2010 World Cup qualifying

[Jimmy Chitwood]

Team USA has shown a tough defense and an improving offense thus far in the CONCACAF qualifying tourney semifinal round.

the offense reportedly looked sluggish against Cuba in their last match, which i didn't see. but in their first home game in a while, against Trinidad & Tobago on September 10, the Yanks certainly got the offense fired up, blowing out the visitors 3-0.

USA once again pitched a shut-out on defense (their 5th in a row). they made T&T look like wet fireworks.

Landon Donovan is playing dominant football. it appears he has finally embraced being "the man" for Team USA, which has suddenly gotten much younger. Clint Dempsey also looked very strong.

young midfielder Michael Bradley is emerging as a promising talent, both creating with the ball at his feet and putting balls in the net. he scored the game's first goal off a set piece from a beautiful ball from Donovan. while Bradley was in the game, the offense looked fluid and efficient, and was coming at T&T from all angles, while looking effortless in doing so.

Steve Cherundolo and Carlos Bocanegra both looked rock solid on the back line.

the USA skipper relieved Bradley and the third goal-scorer Brian Ching early in the second half to get in blacks eddie johnson and ricardo clark. neither looked good at all. in fact, the foreign black commentator specifically called out eddie johnson for being lazy and providing absolutely nothing.

what's funny is this is normally the type of game where johnson shines. coming in with a big lead and facing no pressure against a sub-par opponent usually sees him light up the scoreboard, but he couldn't even manufacture a decent scoring opportunity. hopefully the misguided love affair with johnson is coming to an end.

also of note, defender oguchi onyewu looked very slow, and was repeatedly saved by help from Bocanegra in the open field. his right leg was heavily bandaged, but i didn't hear what type of injury he is dealing with.

black goalkeeper tim howard was barely challenged, and on T&T's best scoring opportunity, a corner in the fifth minute of the second half, Cherundolo, who was stationed on the post, saved the goal.

even though it appears that the USA is trying to find more blacks, it is still the white athletes who are shining.

edited to add: the USA plays Cuba next on October 11, in Washington D.C.Edited by: Jimmy Chitwood

 

[blue_mentos]

I didnt get to see the game, but from what ive heard, its a good result. hopefully players like dempsey, donovan, and bradley realize that there is a lot of weight resting on their shoulders and embrace the reality that the team will only be as good as how they play. donovan has a side of him that is full of attitude, and he is a 100% better player when that side is turned on. when he seems to have a chip on his shoulder, he is a whole new player, such as the first 5 or 6 games of the mls season when we would put up 2 and 3 goal games regularly. i remember after one goal, he got in the face of pat iani, the defender that was marking him and had some not-so-kind words for him. thats the kind of attitude he has to bring to the table every single game of WC and WC qualifying, and hopefully it can rub off on others as well. weve established ourselves as the team to beat in concacaf, mexico has a level of respect for the usa that they never had before, and now its time for the world to realize it. thats the mentality these players that are clearly the stars need to adopt. playing with something to prove.

i like the team overall. i think before 2010, michael parkhurst will make his way into a potential starter role, and if sasha klejstan keeps improving the way he is, he will certainly be in the middle with bradley. i also think that in another two years, brad guzan will the man in the nets, especially now that he is training over in europe.

 

[Angelcynn]

Dark France were beaten 3-1 by an all white Austria (France even had a black goalkeeper)!!! Austria haven't had a good national team for about 10 years now since they last qualified for a major tournament which was world cup 1998 which was ironically won by France when they still had a majority white team.

I've never been impressed by any black American soccer player. Eddie Johnson is truly and utterly awful (saw him miss so many easy chances for Fulham). He would never get into the USA international team if he was white.

 

[guest301]

Team USA has shown a tough defense and an improving offense thus far in the CONCACAF qualifying tourney semifinal round.

the offense reportedly looked sluggish against Cuba in their last match, which i didn't see. but in their first home game in a while, against Trinidad & Tobago on September 10, the Yanks certainly got the offense fired up, blowing out the visitors 3-0.

