So close, and getting closer

For a tournament where the United States played the best soccer in its history and got more people to care about the national team than ever before, there are surely millions of Americans disappointed at the conclusion of the 2009 Confederations Cup. The closer you come to winning, the harder it is emotionally to lose, and this is a heart-wrenching loss for the entire nation. However, “no pain no gain” is a favorite saying of many fitness gurus, and the pain of this loss can be the beginning of an extraordinary period of development for the US National Team.

The Americans surely heard every doubter’s claim that their performance against Spain was a fluke, and the first half against Brazil was their response. The USA bossed play from the beginning, and the first goal by Clint Dempsey was deserved, his deceitful redirection fooling Julio Cesar in the 9th minute. Thereafter, the Americans kept possession and worried Brazil with high-octane offense, and any minimal Brazilian pressure was masterfully dealt with by the American defense, marshaled by Tim Howard in one of his best ever displays. The second goal was a reward for their continued aggression, as beautiful play between Davies and Donovan demonstrated how their pace troubled the Brazilians all night, and resulted in a wonderful 26th minute finish by the captain. A third goal would’ve put the night away when a cross floated in for Jozy Altidore shortly afterwards, but the 19-year-old inexplicably failed to continue his run towards goal. Some late Brazilian pressure ended the half, but the Americans were still dominant overall.

Unfortunately, the end of the first half was all too indicative of how the second would go. 40 seconds from the whistle, Luis Fabiano received a pass at the top of the box, and despite Jay DeMerit’s good positioning, the ball found its way through his legs and past Tim Howard. Constant Brazilian attacks would have found the equalizer shortly thereafter, if not for the unflinching Howard, who showed that he is world-class with save after brilliant save. He can even be credited for preventing the would-be (should-be?) goal by Kaka in the 60th minute, as he never gave up on the ball and punched it out before the linesman could see that it had crossed the line. The U.S. couldn’t ride Tim Howard forever though, and Luis Fabiano’s headed goal in the 73rd was followed by one in the 84th minute by Maicon. The winner came off the 9th Brazilian corner after an entire half of offensive pressure, showing that while the U.S. put in a fantastic defensive display in the first half, it takes a full 90 minutes to win against the best.

In some ways, there are positives to losing the final. A win would have papered over the cracks of a less than flawless tournament, a misleading conclusion to inflate American egos. The destination ahead, World Cup 2010, is more important, and victory over Brazil would have convinced many that we are ready to win next year. Team USA and its fans would have preferred a championship here, of course, but when the team's strengths are gloriously prominent and the weaknesses painfully obvious, the entire nation knows where the team must improve in the coming year. Rest assured: despite ultimate disappointment, America has learned much that can finally solve the 20-year riddle of the US National Team.

Our four-pronged attack causes opposing defenses fits
The best decision that Bob Bradley made this tournament was to insert Charlie Davies into the lineup and shift Dempsey and Donovan out wide. When the three of them are on the pitch with Jozy, opposing teams have great difficulty in containing the athleticism and pace of all four players. The dam always busts somewhere, and the team has benefitted from multiple goals in all three games where this strategy is employed. Conor Casey isn’t 

good enough in possession to be considered our first sub when Brian Ching is healthy, and his return will aid the team in closing out games with a lead.

The midfield is crowded, but basically settled
The wings are mostly decided, as playing Donovan and Dempsey essentially as wingers causes the most problems offensively. It’s also worth mentioning that as long as we aren’t in desperate need of wing players, DaMarcus Beasley shouldn’t be selected until he proves his talent again at club level. The middle is where things get crowded. Ricardo Clark is usually selected as an incredible defensive presence, with Sacha Kljestan as his immediate backup. Michael Bradley and Benny Feilhaber are both playmakers who can change the game with one brilliant pass, and both are easily good enough for inclusion. Bradley has been the choice mostly on his superior defensive play, but he showed a propensity for bad tackles against Spain, so Feilhaber should always be in the squad.

