Who Will Make it to South Africa?

by Sean Heffernan

This week we saw all over the world a number of countries beginning to make their way toward South Africa, where in 272 days, World Cup 2010 will begin. The United States took two steps closer to qualifying with two hard fought victories against El Salvador and Trinidad & Tobago. Many complained about the Americans difficulty defeating two teams who on paper were significantly inferior, but in World Cup Qualifying a win is a win. It was a great week in the Beautiful Game. So without further adieu here are my thoughts...

 1. Will the World's Two Best Players Miss Out on the World Cup?

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are widely regarded as the two best footballers in the world, but it is very possible that they won't take part in the upcoming World Cup. Messi's Argetina lost twice last week at home to Brazil and then again days later away to Paraguay. As for Ronaldo, his beloved Portugal won a crucial game against Hungary 1-0, but will have a tough fight in the coming months to earn a playoff spot in their group if they want any chance of making it to South Africa. Argentina is currently in fifth place in South America and would have to face the fourth place team from the US's group in a playoff if they held their current position.

Who doesn’t want to see the best players on Earth play on the biggest stage there is in sports? Each player led their clubs to the last two Champions League Championships. Ronaldo is the most complete attacker in the world. He can score in any way imaginable on the pitch:  the run of play, free kicks, long range bombs, headers, etc. The 24-year-old just left Manchester United for Real Madrid on $132 million deal making him one the richest athletes on the planet. Messi won the Champions League with FC Barcelona over Manchester Untied this past season displaying his world class playmaking abilities. Messi can change direction with the ball like Barry Sanders and create scoring opportunities out of nothing. Despite both players brilliance, their countries are in real danger of not qualifying. It would be a shame if these two athletes, in their primes, on top of the world with their clubs, don't even make it to South Africa.

2. Remaining Questions for the USMNT

The United States should always beat El Salvador and Trinidad & Tobago, but US fans can't expect them to blow them out every time they play. The US on Wednesday won a crucial match against T&T in the Port of Spain 1-0, putting themselves on top of their group. The top three teams make the World Cup automatically in the region and with Costa Rica looking terrible the US are pretty much are a shoe in for 2010.

At left back the US continues to struggle and former Mexican international Edgar Castillo, who was recently cleared to play for the United States, should get a real shot at the position. The only viable option head coach Bob Bradley has is moving over Carlos Bocanegra over to left back and playing Jay DeMerit in the center with Oguchi Onyweu. Jonathan Borenstien's ill fated clearance gave El Salvador an early lead last Saturday. The US cannot afford mistakes like that in the future. To Borenstien's credit he did have a better game against T&T, but not good enough to inspire any kind of confidence in US Soccer fans. Bradley could consider some new faces from MLS like Tim Ward of the Chicago Fire or Todd Dunivant of the LA Galaxy, but the coach doesn’t have a whole lot of time to make up his mind before next summer.

The US needs to improve on how they start games. They have given up to many early goals in qualifying and against better teams they won't have a chance at coming back. The second half of the T&T game was the first time in as long as I can remember that the US really possessed the ball for long periods of time. Once the Americans started sitting on the ball they took control of the game which resulted in the lone goal from Ricardo Clark. After a frustrating first half, Michael Bradley stepped up his game, distributing the ball out of the midfield with accuracy and grit. If the US can possess the ball consistently good things will happen.

3. The Battle for the Midfield

The other position battle is in the middle of the field, where US coach Bob Bradley's son Michael Bradley has been a constant in qualifying. Ricardo Clark, Benny Feilhaber, Maurice Edu, and Jose Francisco Torres have also been in the mix for the position in the past year. Clark scored the crucial goal against T&T on a wicked bending ball from outside the penalty box and is rumored to be moving abroad after this season with Houston. Feilhaber could be the best passer the US has outside of Landon Donovan, but looked better on the wing as a substitute against T&T as he did when he started against El Salvador in the middle.

There is a growing movement within US fans who want to see Jose Francisco Torres play more. The Mexican-American has been a solid contributor down in Mexico for his club Pachuca and showed promise when he's donned the Red, White, and Blue.  Torres really can play anywhere in the midfield for Bob Bradley which helps his chances of making the team in 2010.

Former Toronto FC man Maurice Edu was making his case earlier this year for as he worked his way into the starting lineup at Rangers. Edu was part of the Rangers squad that won the league title and the domestic cup in Scotland this past season. However, Edu had surgery on his knee in the off season and is slowly making his way back to the field. If Edu wants to be considered for the US team he will have to get healthy as soon as he can and get back into the Rangers roster.