USA once again pitched a shut-out on defense (their 5th in a row). they made T&T look like wet fireworks.

Landon Donovan is playing dominant football. it appears he has finally embraced being "the man" for Team USA, which has suddenly gotten much younger. Clint Dempsey also looked very strong.

young midfielder Michael Bradley is emerging as a promising talent, both creating with the ball at his feet and putting balls in the net. he scored the game's first goal off a set piece from a beautiful ball from Donovan. while Bradley was in the game, the offense looked fluid and efficient, and was coming at T&T from all angles, while looking effortless in doing so.

Steve Cherundolo and Carlos Bocanegra both looked rock solid on the back line.

the USA skipper relieved Bradley and the third goal-scorer Brian Ching early in the second half to get in blacks eddie johnson and ricardo clark. neither looked good at all. in fact, the foreign black commentator specifically called out eddie johnson for being lazy and providing absolutely nothing.

what's funny is this is normally the type of game where johnson shines. coming in with a big lead and facing no pressure against a sub-par opponent usually sees him light up the scoreboard, but he couldn't even manufacture a decent scoring opportunity. hopefully the misguided love affair with johnson is coming to an end.

also of note, defender oguchi onyewu looked very slow, and was repeatedly saved by help from Bocanegra in the open field. his right leg was heavily bandaged, but i didn't hear what type of injury he is dealing with.

black goalkeeper tim howard was barely challenged, and on T&T's best scoring opportunity, a corner in the fifth minute of the second half, Cherundolo, who was stationed on the post, saved the goal.

even though it appears that the USA is trying to find more blacks, it is still the white athletes who are shining.

edited to add: the USA plays Cuba next on October 11, in Washington D.C.

Jimmy C, I watched all three of those games and you are fairly spot on with your analysis but I disagree with you about our goalkeeper, Tim Howard being black. I was always under the impression that he was a white guy with a fairly dark complexion probably from playing out in the sun all the time. He looks and talks white in the few times I have seen him interviewed. I haven't looked up his biography but I am 80 % sure he is white. Regardless, he's a above average goalkeeper. It was also nice to see Dempsey score goals in the last four games and the coach's son Bradley got off the snide as well.

 

[PhillyBirds]

From Tim Howard's Wikipedia article:

Tim Howard was born in North Brunswick, New Jersey, USA to Matthew Howard, an African-American, and Esther Howard, a Caucasian woman born in Hungary.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_HowardEdited by: PhillyBirds

 

[guest301]

Well, I was half-right anyway.

He's a decent goalkeeper but I wouldn't put him in past USA goalkeeper Kasey Keller's class just yet. It was nice to see Austria beat France so soundly considering that Austria is usually one of the lowest ranked teams in Europe. I think all those games they hosted and played in the European cup did team Austria some goodEdited by: guest301

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

guest301,

perhaps you aren't aware of the so-called article Sports Illustrated did a few years ago about "how far USA soccer has come" with regard to blackening its roster. anyway, the whole point of the piece was to clap USA soccer on the back for "finally" having the capability of fielding an all-black squad!

the piece even went so far as to fill in the roster with an all-black eleven, with howard as the keeper. so don't think for a second anyone (himself included) considers him anything other than an american negro.

and while he is solid in the nets, he is nowhere good enough to be there during games that matter. the USA has had a tradition of All World-caliber goalies even before the country had any credibilty as a soccer nation.

and if howard hasn't caught up to Keller yet, he likely never will. howard is 30, while Keller is 40.

Keller will likely retire before his skills deteriorate enough for howard to un-seat him on merit.

edited to add: if you want to look for a young keeper to man the nets, it might just be Brad Guzan. of course, he is white.

