England, Slovenia & Early Impressions
> My general feeling about Team USA was that they played well against England. We had our chances to win…and lose for that matter…but we played hard and smart all match long. So overall I was very happy with the result.
As for the “Hand of Clod” goal net minder Robert Green let slip past him, yes it was weak, soft, whatever. That said a goal keeping gaffe was not to be unexpected since Three Lions manager Fabio Capello had trouble deciding on a starting goalie in the first place. Most managers like to keep their starting lineups secret until right before kick off, but usually goalie is one of the known positions rather than one of the unknowns.
> The Slovenia game on 6/18 at 7 AM Pacific (ESPN) is a virtual do-or-die for the USA since the Green Dragons sit atop Group C after beating Algeria. If Slovenia wins they are guaranteed a spot in the knockout round and we are probably eliminated (unless England chokes). So it’s imperative that we not have a mental let down against the highly organized defense and dangerous counterattack the Slovenians possess.
If this match wasn’t already big enough for both sides Slovenia midfielder Andrej Komac decided to ratchet things up a notch or two with these quotes.
“We are going to win this match. We are playing our style of football, and we'll continue with that, and we can beat the US with that style.”
Not exactly incendiary comments, but not proper remarks for international soccer either. As you can imagine some of USA’s leaders took exception to what Komac had to say.
Tim Howard…
“I think talk is cheap. He's got to stand toe to toe. And they've got to stand toe to toe with us for 90 minutes. And if he's still standing, then I'll take my hat off to him. But a lot of boxers talk, too, and they're looking up at the lights. And the next thing they know, they're trying to figure out how they got there. That means nothing to us. We know that they're probably feeling confident after getting the three points, and rightfully so.”
Oguchi Onyewu…
“It's definitely a premature comment to make. I don't think a US player would make a comment like that.”
At this level giving your opponent extra motivation is not wise, which I’m sure is something Green Dragon manager Matjaz Kek has explained to the rest of his team by now.
As for the lineup Team USA should use I’d go with the exact same defense. Other than Guch being caught out of position on Steven Gerrard’s goal, the unit of Carlos Bocanegra, Jay DeMerit, Steve Cherundolo and Guch performed about as good as could be hoped for against England. They aren’t likely to be tested near as much versus Slovenia, but they must be mindful not to get caught out of position when the Green Dragons counterattack.
Since Slovenia is likely to pack in their defense and force us to take chances to score I’d like to see Jose Torres get the start over Ricardo Clark. I may still be a little upset at Clark for getting burnt like toast on Gerrard’s goal, but I really think Torres’ creative passing ability will be useful to get us the three points we need here.
Up front I’d like to see Edson Buddle paired with Jozy Altidore, at least to start with. I know Robbie Findley is very dangerous, but I don’t think he’ll see the space he needs to make things happen. Not to mention that a poor decision by Robbie (he had a few against England) could lead to a counterattack. Buddle is more of a target man like Jozy which I think we’ll need in a slow down type of game. I still want Findley to play, just as a substitute around the 60th-70th minute when his speed could catch a tired player off guard.
Howard’s ribs should be fine for the game….
“It's a really bad kick, and so in the next few days, if I have to go full stretch, which hopefully I don't, and end up landing on it too hard, then it might set me back. But we've got plenty of padding and plenty of ideas on how to stop that. I won't be stupid with it; at least I don't think I will be. It's sore. I believe in, as I said before, in adrenaline being the great equalizer. You can't account for that. You get on the field and your mind is focused on the game. It takes away from the pain and listen, we've got plenty of pain meds and injections and all that type of stuff, which will help keep my mind of it, as well. I'm kind of looking forward to those injections.”
If we can get three points out of this match we are in very good shape going forward. Even with another draw all hope won’t be lost. Keep in mind that style points do not play a factor in the final results at the World Cup.
> The dreaded Jabulani ball hasn’t really swerved to fool keepers like the designers had hoped. What I have seen is that long balls tend to sail and always explode away from players off the first bounce.
> With the first round of games complete for each group the best two sides I have seen so far are Germany and Brazil. What has been surprising to me is just how evenly matched most teams are, which I think is what you’d like to see at this level. Most games are decided by which side commits a crucial mistake.