Our back four is set
If the resolute display against Spain didn’t prove it, the dominant first half against Brazil should: Bocanegra, DeMerit, Onyewu, and Spector are the best back four that the USA has. On the wings, Bocanegra and Spector have pace that they can exploit while remaining defensively responsible, and both can whip crosses into the attacking third. In the middle, Onyweu and DeMerit proved that they win every ball in the air, and their positioning while man-marking is impeccable. Their fitness needs to improve, as that was the major factor behind a disastrous second half against Brazil,

but when they have wind, the back line proved nearly impenetrable.

We rely too much on Tim Howard
As amazing as he was throughout 180 minutes against Spain and Brazil, nobody should expect any keeper to sustain that type of form over an entire tournament. The point isn’t that Tim Howard isn’t capable of playing at his best for that long, it’s that by approaching a game expecting such brilliance, the team is just begging to leak goals. Opposing teams can’t be allowed as many shots on goal as they’ve gotten in the last two games.

The U.S. has the talent to win a major championship
The USA beat the former best team in the world, and nearly beat the new one. Moreover, neither was a fluke, and the “nearly” would have been removed if not for an exhausted team. This team had the talent to win the Confederations Cup, they just didn’t have the energy. A World Cup run is more exhausting indeed, but it is much easier to get players in shape than it is to develop their talent. The USA just proved itself capable of going toe-to-toe with the two favorites for 2010, and with this nucleus of talent, the USA can definitely challenge for major honors, starting next year.

The U.S. isn't consistent enough mentally to win a major championship
The USA was mentally sharp for 225 minutes of Confederations Cup play, from the opening whistle against Egypt to the halftime whistle against Brazil. While these are proud results to cherish for Americans, if the team wants anything more than occasional results, the players need to stay aware for the other 225 minutes, instead of just going through the motions when they get tired at the ends of games. Key moments include not closing down Giuseppe Rossi on his equalizer, not marking Maicon on his opener in the group stage, DaMarcus Beasley’s horrendous missed touch that led to Brazil’s second goal in the group stage, and poorly marking Lucio on his winner in the final. These opposing players are good, but the USA has proved that as a team, they are just as good. There are no more excuses.

Bob Bradley isn’t exempt from the above criticism
If a team isn’t disciplined, it’s most likely due to their coach not instilling discipline. This is a vague criticism without much proof, but it’s nobody else’s responsibility but Bob Bradley’s to ensure that his team doesn’t make those 

mistakes consistently. More troubling is the occasionally terrible game management that Bradley showed during the tournament. The biggest mistakes, in chronological order: sticking with Beasley for way too long despite his miserable showing against Costa Rica, taking off Jozy against Egypt when we still needed a goal, and most importantly, putting on Bornstein and Kljestan in the final. Feilhaber and Jozy were gassed, but putting on a 5th defender and a guy who got a red card the last time he played this team were not solutions at all. To clarify, Bob Bradley is absolutely the right coach for this team and he should not be fired, but he has to manage the team better in pressure situations.

This team isn't content with anything less than total success
Second place is the best that the U.S. has ever done in a FIFA tournament. No American gave a shit about that at the end of the final. From the heartbroken faces at the whistle, to Dempsey crying after receiving his runner-up medal and Bronze Ball, it’s clear that nobody is satisfied with anything less than winning. Donovan articulated it best, saying that "We're at the point where we don't

want respect, we want to win.” This team wants everything it can get its hands on, and now it knows that such success is achievable.

Americans will care about soccer if the national team performs like this
Though it's hardly scientific, if you took a look at your Facebook before, during, or after the final, you’d see countless friends of yours who don’t usually care about soccer, saying “Go USA!” or something similar. It’s about more than just soccer: Americans are proud of their country, and the patriotism shown towards the national team is something that MLS can never replicate. The Confederations Cup put soccer all over ESPN, CNN, any news outlet you can think of. Generations of young Americans are affected by all of that coverage: it affects their choices of sport, their opinions on sport, their desires for sport. The growth of soccer as a recognized sport in America starts with success like this.