Guzan, who is about to turn 24, was the 2007 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year and also a member of the year's MLS Best XI as a player for Chivas USA. he had a league best 0.93 GAA (goals against average) over the course of the year. since the season ended, he's transferred to Aston Villa.

he's started in the nets twice for Team USA this WC Qualifying, and has pitched two shutouts. Edited by: Jimmy Chitwood

 

[guest301]

Yes I somewhat remember that article and I think someone posted on that article at Caste Football when it came out. I am a fan of Guzan and hopefully he will beat out Howard one day but I think Howard is better than you give him credit for. I thought Brad Freidel and Tony Meola were also world class goalkeepers. As long as the team that the USA fields on the pitch is about 60 % white, then I have no problem rooting for them. Lately it's been about 70% white the last four games or so.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

the USA plays Trinidad & Tobago tonight in Port of Spain. it is televised on ESPN, and coverage begins at 7PM central. the USA won 3-0 in their last match.

the USA will be without midfielder Michael Bradley, who is carrying two yellow cards (though he wasn't on the team roster for this one, anyway). T&T's defender Cyd Gray will not play for the same reason.

the USA will play a young squad, looking to see how the less experienced guys handle themselves on the National Team since America has already booked a spot in the final round of Qualifying. furthermore, 9 players have returned to their club teams and many of the 18-man roster for this game are relatively new.

that means it will likely be a good opportunity for those of you who haven't seen Brad Guzan play (Guest301 hint hint

), because Tim Howard has returned to his club and isn't on the roster for this match. the other US keeper is Troy Perkins, who i don't know much about.

list of players who returned to their club sides: Carlos Bocanegra, Michael Bradley, Steve Cherundolo, Brian Ching, Jay DeMerit, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Tim Howard, and Oguchi Onyewu.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

simply put, this game was UGLY.

a much darker than normal lineup for the Yanks was out of synch all night and had far too many sloppy errors. fortunately, most of these players won't be around for games that count.

T&T's Chris Birchall certainly stood out. he is both a fine midfielder and the only white player for Trinidad & Tobago. in fact, he's the first white to play for them in over 60 years.

he was a joy to watch with the ball at his feet.

edited to add: oh yeah. the USA lost, 2-1. ugh.

Edited by: Jimmy Chitwood

 

[guest301]

The loss isn't that big a deal since the USA has already advanced into the next stage of qualifying for the World Cup. They played alot of young black players that I don't expect to be starters when the next round starts. It was a boring game and a must win for Trinidad.
JimmyC, I have seen Brad Guzan play for the national team before and several times for his club team in the MLS. I hope he gets a fair shot at beating out Tim Howard for the starting goalkeeper.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

you are right guest301 about the USA having already advanced. as i had already said.

and most of those black players for the USA won't even be in the mix for a spot on the team roster. at least i hope they won't after last night's debacle.

and as for Guzan, i just like joking with you a bit.

he looked a bit nervous in the early going, but that will undoubtedly change with experience. but that is the key factor in my mind in determining who will be the Yanks' keeper: Guzan's talent versus Howard's experience.

i don't know what other keepers are currently in the player pool.

 

[guest301]

you are right guest301 about the USA having already advanced. as i had already said.

and most of those black players for the USA won't even be in the mix for a spot on the team roster. at least i hope they won't after last night's debacle.

and as for Guzan, i just like joking with you a bit.

he looked a bit nervous in the early going, but that will undoubtedly change with experience. but that is the key factor in my mind in determining who will be the Yanks' keeper: Guzan's talent versus Howard's experience.

i don't know what other keepers are currently in the player pool.

Joke with me any time, JimmyC. It's just nice to converse with someone else who follows our national team and the MLS to some degree. I have been dating a lady these past few months that is a huge fan of international soccer(the premier league in particular) and rugby and she could care less about American sports. She's a big fan of Cristiano Ronaldo and British national defender John Terry. So it's just interesting getting into her world a little bit more as she gets into mine.

 

[HallofFame]

I think that the USA is in danger of not qualifying just like Mexico. Mexico is a different story but the USA when they get out of the group stage will have to fight for a spot with

Honduras: One of the best teams in concocaf. USA lost to them at home in the 2002 world cup qualifying.

Costa Rica: One of the better concocaf teams. Always hard know matter who plays them.

Mexico/Jamaica: If Mexico makes it their is no way we can beat them at the Azteca. With Jamaica pretty easy wins.

Trinidad and Tobago: They beat us. Whos to say it wont happen again.

