When playing with house money...

The United State men’s national soccer team has a tremendous opportunity Tuesday night to shock the world and revive the confidence of the soccer fans in this country. Argentina await in a Copa America Centenario semifinal match.

In the Copa America Centenario so far, the U.S. has been, in my opinion, quite impressive. Right now, the Yanks ride a three-game win streak, won Group A and met the somewhat lofty, but realistic expectations, of making the semifinals. The team is on a high, and it’s been a great display of goal scoring, seven in three games, that has got them here.

The U.S. attack has been sprung because of a stalwart defense that has allowed only three goals all tournament. That should give U.S. supporters confidence. Yes, Argentina are extremely talented offensively, but the back four of the U.S. has been able to handle very talented opponents so far.
There is no reason to not attack in this game, but the Yanks must also be prudent and solid defensively. The last thing we need to see is a result similar to Mexico’s against Chile or Brazil’s against Germany.

To be fair, the U.S. could play a phenomenal match and still lose 3-0 because of that guy named Lionel Messi. However, a disciplined and efficient USMNT could easily find themselves in the final.

The problem now is the loss of three players who drove the U.S. attack due to suspension. Bobby Wood’s great driving runs from the wings cannot be replaced by any player on the U.S. roster. Alejandro Bedoya’s clean defensive work and quick transitions will be missed, but the biggest loss will be Jermaine Jones. His box-to-box work is the type of player the U.S. has needed in every match it’s played under Klinsmann.

But there are players in this U.S. squad who can fill in and minimize the Argentine attack. Di Maria will most likely not start, which gives the U.S. time to utilize not as occupied wingers. The center back pairing of Geoff Cameron and John Brooks need to prove their play this far is the standard with a strong handling of Higuain and Messi.

A high-class defensive performance could lead to numerous counter-attacking opportunities. The U.S. has been at its best when stymieing opponents’ attacks and then smartly passing the ball through the midfield and to cutting forwards.

The U.S. will have its chances, but the key is to minimize the chances Argentina will have in the box. Keep La Albiceleste out of your penalty area and you have a chance.

For the U.S., it is silly to expect to be able to win by defending the whole time. Even if the teams finish regulation tied, it's reasonable that Argentina would be victorious in a penalty shootout. So why not go out and try to be aggressive on the counter-attack?

The U.S. is playing with house money at this point. And when you play with house money, you go all-in.

Making the combined Copa America a permanent thing

Just before the U.S. men’s national soccer team played its second Group A match in the Copa America Centenary, a lot of the soccer sites, blogs and message boards I follow were stirring with the rumor that this combined Copa America might be a permanent—or at least recurring—thing and that it would be held in the United States for the succeeding renditions. My initial reaction to this was both yes and no. 

Copa America Centenario—USA 2016

Firstly, I love the idea of a combined championship between the CONMEBOL and CONCACAF regions. These two regions are very closely tied in both a style of play and culture. Also, since the dawn of international football, there has been a rivalry between Europe and the Americas (OK, South America) about who is the best continent for soccer. 

The one area in which Europe has South America beaten is the tournament competitions. Both the UEFA Champions League and European Championships overshadow their South American counterparts. One of the reasons Copa America is a weaker competition is because CONMEBOL only has 10 teams, and therefore has had to two invite teams to play in the recent competitions. Expanding to a 16-team competition featuring the best North and South American national teams would make the competition more attractive and competitive. 

Secondly, this competition would provide a better test to the U.S. and Mexican national teams. These two teams have dominated the Gold Cup, as in have won all but one of the biennial competitions since it began in 1991. Bringing the prize fighters from CONCACAF against the best of CONMEBOL would provide these teams with better competition outside of a World Cup year. 

What I dislike about this idea is the U.S. hosting every time. I think this cheapens the competition much like the Gold Cup is cheapened by having the tournament in the U.S. every playing. Yes, there is a lot of money to be made by playing a major international soccer competition in the U.S. every four (or whatever) years; however, this would make it seem like the U.S. is the host and not the confederations combined.

If this is to be a recurring event, the two confederations should alternate hosting. Obviously, the U.S. would be the most preferred choice of the North American countries to host, but there are a few South American countries who could also host. Brazil and Argentina being most prominent, but several countries could also pump enough money to host the tournament. 

Ultimately, I think this could be a good idea for both confederations. This would increase the level of competition the countries play outside of a World Cup and would reduce the need for friendlies between the confederations.

Furthermore, a tournament like this would bring in a ton of money to both confederations. There would have to be a revenue sharing plan negotiated, but both confederations would stand to being in a lot of cash from a major tournament. Obviously, that would be an almost guaranteed sum if the tournament were to be hosted in the U.S. every year, but there is certainly a large pile of money to be amassed from a tournament in another large country. 

Whether this is a rumor or not is yet to be officially determined, but I do plan on running with this idea for a couple more posts, so be on the lookout for those!

The most important USMNT match in two decades

The fate of the United States Men's National Soccer Team, U.S. Soccer and even American soccer is riding on the backs of this one, pivotal match tonight in Columbus, Ohio, against Guatemala. This is THE most important match the United States soccer team has played since becoming a regional power and actually thought of on the World Soccer stage--2002.