Always Believe, or Why I Fear Being a Journalist

At the kickoff of the USA-Egypt game, you know what I wanted to write? I was going to call out Bob Bradley for playing almost all of the starters in the "last" game against Egypt, instead of giving younger players like Freddy Adu a chance to prove themselves on a grand stage. I was going to make a case that Bob Bradley grossly mishandled multiple aspects of this tournament, continuing in the opportunity-squandering tradition of Copa America 2007. In short, like many Americans, I wanted some kind of change, in coach, players, and tactics.

I wasn't trying to condemn us as a soccer playing nation. I honestly thought that this was the best move going forward, that the team from the first two games was too far away from succeeding in a major tournament. I assumed that our best chance of developing as a national team was to focus on the next generation. I gave up.

 

Want to know where I was during the first half of the Spain game? Working. 

Understandable, I couldn't get off from work on short notice, so I taped the game and ignored all updates. What baffles me is why I decided to then go to a museum, instead of rushing home to watch the game as soon as possible.

I guess I was in no rush because while I was eager to see my team play the world's best, in no way did I ever think we had a chance at actually beating them. I just wanted to analyze how we played against such quality opposition, almost as an academic exercise. I gave up.

You hate my attitude by this point, right? Think I refused to have faith? Well, you're right, and about more than you think too. You couldn't find an article before Egypt-USA that didn't mention opinions such as how our "slim hopes" had "likely ended" and how the team was "regressing before our eyes". You could barely find anyone who, however bullishly or misguidedly, had confidence that the United States would find a way to win against Spain. Sure, we hoped. I hoped against all hope that we could pull one out, dreaming of the greatest result anybody has ever seen by the Stars and Stripes. But nobody even gave their own hopes credibility or possibility, "knowing" by common sense that we dreamt foolishly.

 

The rest of the media and the nation gave up on our team. I was wrongfully more critical of the past out of sheer exasperation, but our expectations for the future were all the same: the U.S. has no shot. It wasn't just me: we all gave up.

Except for the nationals themselves, of course. You won't find a quote from one of them that even hints at any lack of self-belief. Of course, they're trained not to give anything but positive indications, but before the game you could even hear the resolution in their voices and words. They believed that their efforts were worth something, not only morally but practically, giving them the ability to succeed. Witness Landon Donovan: "Good team, big challenge, looking forward to it... We're gonna go for it."

As journalists, it's our job to analyze the big picture, to see every aspect of an issue and come to a conclusion. In this case, the correct conclusion was that Spain were heavy favorites. It is, however, a shame that the very job description makes few allowances for that confident, brash, human emotion of self-belief. Objectively, there is no way in journalism to justify such a fanatic outlook in the face of such an immense task. But

undoubtably, it is that very attitude that propelled the USA to its shining hour.

If Michael Bradley seemed like he was a bit unthankful for the result handed down by Brazil when speaking after the Egypt game, we should forgive him. "All the fucking experts in America, everybody who thinks they know about soccer, they can all look at the score tonight and let's see what they have to say now," he said at the time. "Nobody has any respect for what we do, for what goes on on the inside, so let them all talk now."

He couldn't have known that his statement was premature. He couldn't have known that it would have been the perfect response to the world media after a victory over Spain that will give everyone pause before writing off the U.S. again, a victory that could be the first step towards world recognition and respect. No, the U.S. didn't know that at the time. They just believed it.

Maybe as fans, we should all put aside probabilities and analysis, and just start believing. After all, that's what the U.S. team did, and look where they are now.

Wow. Go USA!

Well, go ahead and call me an idiot for assuming that the "nearly impossible" meant "impossible". I plan on writing a full retrospective about the team once the tournament is over, but let me just say it now for immediate effect: this team has unbelievable heart. The fightback against Egypt definitely ranks as one of the best "I can't believe this is happening, but I love it" moments in recent memory. This spirit doesn't solve all of our problems, but it is almost indescribably beautiful to watch such an intangible quality at work.

I'll leave the team summary to the retrospective, but let me write one sentence each about individual players from this game. In no particular order:

Charlie Davies has the scrappiness needed in front of goal to play at this level.

Clint Dempsey should focus more on simple play than his fancy tricks.

Michael Bradley and Benny Feilhaber are the two best playmakers that the USA has.

Landon Donovan still has the pace and skill to make things happen, but he needs to be more selfish in front of goal.