El Salvador: Not a real threat.


I think we might not make the World Cup because of our coach. He thinks that soccer needs to be a diversed sport and remember when we had a lot of Afletes and we lsot to TNT That should not happen that a real soccer power loses to a Sub Par team. We had 4 afletes starting and we lsot with them in our first team we have 2/3 blacks starting and i really think that freddy adu is really overrated and sucks. My point is proven

 

[Keith Lincoln]

Mexico could theoretically not qualify for the final CONCACAF world cup qualifying round.
How can that be possible? All you hear about the US men's national team is they have too many whites, and must search the country high and low for the magic hispanics. I agree with Weisbard96 that the national team coach Bob Bradley is way out of his depth. What serious soccer nation would hire a coach who was a total failure with the worst franchise in their Division One league. A good yardstick to measure a national team coach is if they were not currently employed how much would they be in demand for other nations. I guarantee you no country who was serious about qualifying for the world cup would consider Bob Bradley.

 

[blue_mentos]

I really don't understand this country's obsession for wanting a completely diverse team. 2/3 blacks out of a starting 11 is proportionally representative of the countries population. Just as it is in baseball, if they aren't interested, fine, why force the issue? I agree that Bradley probably wasn't the best hire in terms of moving the USA in the right direction. He hasn't done anything too terrible yet, but it seems like we are continuing the trend that the late Bruce Arena set in being completely mediocre. We will beat up on the smaller CONCACAF teams, beat Mexico more often than loose, but then get completely outclassed when we enter serious international competition. Perhaps a clean house needs to be considered as the way Peter Novak had his U23 team perform at the Olympics was nothing short of embarrasing. In terms of goalies in the mix for '10 besides Howard and Guzan, there are Will Hesmer, Troy Perkins, and Matt Pickens, all whom are white. Bradley and staff must make great improvements if we don't want to be faced with another 3 and out in South Africa.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

the USA played a VERY young team against Guatemala in the final match of the semi-final round, having already qualified for the final round before kickoff, and won 2-0.

the one interesting issue of the match was the insertion of very tall forward Kenny Cooper. at 6-3 and just 24 years of age, Cooper is an intriguing prospect, especially after finishing second in MLS scoring (behind Landon Donovan) with 18 goals and 3 assists this season.

Cooper is certainly not a pretty player to watch, often showing clumsily heavy feet and awkwardness in the open field. but if one looks past the aesthetic side of his game, the powerfully built forward is incredibly effective despite his seeming shortcomings. he has a knack for scoring goals, and occasionally showcases a deftly brilliant passing touch in traffic. all of these facets were shown in the USA-Guadalupe game. periods of clumsy mis-handling of the ball, apparent lostness in the open field, as well as occasionally breathtaking passing, and of course, the game's initial goal on a wonderful strike. he now has 2 goals in 3 appearances for the national team.

whether or not he will make the final squad is certainly up in the air, but he is an interesting prospect to keep an eye on.

up next for Team USA is Mexico on January 11 here on home soil.

joining the USA in the final round of CONCACAF Qualifying is Mexico, El Salvador, Trinidad & Tobago, Costa Rica, and Honduras.Edited by: Jimmy Chitwood

 

[Keith Lincoln]

Kenny Cooper by 2010 will be a key player for the US team. His background is extremely impressive. His father came from England to play in the old NASL. Kenny has been on the books at Man U , although played very little ,if ever. He was loaned to Estudiantes of the Portuguese first division which is a top European league. He played in every game while there. Now playing for the Dallas Burn ,he is really a rare commodity: An American born striker with all the tools to be a goal scorer for the US team. He is very big, but very agile.
His finishing is superb. His speed has significantly improved due to one on one workout , with double gold medalist Michael Johnson.

