USA v. Ghana Preview: Reunited and It Feels…

June 25th, 2010 | by: Ed | View Comments

Hopefully a hell of a lot better than last time.

Who: United States v. Ghana
What: Round of 16
Where: Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg, South Africa
When: Saturday, June 26th (kickoff scheduled for 2:30pm EST)
Why: Because all but one of the weekend’s matches is nostalgia porn, so it’s only fair that the US gets involved. Plus, it gives everyone with a keyboard and a pulse the chance to talk about how the US is out for revenge and aren’t taking any prisoners and have a score to settle and don’t get any respect.

The flashbacks and reminiscing to the 2006 World Cup are, in large part, bittersweet for me.

The finals in Germany were the first time that I got really immersed in world football, so on an entirely personal note, I have fond memories of the time I spent watching the matches in Germany and getting familiar with the intricacies of who’s who and what’s what. For the US, though, the memories are decidedly less fond. One point from the first two isn’t a dramatic departure from this year’s competition, but the brand of football and the final group match couldn’t be more different. The 2-1 loss against Ghana cast the US out of the competition, cost Bruce Arena his job, and on the whole, condemned the time the US spent in Germany as a resounding failure.

So the beating of the “revenge and payback” drum makes some sense, because it’s symbolic of a time that is hopefully far behind the US. But it also doesn’t, because other than the nations’ names and a handful of holdovers in each side, I don’t know that there’s much to take from that defeat in Nuremberg—other than, you know, serving as the motivation for four years of preparation to avoid similar humiliation for the US.

This iteration of Ghana has relied on an organized and stingy approach, typically opting for something resembling a 4-2-3-1. It tasks Kevin-Prince Boateng and Anthony Annan with breaking up play and distribution behind a fluid three-man attacking midfield combination that will likely feature Prince Tagoe, Kwadwo Asamoah, and Andre Ayew. And the danger man up top, Asamoah Gyan, is responsible for both of Ghana’s goals to date in the competition, netting penalties in the win over Serbia and the draw with Australia.

For all their defensive ability, though, the question is most certainly in attack. They’ve not scored more than a goal in a match in all of 2010—this includes the World Cup, the African Cup of Nations, and a handful of friendlies—and last scored more than once in a 2-2 draw with Mali in November of 2009. Gyan and company are certainly capable enough, though, and it’s not like they need a glut of goals—in actual competition (WC/ACN) in 2010, they’ve only conceded six goals and managed an overall record of 4-1-3.

For the US, then, it’s another match they enter knowing they’re going to need to do some major work to break down the opposition. But it doesn’t start up top—the most worrying aspect of the US approach, at least for anyone following them in the last three matches, is the early lapses in defense. Against Algeria they had only the woodwork to thank for keeping a clean sheet through the first ten minutes after Rafik Djebbour hit the crossbar, a chance largely created by Jay DeMerit’s misjudged attempt at a clearance and confusion at the back.

But the reality is that despite conceding or nearly conceding early in each of the three matches they’ve played in South Africa, the US is still undefeated. They’ve been a resilient bunch, scoring two second-half goals against Slovenia to rescue a point and nicking one at the death against Algeria after having missed a discouragingly high number of chances throughout the match.

I can’t imagine we’ll see anything different tomorrow, save for (hopefully) a little more focus in defense early in the first half. The US will again have to dictate the pace and try to win the midfield battle against a side whose claim to fame is doing just that. And when we throw in the fact that Ghana is the only African nation left in Africa’s first World Cup, there’s plenty of romance to go along with what’s already a very difficult tactical match-up for the US.

Which likely means that Bob Bradley will stick to what he knows to start—four in the back, four in midfield, two up top. I’d be shocked to see Oguchi Onyewu omitted again given the stakes, which would mean a return to his spot alongside DeMerit in central defense with the on-form Steve Cherundolo and Carlos Bocanegra at right and left backs, respectively. A consecutive start for Jonathan Bornstein isn’t out of the question, but I’d guess it’s doubtful. Plus, Wednesday morning’s liveblog saw quite literally every new commenter open with some variation of a cuss word and Bornstein’s name. And none of them were “he’s f*****ng good.” But he was serviceable, and should he get the call I’m not pressing the panic button, at least after the shift he put in against Algeria.

The slashing runs of Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey will again provide support and space for a front two of Jozy Altidore and either Herculez Gomez or Robbie Findley, with Michael Bradley finding his yellow-cardless(!) bearings alongside the emerging Maurice Edu in central midfield. Gomez looked decent against Algeria, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him back on the bench as an impact sub. And while Findley hasn’t set the world alight, Bradley hasn’t warmed to the idea of Edson Buddle to partner Altidore.

So my guess, then:

Howard
Cherundolo-Onyewu-DeMerit-Bocanegra
Donovan-Bradley-Edu-Dempsey
Altidore-Gomez

This leaves room for the same types of substitutions we’ve seen in the last two matches should Bradley need it—the impressive Benny Feilhaber, Stuart Holden, and DaMarcus Beasley as the wide/creative options and Buddle, Findley, or Gomez in attack. I’d venture a guess at other potential substitutes if the US have the lead late, but so far the sample size is 0. Never easy, is it?

By all accounts the US are riding high on confidence, and there’s no reason for them not to be. The most dramatic moment of the tournament belongs to them, they’ve survived more than a few close shaves, and they’ve got a chance to match their deepest World Cup run in recent memory.

And once again, we’ve got you covered starting around an hour before kickoff with thoughts for the run-in, a liveblog, and post-match commentary.

Come on USA.