Conor Casey has no place on this team when Brian Ching is healthy.

Ricardo Clark has proven that he is vital to this team as a holding midfielder.

Freddy Adu needs a chance to prove himself on a bigger stage than underage teams and CONCACAF games, which he'll only get by playing regularly at club level.

The backline has incredible depth, and is capable of competing with the world's best when focused.

More than anything else, the team as a whole needs discipline in order to be a contender.

More to come after the next rounds.

Confederations Cup, Round 2

Some thoughts on round 2 of the Confederations Cup:

--- Fantastic display by the Iraqis against Spain. They kept an excellent defensive shape the entire game, and they were able to attack without sacrificing on the back end. Spain’s still the best team in the world and created multiple chances, but the Iraqi keeper was in otherworldly form to keep his team in it. In the end, one defensive lapse cost them the game, but credit to Iraq for frustrating Spain throughout.

--- South Africa-New Zealand was like an MLS game: lots of pace made it exciting, but sometimes the lack of skill was comical. There were occasional flashes of brilliance, like Glen Moss’ save on Bernard Parker while the score was still 1-0, but all of the key moments seemed to happen through fortunate touches and deflections, even both goals. And this doesn’t even account for the ridiculous miskicks and frequent dumb offsides. The end-to-end style of the game was fun to watch though.

--- Siphiwe Tshabalala might be the most enjoyable name to hear on air. At the very least, this is one thing that the South African team brings to the table next year.

--- Derek Rae and Tommy Smyth are two of the best commentators we have broadcasting in the U.S., especially when they work games together. They always know their subject matter well, they’re consistently entertaining and emotive, and they’re not afraid to express an opinion when necessary. They’ve even been around for so long that they show an eye-opening historical perspective, such as their commentary during Egypt-Italy on the history of Coca-Cola Park and its place in South African political history. Adrian Healey and Andy Gray deserve mention as the other great commentators of today, as does Ray Hudson for sheer entertainment value, but the substance of Rae and Smyth broadcasts is nearly unmatched.

--- Make no mistake; this is Giuseppe Rossi’s tournament. His rampant display against the United States was aided by poor American defending, but he showed against Egypt that he’s always dangerous from anywhere on the pitch. Despite the fact that the whole American-Italian angle is being played up way too much, this might still be his emergence as a quality striker. Here’s hoping Manchester United take up their buyback option.

--- What a great game between Egypt and Italy. Both teams had exciting spells with the ball, but while Italy took most of the chances, the final result came down to defense. On one end, Italy made one defensive mistake at the end of the first half, and Egypt took advantage with a well-headed goal. On the other end, the defense never broke their shape, and Essam El Hadary was absolutely fantastic in goal with at least 5 lead-protecting saves in the second half. Egypt owes their victory to him.

Every team except New Zealand has something play for in the third round, even if teams like Brazil and the U.S. are unlikely to move from where they are. Regardless, a spot is open in both groups, so good news for everybody: the third round should be exciting throughout. Watch this space.

USA-Brazil, Live Diary

The U.S. plays Brazil today in a must-win game, to retain any chance of advancing in the Confederations Cup. Meanwhile, Brazil looks to seal their passage into the next round with a win. Here are my thoughts on the game, updated live in diary form:

0': Brazil has looked so good recently. Aside from one two-minute lapse, they were in great form against Egypt, so this is going to be very difficult for the U.S. to shut them down while creating enough chances for a goal. I have yet to see any American show a defensive display that can stop Kaka, and that might be the key to the game. We can do it, but it's going to take a breakthrough performance.

0': I like the choice of Kljestan in the middle to account for Ricardo Clark's absence. He's creative enough to keep pressure on the offense, but there will be few sacrifices defensively. Great choice.

5': Where's the foul there? If this creates any problems, the U.S. has legitimate complaint.

7' (U.S. 0-1 Brazil, Felipe Melo 7'): And of course, a poor officiating decision makes us pay. Unbelievable that we're already behind, but aside from the initial decision, I'm not blaming the refs. No way somebody of Spector's caliber should ever let Felipe Melo get position on him, even if the delivery was absolutely beautiful.

