Why US Soccer Doesn't Suck
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by Ibearg
1) We own Mexico - We’ve won the last two gold cups beating everyone’s favorite North American soccer team, Mexico, to win it. Yes the Gold Cup has been in the US, but there are almost as many Mexicans in the US as Mexico (exaggeration) so I don’t know that you could really call it homefield advantage. We simply don’t lose to Mexico, except maybe at the Azteca, but I would suspect not too many teams do too well there; hard to play a mile above sea level and having things thrown at you all game. (Not speaking Spanish made finding Mexico’s record at the Azteca hard to find) At home or on a neutral field we own them. We consistently beat them in world cup qualifiers and we beat them in the 2002 world cup knocking them out. They basically fired their coach because he couldn’t beat us in any meaningful games… their new coach hasn’t either.
2) We consistently qualify for the world cup- this doesn’t say a whole lot since there aren’t a whole lot of great teams in CONCACAF, but nonetheless it is not meaningless. It means we are the best team on the continent… there are only 7 in the world. We win the games we need to, to get where we want to go… the world cup.
3) Players- We have talented players. No we don’t have Kaka or Ronaldinho, or a player as talented as Cristiano Ronaldo, but we have talent. Let’s start at the back, I don’t think there are many better goalkeepers than Friedal or Keller, and I think Tim Howard is becoming one of the better keepers in the world. At the very least I don’t think he gives the other team goals, like say Jens Lehmann http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFs1nqErUjY DeMarcus Beasley after having looked extremely dangerous in champions league matches for PSV was never really given a chance there, he eventually found a home starting for Rangers who sit atop the Scottish tables.
Brian Mcbride scored double digits for an awful Fulham team last year. I can’t imagine it was through the talents of his teammates he scored all those goals. Clint Dempsey scored the biggest goal all season for them last year to help them avoid relegation. This year he has 2 goals and an assist in 2 starts and 3 substitutions. Despite playing for a bad team he will no doubt have a solid season. Landon Donovan despite his lack of desire to play in Europe is a consistent top scorer for his teams and has won multiple MLS cups, with both San Jose and LA. The talent pool is also growing as Freddy Adu and Josy Altidore as well as others showed in the U-20’s world cup.
4) The 2006 world cup was the fluke- Some might say that 2002 was the fluke; that beating Mexico who we always beat, tieing Korea who is not all that good and beating Portugal were all flukes. However I would say 2006 was the fluke. Despite having been clearly the better team the US was not given the 8 th number one slot which was instead given to Mexico. Because of this Mexico got to face Angola, Portugal and Iran, or essentially Portugal. The US meanwhile had to face Italy, The Czech Republic and Ghana. Italy won the whole thing, and the US tied them. The Czechs had a disappointing performance overall and still killed the US team, however it was in the only match they played with their top players, including their top striker Koller who scored the Czechs first goal, and did not play after that. Even the Ghana team was a quality opponent.
Despite the tremendous odds they faced just to get out of the group stage, I have little doubt if they were not so poorly coached they would have advanced. Arena after having been a “maverick” in 2002 and starting a bunch of youngsters like Donovan and Beasley decided he had to be a genius again. So he played Beasley and Donovan out of position, and left Dempsey out of the squad till the final game, despite the fact Dempsey had clearly proven he should be starting. These among other awful coaching moves doomed the US team. How can I say I have such little doubt they would have advanced? Well in the final game who scored the US’ goal? None other than Beasley in his proper leftsided position passing it off to Dempsey for the finish. If they didn’t advanced they would have at least had a much better showing.
Yes they did poorly in 1998, but had a good showing in 1994 and having only been getting stronger since. Despite what you might think of Wynalda as an announcer he tells it like it is, and he’d tell you US team is much better and deeper now then it has ever been
5) Their recent record isn’t too much worse than other top teams- look at the records of other teams in the last two world cups. Spain for instance, knocked out in the 1 st knockout round in 2006 after making it out of an awful group. In 2002 they won a penalty shootout with Ireland (not exactly a world power) and then lost to Korea in the ¼ finals also on PK’s. This is the same Korea team, playing at home, which the US also played to a tie. Argentina unquestionably one of the world soccer powers didn’t even make it out of the group stages in 2002. I’m not arguing Spain and Argentina don’t have better players, or aren’t better teams but at least the last two world cups their records haven’t been any more impressive than the US.
Yes the US has struggled lately; they’ve even lost 4 in a row, including getting destroyed at the Copa America. However, Copa America was the Americans 3 rd string team against some of the best teams in the world. Is the US as good as Brazil, Argentina or England? No, no, and no, but that doesn’t mean the US team isn’t good or that it doesn’t deserve respect.
So good luck to the team against Brazil because even though we don’t suck, Brazil is reallllly good.
2006 was a fluke? HUH??! You can't magically be good after not making it to a WC from 1954-1986. That statement also goes along with the US consistently qualifying for the WC.
Also, of course we're going to make it. Who thinks Cuba would beat us in soccer?
Keller sucks, but Friedel is one of the best in the prem.
"Landon Donovan despite his lack of desire to play in Europe is a consistent top scorer for his teams and has won multiple MLS cups, with both San Jose and LA."
BUT THAT's THE MLS!!! What happens when he faces real competition? He acts like a little 6 year old kid.
Also, we flame out as soon as we start playing road games. Point in hand, Sweden.