even europeans like Norway and Iceland can play ugly). This understanding comes with an organized soccer culture through generations. But until that happens US could take a shortcut and benefit from the experience of others by importing trainers,and even players, for clubs and nationals, from europe and South America. Look at Australia, they are not nearly as talented as the american team, but their trainer is of a totally different caliber than Arena. Sometimes Organization compensates for the lack of talent.
About where to recruit talents, I think that when a kid from Bronx someday turns a star the caliber of fx Ballack or Rooney, the interest will increase, and youngsters will see a way out of the ghetto through soccer, but that requires soccer clubs and facilities are started in low-or-no income areas. The danish welfare system is far too generous to generate a higher interest in sports among poor people, and to be honest I wouldn´t like to speculate in lower social benefits just in order to get more athletes. But danish and american society isn´t the same, and one must relate to that.
I´ll always be backing the danish team, but I just think that a big nation like the US should be a significant member of the soccer family, which is the biggest family in the world.

Well atleast we’re talking about it. You can’t make silk from a sows ear. It seems the next pheanom striker has not been born and his father died yesterday. USA is a 100 years behind the world, the entire world, given time we will be on top, unfortunatly we’ll be dead.

How do they do that, time and again??? Germany just scored 1-0 in ovetime against Poland! As Gary lineker said when asked about the essence of soccer; It´s 22 men running around after one ball, and in the end Germany wins!

Well, I hope US can pull off an upset win aginst Italy. I always root for the underdog, especially when the “overdog” is Italy. It´s a danish-italian thing.

Go US…

go us bullshit the only thing the usa will go is a eary trip home no
thanks to the usa coash

Posted from  Australia

beasley take him out he has fear of everyone as his comments on espn – reyna take him out for he is too old – eddie pope = excuses — finally the coach —I CANT BELIEVE THAT THE COACH( and i respected him for years thru dc etc) on fox soccerchannel it was reported he said” would be happy with a tie “…omg wake up grab some b—s and win WTF – DIDNT WE COME HERE TO WIN? OR TO JUST F ‘ AROUND?

If one looks at how Italy played in their opening match, then the US is in for an even worse beating than agaist the Czechs. But the Czechs aren´t easily demoralized, the italians are. If the US can start well, and maybe even frustrate Italy in the beginning, suddenly things can go their way. Every thing counts, tell an Italian defender something bad about his mother, and you won´t see him perform any further in that match.
But it all depends on the americans showing up in high spirits. If they can manage to do that, and have learned from their mistakes, I´ll say their chances of making it is 20%, Arena or not.

I FEEL BACKSTABBED BY A BUNCH OF SCARED SISSIES IE. BEASLEY THE LITTLE SCARED BABY…DONOVAN THE OVERATED BS’ER HE ACTED LIKE HE WAS STILL PLAYING AGAINST THE CHECKS … AND OF COURSE THE OLD PIECE OF CRAP REYNA ANOTHER BS’ER … THEN THE LEADER WHO LET THE PLAYERS GO INTO EUROPE AND ALLOW THE TEAM TO PARTY WITH THEIR FAMILIES LIKE AS IF IT WAS THE EURROPEAN VACATION WITH CHEY CHASE … IM ASHAMED AND GOD BLESS ECUADOR WE SHOULD GET SOME AND GROW SOME BALLS LIKE THEY HAVE …BUT WERE STILL SATISFIED IN PLAYING DETROIT AGAINST NEW YORK AND OR CHICAGO WHAT SHAME…