The wild card in the battle for central midfield is German born Jermaine Jones, who is on the verge of becoming eligible to play for the United States. The 28-year-old is one of the best defensive midfielders in Germany with a knack for shutting down the center of the field and just being a bad ass. He's also known for speaking his mind freely and we shall see if his personality fits into Bob Bradley "group" mentality. To get an idea of both the good and the bad that comes with the Schalke midfielder check out this video.

In 2007 Jones helped Schalke advance to the quarterfinals of the Champions League. From the video you can tell he has a temper as in one clip he freaks out after being given an unjust yellow card for a superb tackle he made and earns himself a red card for dissent. Jones is coming off a hair-line fracture in his leg and has recently returned to training with Schalke and could be available for the US's trip to Honduras on October 10th.

We obviously have a real depth in the central defender role and we don't have anyone in our player pool who can be a Xavi or Steven Gerrad so why shouldn't Bob Bradley play two central defenders in the midfield. I almost wish Bradley would play a 4-3-3 with Jozy Altidore, Charlie Davies, and Clint Dempsey up top and Donovan in the midfield with two central defenders ( i.e. Bradley, Jones, Edu, or Clark). I'd rather have Dempsey up top where he's more comfortable than have him doing tricks with the ball in the midfield. I doubt that Bradley would veer from the 4-4-2 with less than a year to go to the World Cup, but it’s just a thought. The left back spot no matter what will be a question mark going into South Africa, but the race for the central midfield will be the most interesting by far on the US national team.

4. England Continues to Dominate

With England's thrashing of Croatia 5-1, the Three Lions are through to the World Cup with Wednesday's victory. One thing England really has going for them is that they have two of the best midfielders in the world in Steven Gerrad and Frank Lampard. You know Lampard and Gerrad are going come through for their squad whether it’s for club or country. They both just have a hero quality to them that few players truly have. The duo had two goals each in the drubbing of Croatia (whom happens to be ranked 9th in the world by FIFA). England was expected to win at home in Wembley, but not by that margin.

One question mark is finding a striking partner for Wayne Rooney. Manager Fabio Capello has been starting Emile Heskey who has only scored 7 times in 56 appearances for England. One would think Jermaine Defoe would be considered in that role as the Tottenham man has been red hot of late for both England and Spurs. Defoe has scored 11 goals in just 36 appearances. He's smaller than the physical Heskey or 6 ft 7 Peter Crouch, but if he keeps scoring goals the way he has than I don't know how Capello can keep him off the pitch.

Now that the English are qualified for the World Cup, it will be interesting to see how Capello experiments with his team for the rest of their games. There’s still a lot of time from now until next summer, but presently England looks like a force to be reckoned with.

5. Knock, Knock. Who's There? (Slap) KGB! We Shall Ask the Questions!

The Russians are coming! Andrei Arshavin and company defeated Wales and Lichtenstein over the weekend putting them second in the group behind Germany. If Russia can win at home against the Germans they’ll have a very good chance of winning the group. In what could prove to be a crucial blunder Germany tied Finland 3-3 last October currently leaving Russia just one point behind the Die Mannschaft. Russia’s captain, Arshavin is playing brilliantly for Arsenal and looks to be worth every penny the club spent on him. Striker Roman Pavlyuchenko has been on form for his country scoring 5 goals in World Cup qualifying wile Zenit St. Petersburg's Konstantin Zyryanov has been a creative force in the midfield for the Russians. Look for Russia to surprise a lot of people next year in South Africa as they did at Euro 2008.

Do you have any thoughts on the Beautiful Game? Please share them below.

Bye, Bye Spain?

The transfer saga over American forward Jozy Altidore  has come to its end as the 19-year-old has signed a one year loan deal to play for Hull City in the English Premier League. Altidore announced via twitter that he will join the Tigers pending a work permit. Villarreal spokeswoman Marian Solsana told yanks-abroad.com that "Altidore is in England right now. We expect to make an announcement either today or tomorrow." Hull City has set up a press conference for tomorrow to introduce. Fulham and Everton were also in the mix for the teenage sensation, but Hull City had the most need for a striker with midfielder Geovanni leading the scoring for the Tigers in the 2008/09 season.  Jozy will be joining fellow countrymen Clint Dempsey (Fulham) in the Premiership this coming season as the second American attacker in the EPL. There were rumors of Altidore being loaned to another club in Spain or  Greece, but Hull City might actually be the best place for the former New York Red Bulls striker to see field even though the club plays  in one of the world's top leagues.
 
