Failure to Launch

What does it mean for US Soccer that they were not able to qualify for the 2012 Olympics in London this summer? I am not quite sure yet, but it did not leave a good feeling in my gut. The United States plays in the CONCACAF region, which includes North and Central American countries, as well as the island countries in the Caribbean. If you think this is an area chock-full of soccer powers, you are quite mistaken. Mexico is obviously the most formidable foe for the United States, and outside of that there are only a couple Central American countries that are somewhat respectable (Panama is the only other team in the top 50 in the world). So, it should be a given that both the U.S. and Mexico qualify for every major world tournament, right? Before this failure, I would have thought the answer was yes, but let’s take a look at what went wrong and if it matters at all.

It must be noted that the United States U-23 team was playing in these qualifying games. While it is easy to use this as an excuse, it would have been nice to see the future of American soccer show that they were ready for the big stage. Just because some of the main cogs of the national team did not participate, rising stars such as Freddy Adu, Juan Agudelo, and Brek Shea still played. One of the main reasons that they did not qualify is that, in my opinion, they may have thought the task too easy and simply failed to muster up the motivation to play 100%.

The national team is coming off of a huge road win against Italy, as noted here by an expert soccer journalist. Even though it was in a friendly competition, coach Klinsmann was able to quiet his doubters as the U.S. earned their first significant victory in a couple years. This should not have taken the focus away from Olympic qualifying. Even more, World Cup qualifying begins this summer, so the staff may have lacked in the effort and strategy categories.

The main reason I am disappointed in this result is that it is a huge buzz kill for the high that American soccer fans were feeling after the Italy match. The Olympics could have been a chance to show off the young talent that Klinsmann has at his disposal over the next couple of World Cups. Instead, the U.S. will focus on qualifying for the World Cup and hope to beat the soccer powerhouses of the Caribbean and Central America to reach the World Cup…in 2014. London could have given the Americans a chance to measure up to high caliber competition before Rio de Janeiro. It will not match up to the level of play that we see at the World Cup or near what we will see in Poland and Ukraine at the Euro Cup this summer. However, it will be a good measuring stick for the future of soccer all over the world.

American soccer still has a ways to go to reach a consistent level of success. No matter how frustrating this is, I am used to my sports teams letting me down, so I will keep the faith. Plus, the hiring of Klinsmann and the subsequent events still give me hope that the future is bright. I would just love to get to this future a little quicker.

As the EPL Turns

It was an interesting week for the top teams in the English Premier League. Sunday brought us an upset of Manchester City by recently promoted Swansea while Wayne Rooney led Manchester United to a victory over West Brom. This turn of events allowed United to leapfrog its rivals for the top spot in England. With only 10 matches remaining, City finds itself in a precarious situation.

Both teams also played in the Europa League during the week. If you remember, both were embarrassingly knocked out of the Champions League in group play and relegated to playing in the second-tier Europa competition. Of course, both were knocked out that this week. This was just the final punctuation in what has been a miserable year for English teams in European competition (except you Chelsea, congratulations on advancing, or whatever).

So now the teams from Manchester only have the EPL title to fight over. City had been coasting along most of the season, but United has been able to fight through injuries to get results and stay within striking distance. With the shocking loss to Swansea, City finally cracked and let United into the driver’s seat.

While examining the remaining schedules, I always thought that City had the tougher road to glory. They still have to play the likes of Chelsea, Newcastle United, and Arsenal. Even more importantly, a second match against United (who they manhandled earlier this season) looms. This match may very well decide the championship.

I still believe that both teams have some kinks to work out and whichever squad is able to regain composure will take the title. Overall, the league has seen some new teams sustain success (Newcastle United and Tottenham) and a familiar face regain some pride (Arsenal). The contest for a top four spot in the EPL and thus a spot in the Champions League next season also remains in the balance.

The end of this season, however disappointing it was in Europe, still guarantees excitement as we wind down. While many may say that the EPL had a down season, I think (and hope) that they saved everything for the last two months. Whoever takes home the title will have earned it and will show the world that there are still competent soccer clubs outside of Barcelona and Madrid.

One Large Leap for US Soccer

So the last day of February rolled around this past Wednesday, the twenty-ninth day of this odd month, and the United States Men’s National Team found itself in Italy facing a side that it had never defeated. Never! Unfortunately, I found myself in class, and since you can’t skip grad school classes, I was forced to find a way to watch and participate in higher learning (borrow a classmate’s laptop and sit in a strategic part of the classroom!).

I originally thought about writing this article about how this team, under the still-new leadership of Jürgen Klinsmann, was not progressing at the rate it needed for several reasons. The full ‘A’ squad has not played together yet, including stars Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan, and constantly injured Stu Holden. Furthermore, they have had a couple good performances littered amongst some mediocre showings. I was also going to comment on a couple players who I thought had received a fair audition but were not national team-worthy just yet.

But here we were, in Italy on a day that only comes once every four years. I tuned in about 20 minutes into the game to see the Americans donning their new away jerseys (which I didn’t hate). The first half wasn’t perfect, but Italy was held in check. The U.S. came back in the second half and it seemed as though they were not the same timid team that we saw at the end of 2011.

The pitch was very slow. Italy was spending too much time on the offensive, and Jozy Altidore was spending too much on the ground. But after some good ball movement, Fabian Johnson got a good cross in to Jozy, who instead of trying to draw a penalty kick, dropped it off to Dempsey who slotted it home for the winner. I must admit, I almost cheered out loud in the middle of class, but somehow kept my composure.

The last 35 minutes of the match were not easy. Italy pushed the ball repeatedly and we witnessed the best defense the US has displayed in a long time. Captain Carlos Bocanegra led his defenders into battle; players were diving and sacrificing their bodies to block shots and break up passes in a manner you only see during power plays in the NHL. It was hard for me to contain my emotions because the only thing I enjoy more than goals is stellar defense. The line held and the US walked out of Italy with their first victory ever against this world soccer power.

While Italy wasn’t at full power, the Americans were also short a couple key players. Playing on the road, they never backed down and though they didn’t play at their best, they played well enough to complete a much-needed signature win. Now, Klinsmann has a game that he can point to in meetings as the “see, you can beat the big boys” game.

Even more than these typical motivating points, the Americans can feel good about a win while still realizing that they didn’t play their best. It’s much easier to self-criticize and improve after a victory and now they can stay positive while still perfecting their craft.

This game may also provide Klinsmann the break he needs to get out of the media spotlight and work on building his team in time for World Cup qualifying. For the short term at least, he can concentrate on assembling his ideal squad. Up next for Klinsmann and co. is Scotland and then a home test against 2014 World Cup hosts Brazil. These matches won’t happen until May, so the Americans can ride this feel-good wave until then. However, these international friendlies will be quickly followed by World Cup qualifying. At that time, we hope to finally see a team ready to take the leap.