11': Well, this free kick looks familiar, it's basically the exact same spot. If we keep giving these away in dangerous positions like this, we're in for a long night. Good low cross by Brazil, they're still threatening.

20' (U.S. 0-2 Brazil, Robinho 20'): Woah, what a goal. Terrible missed touch off our corner, but let's give Brazil credit: that counterattack is why they're Brazil, and we're not. Brazil has been rampant the entire game, and the U.S. is playing no part. This game, and the tournament, looks to be already past us.

24': These couple of lost TV signals worry me. One of the biggest pre-tournament worries was that there wouldn't be sufficient power to service all of the television crews, lights, and everything else. Dunno if that's the reason here, but if this keeps happening here with 8 teams, I worry for the 32-team version. We can't have a repeat of Germany-Turkey from Euro 2008, I'm still pissed I didn't see those goals.

25': Alexi Lalas: "DaMarcus Beasley is having a bad game thus far." I could've told you that 30 minutes ago, he doesn't have the stones for big games.

35': Onyewu picks up a yellow card. They just showed the Brazil bench, and I can't see a single player there who wouldn't be starting for us. Brazil is still bossing the game.

42': We're finally seeing some decent offensive play by the U.S., but the final touch is just not threatening on every cross and ball through. And we're still playing way too loose defensively, Beasley is atrocious right now, even JP Dellacamera says so. The U.S. is fortunate that Gilberto Silva and Felipe Melo missed their chances.

Halftime: U.S. 0-2 Brazil. The announcers discussed a great point at the end of the half. In the tournament, the U.S. ranks 1st by a long shot in long balls played, but well behind the leaders in passes completed. It's really showing here, it seems like the U.S. plays it forward in the air every time they have the ball, and as fast as Donovan and Dempsey are, it's so easy for the Brazil back four to clean that up. Take a little more time on the ball, keep possession, and be patient. It might be the only way to keep players like Kaka off the ball, because they're the ones tearing us apart right now.

46': Conor Casey in for DaMarcus Beasley, thank God. Back underway.

51': The U.S. is already looking better. No more long balls to be found, and the build-up is creating chances on the ground. Conor Casey is still giving the ball away 50% of the time as always (1-for-2, with a poor chest trap), but it's his great ball back that gives Jozy the best chance of the game. Reasons to be optimistic.

56': Dellacamera discussing the Vuvuzela, and... hold on.

56': Kljestan gets a red for that tackle? I have two problems with this. A) Worse tackles have received only a yellow, even within this tournament. It's a dumb challenge, and I understand that it's the referee's discretion, but the U.S. is getting the shaft from officials on every single marginal decision. You can see it from the Onyewu foul that led to the first goal, right down to this red card. It might be the U.S.' reputation for physical play or what, I don't honestly know. Yes, I definitely have some leftover bitterness from the Italy game when saying this, but it was evident in that game, too. Part B of this thought in a little bit.

61': Feilhaber for Altidore? What are you trying to do, stem the bleeding? If you lose, it doesn't matter how much you lose by, you're still out! Just go for the win, bring Feilhaber on for somebody else! Bob Bradley continues to make poor substitutions, and it is positively killing the U.S.' chances. So frustrating.

62' (U.S. 0-3 Brazil, Maicon 62'): Great play in the box by Brazil to create that chance for Maicon, and an excellent finish. Obviously, the red card basically led to this point, but the tactical shift by Bradley to sink back is letting Brazil take back the entire run of play. Nothing but pride left to play for now.

68': OK, part B from that thought on Kljestan in the 56th: I don't know if the official was just attending to Ramires first, but it was such a late red card, he seemed to give it just because Ramires went off injured. Shame that this influenced the decision. Thinking it over, I'm starting to understand that the referee's position is absolutely defensible, but I still think it's harsh on a player who is clearly going for ball, and who hasn't had a bad tackle to that point. This goes for the Clark tackle too: soccer's a quick and rough game, players sometimes mistime their tackles, so you shouldn't send somebody off for an unintentional bad tackle at the first offense.