Hull City was promoted to the top tier of English football last season where they barely escaped regulation to England's second tier league. Five years ago Hull City was in the lowest tier of English football with the club in steady decline. New ownership breathed life into the club and in 2005 and 2006 Hull City moved from Division Three to League One to the Championship. Then in the 2007-08 campaign the club was promoted to the English Premier League making Hull City's move to the top the third fastest of all time.
 
Hull City is in the process of signing South African midfielder Seyi Olofinjana and is after another striker in Cardiff's Ross McCormack. Currently, Altidore will have to compete against Craig Fagan (3 goals in 22 appearences in 2008) and Caleb Folan (9 goals in 44 appearences since 2007) for playing time. We shall see if young Jozy will be the next American to make his way in England.

Is this the best move for Jozy? Comment below.

Sean Heffernan

In a new segment, soccer writer Sean Heffernan takes the pulse of the American soccer landscape. Today's installment touches on the MLS All Star Game, the U.S.'s failure in the Gold Cup Final against heated rival Mexico, Manchester United's hopes for another EPL title, Jozy Altidore and Freddy Adu's loan possibilites, and the upcoming L.A. Galaxy/Barcelona friendly. Enjoy! ...

1.       MLS All-Star Game: The Most Entertaining All Star Game in Sports

Last night the best players in Major League Soccer squared off against English Premier League club Everton in Rio Tinto Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah. Instead of the typical interleague East vs. West format other American sports use, MLS chooses one squad of All Stars and plays a club from overseas. American soccer fans get to see the best players in their domestic league (MLS) as well as stars they normally would never see play.

In terms of quality of the actual game the MLS is ahead of the rest of the country’s professional sports leagues. The MLB All Star game is bound in controversy over the World Series home field advantage rule and more people seem to enjoy the Home Run Derby than the actual game. The NHL All Star game is a watered down version of hockey with very little checking.  Five minutes into the NBA All Star Game you realize that every play ends in a dunk. No one watches the Pro Bowl. I don’t know what it is about soccer, but last night you could tell that both squads were going full speed. Seeing stars like Landon Donovan, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, and Freddy Ljungberg putting in a whole hearted performance is much more entertaining to me then watching Kobe, Lebron,and Shaq playing at 70%. Inside Rio Tinto Stadium (brand new soccer specific home of MLS side Real Salt Lake) the crowd of over 20,000 got their money’s worth on the field.  

After 90 plus minutes the game was tied thanks to a clinic put on in both nets by current and former U.S. National Team goalies Tim Howard (Everton) and Kasey Keller (Seattle Sounders FC). In the penalty shootout, both goalies continued to display their brilliance in net blocking numerous free kicks (most goalies can only muster a save or two in penalty kicks if their lucky) In the end Tim Howard made one more save then fellow countrymen Kasey giving the victory to Everton.

2.       The Golden Disappointment: Mexico’s Thrashing of US in Gold Cup

I was at Soldier Field for the Gold Cup semifinal doubleheader between U.S. vs. Honduras and Mexico vs. Costa Rica. Towards the end of the U.S. game it was really noticeable how tired the U.S. squad was. A late game injection of Kenny Cooper galvanized the American squad for a second goal, but I felt Bob Bradley would have to mix up the lineup for the final as to put the freshest team on the pitch in New York against Mexico. Instead U.S. coach Bradley put the same starting 11 out against Mexico leaving hungry players like Kenny Cooper, Sam Cronin, and Santino Quaranta on the bench. The US played Mexico to tie at half, but Mexico made early subs whereas Bradley held off aiding his tired squad until it was too late and the Mexican onslaught ended in a embarrassing score line of 5-0. Bradley simply mismanaged the U.S. squad’s fitness going into the final. Our boys simply ran out of legs. Hopefully, we’ll get some revenge in the massive World Cup Qualifier against Mexico in Azteca coming up in a few weeks.