As for the “Hand of Clod” goal net minder Robert Green let slip past him, yes it was weak, soft, whatever. That said a goal keeping gaffe was not to be unexpected since Three Lions manager Fabio Capello had trouble deciding on a starting goalie in the first place. Most managers like to keep their starting lineups secret until right before kick off, but usually goalie is one of the known positions rather than one of the unknowns.
> The Slovenia game on 6/18 at 7 AM Pacific (ESPN) is a virtual do-or-die for the USA since the Green Dragons sit atop Group C after beating Algeria. If Slovenia wins they are guaranteed a spot in the knockout round and we are probably eliminated (unless England chokes). So it’s imperative that we not have a mental let down against the highly organized defense and dangerous counterattack the Slovenians possess.
If this match wasn’t already big enough for both sides Slovenia midfielder Andrej Komac decided to ratchet things up a notch or two with these quotes.
“We are going to win this match. We are playing our style of football, and we'll continue with that, and we can beat the US with that style.”
Not exactly incendiary comments, but not proper remarks for international soccer either. As you can imagine some of USA’s leaders took exception to what Komac had to say.
Tim Howard…
“I think talk is cheap. He's got to stand toe to toe. And they've got to stand toe to toe with us for 90 minutes. And if he's still standing, then I'll take my hat off to him. But a lot of boxers talk, too, and they're looking up at the lights. And the next thing they know, they're trying to figure out how they got there. That means nothing to us. We know that they're probably feeling confident after getting the three points, and rightfully so.”
Oguchi Onyewu…
“It's definitely a premature comment to make. I don't think a US player would make a comment like that.”
At this level giving your opponent extra motivation is not wise, which I’m sure is something Green Dragon manager Matjaz Kek has explained to the rest of his team by now.
As for the lineup Team USA should use I’d go with the exact same defense. Other than Guch being caught out of position on Steven Gerrard’s goal, the unit of Carlos Bocanegra, Jay DeMerit, Steve Cherundolo and Guch performed about as good as could be hoped for against England. They aren’t likely to be tested near as much versus Slovenia, but they must be mindful not to get caught out of position when the Green Dragons counterattack.
Since Slovenia is likely to pack in their defense and force us to take chances to score I’d like to see Jose Torres get the start over Ricardo Clark. I may still be a little upset at Clark for getting burnt like toast on Gerrard’s goal, but I really think Torres’ creative passing ability will be useful to get us the three points we need here.
Up front I’d like to see Edson Buddle paired with Jozy Altidore, at least to start with. I know Robbie Findley is very dangerous, but I don’t think he’ll see the space he needs to make things happen. Not to mention that a poor decision by Robbie (he had a few against England) could lead to a counterattack. Buddle is more of a target man like Jozy which I think we’ll need in a slow down type of game. I still want Findley to play, just as a substitute around the 60th-70th minute when his speed could catch a tired player off guard.
Howard’s ribs should be fine for the game….
“It's a really bad kick, and so in the next few days, if I have to go full stretch, which hopefully I don't, and end up landing on it too hard, then it might set me back. But we've got plenty of padding and plenty of ideas on how to stop that. I won't be stupid with it; at least I don't think I will be. It's sore. I believe in, as I said before, in adrenaline being the great equalizer. You can't account for that. You get on the field and your mind is focused on the game. It takes away from the pain and listen, we've got plenty of pain meds and injections and all that type of stuff, which will help keep my mind of it, as well. I'm kind of looking forward to those injections.”
If we can get three points out of this match we are in very good shape going forward. Even with another draw all hope won’t be lost. Keep in mind that style points do not play a factor in the final results at the World Cup.
> The dreaded Jabulani ball hasn’t really swerved to fool keepers like the designers had hoped. What I have seen is that long balls tend to sail and always explode away from players off the first bounce.
> With the first round of games complete for each group the best two sides I have seen so far are Germany and Brazil. What has been surprising to me is just how evenly matched most teams are, which I think is what you’d like to see at this level. Most games are decided by which side commits a crucial mistake.
posted by D$ at 3:16 PM
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