75': Dempsey plays around with fancy turns way too much. It's pretty to watch, but he nearly always loses the ball when he starts down that road. This is coming from one of his biggest fans: for the sake of possession, he needs to stop.

83': Great rip by Feilhaber off the bottom of the crossbar, this is exactly why he needs to be in the game from the beginning. Still should have come on for someone other than Jozy though.

89': And another one off the crossbar, this one a header from a corner by Casey. At least the U.S. is still going forward, even if nothing's at stake anymore.

90': Meant to say this back in the 56th before the red card, JP Dellacamera was talking about the vuvuzela horns that are omnipresent in the background. Apparently they're giving these away for free in the stadiums? I'll keep saying it, those things drown out all typical chants and noise that you typically associate with great soccer atmospheres. Good to hear that communications companies are getting upset, and they're trying to have them banned from the World Cup.

90'+3: Final whistle, U.S. 0-3 Brazil. The U.S. gets totally outclassed from the opening whistle, and key lapses on defense and in possession lead to goals for the Samba Boys in the first half. Much better play in the second half from the Americans, but the red card to Kljestan leaves them playing a man down for the second consecutive game, ending any hopes.

As I said after the Italy game, it's a matter of discipline. We absolutely must stop making the dumb mistakes we continue to make, which in this case were poor man-marking and missed touches off our own corners. Our tackling decisions are included in that. As much as I will always say that these two red cards in this tournament were harsh, if that's the way the World Cup will be called, we have to stop whining and adjust, myself included. Neither was necessary to prevent a goal, they were simply attempts to make up for lost possession, and that is the biggest indictment on our decision-making.

Right now, the biggest obstacle to our development isn't our physical skill, it's our mental awareness. This tournament is past us, but we need to start correcting this weakness as soon as possible, against a tricky Egypt side.

Questionable calls, occasional errors, and an expatriate doom the U.S. against Italy

My running thoughts on the U.S.-Italy game, not exactly in diary form:

--- First 30 minutes looked dead even, with equal possession and maybe Italy blowing a couple chances they could have had.

--- The red card against Ricardo Clark still baffles me. That was Clark’s only poor challenge, it was unintentional, and Grosso only got a yellow after intentionally elbowing Donovan two minutes later. Hell, Chiellini didn’t get even a scolding on the penalty, and he was the last man! I honestly can’t see a single way this can be justified, and believe me, I’m trying. Horrendous decision.

--- There were plenty of reasons to be optimistic at halftime, but the 1-0 was misleading. The U.S. had been riding their luck before the first goal, notable examples being the early shanked header by Legrottaglie and lucky offsides on the Bornstein own-goal. Italy had the better run of play, and it showed in the second half.

--- Jozy Altidore is the best American chance at developing a world-class striker, but at moments like his early touchback to Donovan in the box, he shows that he’s got a ways to go. More than the missed touch, his choice to give up a goal-scoring chance shows a worrying reluctance to shoot. He’s only 19, but with his increasing national experience, age can’t be an excuse for much longer.

--- Ugh, JP Dellacamera: “Everybody remembers Zambrotta from the World Cup, with the Zidane incident.” Uh, no, that was Materazzi. Maybe I’m the only one who thinks the higher-ups should have their facts straight on one of the single biggest soccer news stories of this decade.

--- Wow, what a strike by Rossi. I have no problem with Rossi playing for Italy, even if I wish he had decided to play for us. If you can come in and score that first wondergoal for Italy in a major tournament, go right on ahead. God knows you have a better chance of winning major tournaments that way, so from a professional standpoint, more power to you.

--- When we’re down a goal in the 72^nd minute, why in HELL are we taking off Feilhaber, both one of our best playmakers and defenders, for Beasley, who got totally emasculated against Costa Rica a couple weeks ago? I’d love to hear Bob Bradley’s explanation for that.

--- I give up. How is it not a penalty to jump on Donovan’s back as he’s going up for a header in the box? This decision infuriates me more than anything else, because there is no doubt in my mind that if that’s called correctly, we stop pressing forward and this ends 2-2. If this game doesn’t deserve to be looked at by FIFA, I don’t know what does.