3.       Man United Looks Pedestrian Without Ronaldo and Tevez

Despite selling Cristiano Ronaldo for a fortune, Manchester United has yet to buy a big name this offseason as they prepare to defend their English Premier League title for the second year in a row. Manager Sir Alex Ferguson signed Englishmen Michael Owen even though the former Newcastle striker hasn’t been in form for a few years. However, I did watch a classic match on FSC when Owen played for Liverpool and in the early part of this decade he was one of the best forwards in the world. Still, without the creative spark of a Cristiano Ronaldo or Carlos Tevez I would not be surprised to see the Red Devils fall behind the likes of Chelsea or Liverpool this year in the EPL.

4.       Americans Abroad Transfer Talk: Altidore and Adu Up in the Air

Last season was a lesson for both U.S. youngsters Jozy Altidore and Freddy Adu. Altidore and Adu spent last season on unsuccessful loan deals from their respective clubs. Altidore looked promising earlier in the year earning a few appearances for Villarreal in Spain, but was loaned to Segundo club Xerez where he never saw the field. Former child prodigy Freddy Adu was loaned from his Portugese club Benfica to Ligue One side Monaco, but the 20-year old never really figured into the team’s plans while in the south of France. Now back with their original clubs both Americans are looking for more playing time. Rumors had been swirling around Altidore going to Greece and playing for Olympiakos, but no deal ever materialized. The latest news on Altidore is that Spanish club Malaga CF is back in the hunt for the striker according to goal.com and radio reports out of Spain. As for Freddy Adu there was reported interest from an unnamed Dutch club a few days ago, but he is now currently training with Benfica.

5.       David Beckham and the Galaxy Face Barcelona in the Rose Bowl  

This month European clubs such as Chelsea, AC Milan, and Inter Milan have drawn huge crowds across America hinting at a growing fan base for “The Beautiful Game” stateside. This coming Saturday’s match between David Beckham’s L.A. Galaxy and Champions League winners, Barcelona, should  add to what has been a great summer for soccer in this country. There should be a great atmosphere inside Pasadena’s massive Rose Bowl. Barcelona has two of the biggest names in world football on roster in Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi along with a slew of other world class stars. Messi has to have the inside track for FIFA’s Player of the Year award after leading Barcelona past Manchester United in the Champions League Final earlier this year in Rome. Saturday’s game should be competitive as the Galaxy are currently playing wonderfully in MLS while Barcelona’s squad is out of form with the La Liga season kicking off at the end of August. Regardless, this David vs. Goliath match should make for good television (Saturday, 8 P.M. EST, Fox Soccer Channel).

Feel free to comment below!

I hope Jozy likes Gyros

By Sean Heffernan

Young striker Jozy Altidore could be joining fellow countrymen Oguchi Onyweu (AC Milan in Serie A) and Charlie Davies (Sochaux of the French Ligue 1) to switch clubs this week as a loan deal is in the works with the Greek Super League defending champions, Olympiacos, according to Goal.com. ... Altidore made worldwide news earlier this summer in South Africa, scoring the winning goal for the United States in their impromptu defeat of FIFA #1 ranked Spain in the Confederations Cup. After putting the ball past Spanish keeper Iker Casillas and running to the sideline ripping his shirt off I had a feeling someone was going to take the 19-year-0ld forward off Villarreal's hands this season.

Last summer Altidore set a record transfer fee for Major League Soccer when the Spanish club bought the former New York Red Bull for $10 million. The youngster looked promising in his six appearances for Villarreal scoring one goal. However, a loan deal to second tier club Xerez in Spain was struck where Altidore oddly was never given an opportunity to play.

Altidore's prospects for finding the field in Greece will be much better. Olympiacos does have two promising young forwards in Brazilian Diogo and Englishmen Matt Derbyshire on roster. Diogo's time with the club has been plagued by injury, but is still regarded as one of the most promising young exports from Brazil playing in Europe today. Derbyshire spent time in the English Premier League with Blackburn Rovers seeing some success, but was loaned to Olympiacos last year where he flourished in his 13 appearances scoring 8 goals. The Greek side bought the former England U-20 prospect outright from Blackburn after the season.

Without ever stepping on the field one would assume Altidore will at least be the first striker off the bench at Olympiacos. Last season the Athens based club's leading scorer was Argentine midfielder Luciano Galletti leaving manager Temuri Ketsbaia expecting more goal production out of the club's forwards for the coming Greek Super League season.  