 

[blue_mentos]

I don't know how many of you caught it, but a young USA team put in a solid performance and beat Sweden 3-2 yesturday. Sasha Klejstan was absolutely lights out getting the hat trick, which included an unreal free kick. If he didn't already have the starter job in the full-force starting 11, I can't see how he won't have it now. Marvell Wynne proved to me that he isn't just a guy with pace, and is actually a complete soccer player, as he shut down the right side for most of the game. Davies had an absolute horrible game, and I would think that both Cooper and Rolfe may have leapfrogged him in the forward depth charts. I almost wish Perkins had a bit more shots kicked his way, as it was hard to assess his performance based on what I saw. I hope Bradley sees the potential I do in Robbie Rogers. It was his first cap, so I think he had a bit of the nerves running through him , and he wasn't really himself. Although the times when he got his confidence up, and decided to take on players 1v1, he always flew by them or made something happen. Good result for the Red, White, and Blue, as we look forward to the showdown with Mexico on the 11th

 

[guest301]

I don't know how many of you caught it, but a young USA team put in a solid performance and beat Sweden 3-2 yesturday. Sasha Klejstan was absolutely lights out getting the hat trick, which included an unreal free kick. If he didn't already have the starter job in the full-force starting 11, I can't see how he won't have it now. Marvell Wynne proved to me that he isn't just a guy with pace, and is actually a complete soccer player, as he shut down the right side for most of the game. Davies had an absolute horrible game, and I would think that both Cooper and Rolfe may have leapfrogged him in the forward depth charts. I almost wish Perkins had a bit more shots kicked his way, as it was hard to assess his performance based on what I saw. I hope Bradley sees the potential I do in Robbie Rogers. It was his first cap, so I think he had a bit of the nerves running through him , and he wasn't really himself. Although the times when he got his confidence up, and decided to take on players 1v1, he always flew by them or made something happen. Good result for the Red, White, and Blue, as we look forward to the showdown with Mexico on the 11th

Yes, I watched the game on the Fox Soccer Channel. Sasha Klejstan was clearly the best player on the pitch as his three goals more than speaks to that fact. It was nice to see Kenny Cooper get some playing time and I truly feel like he is a young Brian McBride with a little more pace and strength, time will tell if he is as tough as Brian and as good on the headers and set plays.

 

[guest301]

The United States National team plays a World Cup qualifying road game against El Salvador tonight on ESPN at 9pm eastern. I am looking more forward to watching this game tonight than the disappointment that March Madness has turned out to be once again.Edited by: guest301

 

[guest301]

I just wanted to add that Brad Guzan will start in goal tonight for the national team because Tim Howard is suspended.

 

[Matra1]

How come Brad Friedel is never the US goalie? Surely he is the best US goalkeeper.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

How come Brad Friedel is never the US goalie? Surely he is the best US goalkeeper.

this is just my opinion, but i suspect that the USA coaching staff knows what they have in Friedel and are simply trying to find another, younger, keeper to add depth to the National Team. Friedel has been good for a long time, but he's not getting any younger.

it is possible that the USA coaching staff feels his best days might be behind him, as hard as that is to imagine. again, i am just speculating, because i haven't heard any other reason.


also, the USA looked awful in the first half against El Salvador. i think the incredibly hostile crowd really got to them and severely hampered their ability to communicate on the field. the left side on the attack especially looked poor. Pearce (white man) and Beasley (the lone black starter) simply looked terrible. furthermore, it looks as if Beasley has lost a step. a big step. the normally superb Carlos Bocanegra, defender extraordinaire, had a couple of lapses as well, one of which cost the US a goal. that's exceedingly rare for this excellent player.


conversely, the fleet footed Frankie Hejduk looks as fast as ever. if he hadn't been on the field, i don't think the USA would have been able to come back and earn a 2-2 tie. he was everywhere! even assisting on 1 goal and scoring the other. (he's a defender to those who don't know.) he's STILL the fittest player on the roster, and it doesn't appear that age has slowed him at all. also, Brian Ching looked good at the front.


Danny Califf, in just his 4th-ever start for the National side, looked very impressive filling in for the absent Onyewu. he displayed speed, composure, and a very physical style of play that was fun to watch.


the USA plays Trinidad & Tobago on Wednesday in the USA.

 

[Europe]

How come Brad Friedel is never the US goalie? Surely he is the best US goalkeeper.

I assume he retired from International team play just like Mcbride.