--- I love Charlie Davies because I watched him in high school, but in that situation, Jozy puts that 90^th minute header away. Unfortunate.

Despite some of my criticisms, the U.S. played a good game overall. Some terrible decisions went against us to kill off most of our chances, and we gave them a couple opportunities ourselves, but we did very well with 10 men for an hour. The main problem is our habit of making a couple of dumb mistakes per game, such as Onyewu’s indecision on the second goal. If we want to beat the best (and this shows that we can), these types of errors must stop, because the best teams will make you pay. The game against Brazil should show us how far we might progress towards that aim. 

At the Confederations Cup, the action takes a backseat to the hints of the 2010 Experience

The Confederations Cup is a godsend this time of year. I mean, as much as I love MLS, there is almost nothing to watch once the season ends, and regardless, I’m ecstatic about any excuse to get some of the world’s best teams together (and New Zealand). Plus, this is saving us from hearing exclusively about Ronaldo, Ribery, Tevez, etc. over the next month.

Let’s just clarify something: a lot can happen in a year, and in no way does this tournament definitively predict anything. Certainly, the 8 teams show how they react to the big stage, and the more high-profile matches are excellent previews of what could come, but that’s the thing: we have no clue what’s going to happen. These teams might lose form, or not even make it to 2010, like Egypt is threatening to do in Qualifying. There are clearly other teams outside the Confederations Cup who look like strong candidates, like England and the Netherlands. Matches like France-Brazil from 2006 are why the World Cup is always so enthralling: forget how teams have been playing recently, anything could happen.

No, the tournament’s biggest upside is the overflowing excitement that it creates for the World Cup. Seeing the culture in South Africa gives some of the best indications we could have received: that 2010 will have few logistical problems, and that it will have one hell of an atmosphere. In other words, the 2010 Experience is going to live up to expectation. Those damn horns in every stadium are going to get obnoxious, but with all that national pride in every stadium, atmospheres like the ones we’re seeing certainly send chills down your spine. Get excited. The countdown to the World Cup is on.

Random thoughts from the first round of games:

·      --- I don’t care who you’re playing, a hat trick like Fernando Torres’ deserves a hearty standing ovation. Better teams would have fallen to the strikes he produced.

·      --- Funny how Alexi Lalas sounds disappointed in their performance when he says at halftime that “for New Zealand, it’s basically over”. Wasn’t it basically over when they, you know, arrived? I understand that anything can happen in this wonderful sport, but come on, no team wins that gives away a 5^th goal through the last defender’s legs.

·      --- Goals like Kaka’s first one make him worth 56 million pounds. No way the Egypt defenders could have done more without bowling him over, he had that ball within 3 feet of him the whole time. Incredible.

·      --- Discussing it at halftime of Brazil-Egypt, you have to love how American commentators want to make it seem like Conor Casey is doing a great job as the U.S.’ supporting striker. Holding the ball up for others is necessary to allow others to get upfield, but it’s not very helpful when you lose the ball half the time. We need American commentators who don’t feel obligated to be ridiculously optimistic about almost everything American.

·      --- Brazil-Egypt was a perfect advertisement for soccer. It had everything to excite the mainstream crowd: pace, skill, power, superstars, goals, controversy… in other words, everything Iraq-South Africa lacked.

·      --- I love the way Egypt plays. Their style is much more European than African, possession-based without sacrificing attacking spirit. If they can snap out of their qualifying funk, 2010 will be more entertaining for it.

·      --- As always, Mohamed Aboutrika is showing that he is an unbelievable playmaker, and frankly it’s a shock he hasn’t played in Europe. As the story goes, he stays in Egypt because he is satisfied playing in his homeland, and he feels no need to chase glory in Europe, but it’s a shame that the world misses out on seeing his skill regularly.

·      --- Ahmed Al Muhamadi only has himself to blame for that ending. That’s why you stand on the far post on set pieces, not just near it. Pitiful display of sportsmanship too.

·      --- There is way too much to talk about in the U.S.-Italy game, it’s getting it’s own separate post.

Should be an exciting second round of games, with most of the semifinalists to likely be decided. You’ll be sure to hear from me.