For now the deal has not been announced by either parties and agent Lyle Yorks has suggested Altidore has other options other than Greece, "There is also interest in Spain (La Liga), Germany and the EPL," Yorks told Goal.com.  The striker's agent hinted that Altidore'sfuture will be solidified shortly "We should finalize something in the coming week or two."

When all is said and done I hope that Jozy finds himself in Athens. United States Men's National Team fans will hope that wherever their budding goal scorer ends up that he finds himself in the starting 11 on a regular basis so that he is fit for next summer's World Cup in South Africa. At Olympiacos Jozy will compete for a starting spot on a good team and will have ample opportunitieswith the club's involvement in Greek Cup competitions and the Champions League in addition to the domestic campaign. Let's hope for an official announcement in the coming days.

 Leave your comments below!!

In 26^th minute in Sunday’s Confederations Cup Final the United States Men’s National team was on top of the world. Landon Donovan had just extended the Americans lead to 2-0 over five-time World Cup Champions Brazil with a truly world class goal. ...Donovan quickly retrieved the ball from Ricardo Clark off a Brazil’s faltered attack, passed a brilliant ball ahead to striker Charlie Davies, ran the course of the field, expertly handled the return pass from Davies, tip toed the ball around the defender, and hammered the goal into Brazil’s net leaving keeper Julio Cesar looking helpless in the net. With Donovan’s goal it appeared that United States was on its way to upsetting its second world power in a row, but in the second half the Americans dream were crushed as Brazil showed its true character scoring three unanswered goals to claim the Confederations Cup for the third time.

After a goal by Luis Fabiano in the opening minutes of the second half you could feel the weight of Brazil begin to fully register on the backs of the Americans. The Green and Yellow then released an onslaught on the American defense similar to the one the US had survived in their historic win over FIFA number one ranked Spain earlier in the week. Unlike in the miracle win over Spain the Americans just didn’t seem to have the legs to withstand barrage after barrage of attacks from the likes of Kaka, Fabiano, and Robinho. US goalie Tim Howard pulled off a few dazzling saves, but eventually found himself at the mercy of Brazil’s sheer talent.

Brazil’s bench consisted of millionaires some of whom didn’t get a sniff of the field throughout the entire tournament. US second half substitute, Sasha Kljestan, makes a humble base salary of $170,000 playing in the MLS, but battled Sunday against Brazil’s Kaka who was just sold to Real Madrid for $92 million. US Soccer fans should stick out their chests with pride as their team almost defeated the world’s two most talented teams in Spain and Brazil in the course of a few days.

The Americans were not satisfied with their surprise run to the final as Donovan told the media after the game, “We’re at the point where we don’t want respect, we want to win. There’s no guarantee that we ever get back to a final game like this so it’s disappointing.”

What we can take from the US’s Confederations Cup is that they will return next year as a team that can compete with the best in the world. It is safe to expect the Americans to advance out of their group stage in World Cup 2010. As we learned from this tournament anything can happen in the game of soccer. This team has found itself in the past two weeks representing the United States above and beyond the call of duty. The US squad may return stateside with broken hearts, but have surely won over the respect of the soccer-loving world.

Since Bob Bradley’s boys shocked the world in South Africa taking down Spain this past Wednesday US Soccer has forced itself into the American sports mainstream media machine. It’s been nice seeing the Men’s National Team talked about on every radio and television show for once. No matter what anyone says the victory over the number one team in the world changes things for the US. ... You can check out my story about the game itself at theloveofsports.com (the article was quoted on Sportscenter's Blog Buzz feature). I’ve had number of things on my mind since the victory that I’d like to express generally related to US Soccer.

Attention, those still calling for Coach Bob Bradley’s head please just go back to your mother’s basements. Though some US fans would rather have a flashy name for a head coach, I’ve always liked Bradley as a coach. All that you hear from players past and present is love for the guy. On the pitch he has a Clint Eastwood-like stoneface demeanor completely focused at the task at hand. He hasn’t been perfect in his few years on the job, but in this tournament I think he has found a core group of players that can give us a good shot at next year’s World Cup. His son Michael Bradley who starts on the squad at center midfield is even fierier than the old man calling out the media in the states for not appreciating the Egypt win getting the squad to the semifinal. And for Christ’s sake they just beat the best team in the world 2-0.

Bradley’s strategy of not over committing on defense and taking advantage of the Spanish on the counterattack worked beautifully against La Roja. He needed his men to leave everything they had out on the field for his game plan to work and that’s exactly what they did. It reminded me of how Chelsea played Barcelona in the Champions League semifinal minus the brilliance of Iniesta spoiling the title for the London club (Thank God he wasn’t available for Spain in our match). There’s something about how the US squad just dug in and went to war in the trenches that’s completely American. Bradley has earned his chance to take our team to the World Cup next year so all the crazy talk about his job needs to end.

It was a mixed bag for US Soccer’s spin around the American mainstream media circuit after the colossal win. When the supposed “sports experts” on television are forced to talk about soccer instead of doing the research and keeping up with the team they resort typically negativity about how soccer doesn’t matter in this country and we’re barely mediocre at the international level. However, with such a historic win the majority of the coverage was pretty positive. Dan Patrick interviewed Landon Donovan on his radio show and convinced him to save his game jersey for the station’s studio. On Mike & Mike in the Morning, Mike Greenberg who talked extensively about how much he enjoyed watching the game even though he wasn’t a big soccer fan. When Dempsey scored the second goal he found himself alone on his Stairmaster screaming at the top of his lungs. On PTI, Wilbon and Kornhesier apologized for not being prepared when they questioned the Americans’ validity in advancing to semifinal after the Egypt game adopting the US Men’s Soccer as their new favorite team.

Not surprisingly Jim Rome first claimed he wouldn’t be negative about the US’s win, but then went on another dumb ass tangent about how soccer doesn’t matter in America and no one cares about it. Instead of showing clips of the game he mainly used images of soccer hooligans burning things. I’m amazed that someone as close minded, arrogant, and stupid has his own nationally syndicated show. Rome is an ass clown with a bad tan. But everyone already knew that. If anyone deserves to be out of work in this economy it’s him and his creepy goatee.

Those people like Rome who would love nothing more than soccer to fail in this country, who point to how the Women’s team winning the World Cup and David Beckham didn’t instantly turn America into a soccer nation don’t understand that soccer won’t become top sport overnight, but is a process that will take time. In recent years the sport has seen tremendous growth in the US. Say what you want about Beckham, but his worldwide exposure gave MLS some much needed publicity and won the league a lot of new soccer fans. The product MLS puts out on the field gets better every year as the teams are alluring better talent than it has in the past. Clubs like Toronto FC and the Seattle Sounders are selling out of season tickets without ever playing a game before. More and more the best American players are playing over in Europe’s top leagues. Did I mention the US just beat Spain? I still can’t get over it.

This past February’s US vs. Mexico game set TV ratings records for viewers. A pro-American crowd sold out Crew Stadium in Columbus as Michael Bradley scored two goals to defeat El Tri in the World Cup Qualifier. Viewership of the Champions League Final on ESPN was up some 30% from last year. ESPN has made serious strides in their soccer coverage with their MLS game of the week and national team coverage. Fox Soccer Channel has turned into a one-stop-shop in this country for soccer fans airing tons of European league games as well as producing nightly reports and the popular talk show “Fox Football Fone In”. FSC really needs to start televising their games in HD. It’s hard to watch game that’s not in HD anymore.

I’m a former shoulder pad toting soccer hater. But I went to Europe for a summer and realized that soccer really was the biggest game on earth and thought wouldn’t it be great if the US were the best in the world at it. Soccer is on the rise in America people. Can you dig it!?!

The Americans’ defeat of the best soccer team in the world (Spain) today in Bloemfontein, South Africa will go down as one of the greatest sports victories internationally in the history of our country. The 2-0 victory in the semifinals of South Africa’s Confederations Cup is being dubbed “The Miracle on Grass” in honor of the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” over the Soviet Union at the Winter Olympics. ......

Like in 1980 the Americans were giant underdogs going up against a much more talented, experienced opponent, but with a fighting spirit and a refusal to quit the US was able to do what was thought to be impossible.

Sports pundits in this country aren’t forced to talk about soccer often so when confronted with the world’s game they typically resort to negativity. When the US Men’s National Team snuck its way into the semifinal game of the Confederations Cup in South Africa across the American sports media cited a sketchy rule in the tournament that allowed the US to advance. It was a miracle in itself that the US made it to the semifinals after losing their first two games of the tournament to Italy and Brazil respectably. It took a gutty 3-0 win against the champions of Africa, Egypt, and help from the Brazilians defeating Italy by the same score line to send the Americans through on goal deferential.

Unlikely as it was, the United States was set to face the FIFA ranked #1 team in the world with a chance to make the final. Spain had not lost a game since 2006 and in the Confederation Cup’s group stage they had not allowed a single goal. Spain’s starting eleven consisted of players from some of the best teams in Europe all of who get paid millions of dollars to play professionally. The arguable best player on the US, Landon Donovan, only makes $900,000 a year with his MLS side LA Galaxy. Spanish strikers Fernando Torres and David Villa are two of the most dangerous forwards in the world. It was expected by every sound soccer mind that the Spanish would pass the American defense to death.

US Coach Bob Bradley instructed his players to adopt a “bend but not break” attitude to containing the fearsome Spanish attack. From the kickoff Spain controlled the possession of the ball, but the Americans stayed true to their game plan. US goalie Tim Howard was tested early and often, but kept himself always in good position denying the defending champions of Europe again and again. In the 30th minute the US took a 1-0 lead when Clint Dempsey played a ball into 19-year-old forward Jozy Altidore who out-muscled defender Joan Capedevila and sending the ball off keeper Iker Casillas’s fingertips into the Spanish goal. In the second half Spain stepped up the onslaught on the United States defense.

The eleven Americans ran, jumped, slid, and dived all over the pitch to keep their opponents out of their net. It was evident that US squad began to believe more in themselves as the minutes ticked by drawing them closer and closer to sports history.

In the 73rd minute Clint Dempsey, who against Egypt helped the US out of the group stage scoring a late header, struck again as Landon Donovan crossed a dangerous ball into the Spanish box where Dempsey dislodged the ball from center back Gerad Pique and buried it into the net putting the underdogs up 2-0.

Though Spain continued to attack the Americans after going down by two you could almost see the air go out of the number one team in the world as they were unable to find a way past the gritty US. When the official’s final whistle blew in the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein the crowd comprised of mostly South Africans applauded the United States for pulling of a historic upset.

The US will face the winner of Brazil and host nation South Africa on Sunday. When asked to express his feelings after the game Tim Howard struggled, “I can’t explain anymore than you can. Sports is funny sometimes, but when you put your mind to something you can achieve it.”

This victory doesn’t instantly push the United States into the upper echelon of soccer countries, but it does prove the point that the Americans can play with the best in the world on any given occasion and sometimes even beat them. Today is a great day to be a US Soccer fan and for anyone for that matter who takes pride in the good old Red, White, & Blue.

One online soccer website has even instituted a “Rossi Rule” which asks posters to refrain from making derogatory statements about Giuseppe and his family. Nevertheless, after the Azzuri’s 3-1 defeat of the U.S. this Monday in their opening game of the Confederations Cup  in which the Italian-American scored two magnificently taken goals I’m sure those soccer forums are on fire again.

The Americans were fortunate Italian head coach Marcello Lippi didn’t start Rossi because prior to the young forward’s entrance the Yanks surprisingly had most of the momentum. The game was altered in the first half when U.S. midfielder Ricardo Clark received an unjust red card for a late tackle on Gennaro Gattuso. The foul likely warranted a yellow card, but did not justify Clark’s ejection forcing the Americans to play the rest of the game down a man. Even Gattuso after the game said that the foul was not a red card.

Despite their misfortune the U.S. battled on taking the lead in the 38^th minute when 19-year-old striker Jozy Altidore (and teammate of Rossi at Spanish league club Villareal) was fouled in the penalty box by the Italian defense setting up captain Landon Donovan for a well taken penalty goal. The U.S. went into the locker room with the lead, but I’m sure fully aware of how hard the rest of the game would be playing against the World Champions with one less player.

In the second half fatigue began to become an issue as the Italians dominated possession and hammered down on the American defense. U.S. central defenders Oguchi Onyweu and Jay Demerit did a solid job of clearing the ball away from their goal, but with Rossi’s introduction the game changed. After Rossi intercepted the ball in the midfield, Demerit retreated backwards allowing the 22-year-old enough room to launch a world-class strike into the corner of the American goal. Another long distance shot got past Yank keeper Tim Howard as Italian Danielle Di Rossi gave the Italians the lead with twenty minutes remaining. Not having a closing midfielder like the red-carded Clark left room for the Azzuri’s long distance attack to wreak mayhem in the second half.

The closing minutes gave the U.S. some hope as they had a few opportunities to tie up the match as substitutes Charlie Davies and Sacha Kljestan gave the team a boost in the attack. Swedish based striker Charlie Davies got loose from his defender on a corner kick, but missed the header only a few yards from the Italian goal. Kljestan in his short spell on the pitch ripped a hooking shot that just flew over the crossbar. In the end it was their fellow countrymen Giuseppe Rossi again who would put the U.S. out of their misery with an extra time volley to finish the game 3-1.

It would have been interesting if the game hadn’t been wrongfully altered early on with the red card, but regardless of the officiating U.S. soccer learned the lesson of how losing their homegrown talent to other countries can come back to haunt them.

All the United States can do is not worry about what that can’t control and get focused for the next game on Thursday against another world class opponent. On Thursday if the Americans can pull of a historic upset against the Green and Yellow of Brazil U.S. soccer fans might just take their celebration out of their dirty pubs and fan forums.

The U.S. are in the group from hell featuring Italy (defending World Cup Champions), Brazil (currently ranked 5th in the world by FIFA), and Egypt (the champions of Africa). If the United States somehow musters itself out of the group stage.

U.S. head coach Bob Bradley redeemed himself after a woeful loss against Costa Rica last Saturday with a hard fought victory over Honduras in Chicago. The U.S. head coach is bringing most of the team from the past two qualifiers to South Africa, but it will be interesting to see who gets the start in the opening game against Italy on June 15 (All games will be aired on ESPN or ESPN2). Here is my starting 11.

Goalie - Tim Howard
No surprise there. Guzan makes me nervous.

Center Back - Oguchi Onyweu
Gooch is investing a lot in this tournament professionally as his play might dictate what kind of offers he gets from European clubs this summer. The former Best 11 defender in the Belgian league is currently a free agent. In the game against Honduras Gooch looked much better than he did during the chaotic match in Costa Rica.

Center Back - Carlos Bocanegra
Captain Carlos earned his stripes on that corner kick sacrificing his face for the game winning goal in Soldier Field where he use to suit up for the Chicago Fire. Hopefully Boca is recovering from the injury and will be fit to play in the Cup.

Left Back - Jonathan Borenstein
Borenstein is certainly not a sexy pick, but the kid did enough against Honduras to earn the next start. The Chivas USA standout combined well with Landon Donovan on the left and worked hard the entire match.

Right Back - Jonathan Spector
Though I may be bias because I grew up in the same town as the West Ham defender, but Spector played a great game on Saturday. He may not have the killer instinct nor the intangibles of a healthy Frankie Hedjuk, but he has great technique, gets forward, and knows how to cross a ball better than anyone we have at right fullback.

Left Mid - Landon Donovan
A lot of commentators said before the Honduras game that Donovan needed to show up and show up he did. As the game progressed he displayed that his skill set was a grade above the majority of the players on the pitch that night. Donovan tied the game up with a vicious penalty kick and delivered the corner kick that resulted in the second goal. That's the Landon Donovan we all want to see.

Right Mid - Clint Dempsey
Though "Deuce" had a few missteps in Chicago his header set up the winning goal and he was on the offensive all night with he ball. His backheel to Ricardo Clark was sick. The U.S. is going to need some more magic from Clint if they want to advance.

Center Mid - Michael Bradley
Coach Bob Bradley's son is a lock in the middle of the field for the national team with his consistent play and aggressiveness on the ball. Growing up around the sport Bradley has a really high soccer I.Q. and a leader on the field even though he isn't much more than a teenager.

Center Mid - Ricardo Clark
The Houston Dynamo midfielder was all over the field on Saturday night. He covers more ground than any holding midfielder in the U.S. player pool. Though not the most dangerous attacker we have Clark was robbed of a penalty in the box against Honduras.

Forward - Jozy Altidore
The 19-year old has already scored 6 goals for the U.S. in his international career. Altidore is the future of the U.S. attack, but his lack of fitness was evident in the qualifiers. I can't wait to see him when he's in form with both club and country simultaneously.

Forward - Connor Casey
The Colorado Rapid did a decent job filling for Brian Ching. Missed a couple of key opportunities, but I liked his pressure on the ball. I would prefer Kenny Cooper, but Bradley didn't call the FC Dallas forward in for the tournament. However, if Casey gets some quality service from the midfield he could light some defenders up.

Bench

DeMarcus Beasley
Jose Francisco Torres (or Freddy Adu)
Benny Feilhaber
Jay Demerit
Brad Guzan
Charlie Davies