Why? Well, because of some uninspiring results against any decent competition in the semifinal round of CONCACAF's 2018 World Cup Qualifying, the USMNT only has 4 points after three matches and currently sit in third in Group C. Third is good enough to go home, nothing more. A total of one point in two (away) matches against Trinidad & Tobago and Guatemala.

But these results haven't all of a sudden turned bad, this is a trend since last summer's Gold Cup, where the USMNT lost to Jamaica in the semifinals--the first time the U.S. had ever lost to a Caribbean team at home--and failed to claim third-place. They continued in a Confederations Cup playoff loss to Mexico. And at the focal point of this demise is one man: Jürgen Klinsmann.

Klinsmann has been the biggest and most visible problem with this squad since the 2014 World Cup. His inability to pick a starting eleven he likes combined with his struggle to put players in positions to perform well have collided into a train wreck of epic proportions.

The fault lies with Klinsmann, in my opinion. We've never had a national team manager also serve as technical director of U.S. Soccer and now, we don't know what the combined position means. To whom is Klinsmann responsible? Especially with his contract running through 2018.

This match has much riding on it. It's not just a win-or-stay-home situation, it's the failure to move the momentum of soccer in the U.S. forward. A win keeps that momentum going--at least until September when our stomach ulcers return. Anything less puts the USMNT into turmoil.

Missing the 2018 FIFA World Cup would be devastating to soccer here in the U.S. We need to be in the World Cup. Our countrymen will watch it, but they'll find some other country to root for. Sure, we all have our favorite national team, but we need the U.S. to be there so we can all cheer for it.

We are now thought of as a country that plays soccer competitively. That much is for certain. No, we are not an international power, but for the better part of this century we have been a regional power. A loss tonight forfeits our claim to either of those titles.

We need a win to keep the sport growing in the U.S. We need a win to qualify for the World Cup.

This is almost as necessary as the 1989 match against Trinidad & Tobago--who we incidentally face on the final match day of this qualifying round--when we eeked out a 1-0 victory on the road.

The circumstances are almost the same. Then, we needed to qualify for the 1990 World Cup to justify our place in the world of soccer before hosting in 1994. Now, we need to qualify to stay considered a known entity in the world of international soccer.

We need to now reaffirm the hard work the men who played in the previous seven World Cup squads put in by winning tonight.

New U.S. Soccer crest leaked

As I wrote last year, the U.S. Soccer Federation leaked a new crest on the Internet. This new crest is less cartoonish, but possibly still comic book-ish, as it does look a bit like a Captain America or Super Hero logo. However, most people agree this is a vast improvement to the old one, and I will agree.

USSF announced the change through a very covert social media campaign in which current and former players showed the new crest in their profiles as seen below.

The new crest! #OneNationOneTeam pic.twitter.com/IyslX8KWZd

— Mix Diskerud (@MixDiskerud) February 29, 2016

New era, new crest. I dig it. U.S. Soccer #OneNationOneTeam
Posted by Stuart Holden on Monday, February 29, 2016

So now that we have a new crest, I would assume new uniforms will follow soon, as the next competition is March 2 as the women's U-23s take on Slovenia and Sweden.

The next senior competition is the USWNT's home match against England on March 3 to kick-off the SheBelieves Cup. Not sure if they'll trot out the same kits but with different crests or actually have new kits.

The UMNT will not play until their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches against Guatemala on March 23 and 28.

USMNT World Cup Qualifying Semifinals foes finalized

The USMNT now know all three opponents it will face in the semifinals of 2018 World Cup Qualifying. Guatemala and St. Vincent & The Grenadines now join the U.S. and Trinidad & Tobago in Group C. The teams will play a home and away match against each opponent, totaling six matches, and the top two teams will advance to the final round of qualifying.

Matches begin November 13 and will end on Sept. 6, 2016. The USMNT opens the campaign with a home match against St. Vincent & The Grenadines at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.

The last time the USMNT did not reach the final round of World Cup qualifying was 1986, which is also the last time the USMNT did not qualify for a World Cup final.

U.S. U-23s draw Panama, Cuba, Canada for Olympic qualifying tournament

The draw for the CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying 2015 took place on Tuesday, August 18. This determined the two groups for the tournament to be held October 1-13. For the United States, this laid out the path to qualifying for the Olympics after missing out in 2012.

Only eight teams qualified for the tournament. As usual, CONCACAF gives the three North American teams a pass. Cuba and Haiti qualified through the Caribbean Football Union's tournament. Panama and Honduras were the two teams from Central American who qualified through that region's qualification by virtue of winning their groups. Guatemala and Costa Rica will play a playoff match as the runners-up of their groups to be the final team in the tournament.

Team USA (I use this because they're playing in the Olympics) drew Panama, Cuba and Canada in Group A. Below is their schedule:

Thursday, October 1: USA v. Canada, 6:30 p.m. ET, Sporting Park, Kansas City, Kan.
Saturday, October 3: Cuba v. USA, 5:00 p.m. ET, Sporting Park, Kansas City, Kan.
Tuesday, October 6: USA v. Panama, 8:30 p.m. ET, Dick's Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, Colo.

The semifinal, third place and final matches will be played at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah. The top two teams in each group advance to the knockout round, with the two finalists automatically qualifying for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.  The third place winner will play a playoff match with a CONMEBOL team.

Remember, this is a U-23 roster. Expect to see a lot of guys from the U-20 World Cup as well as some full national team mainstays, though it does fall around the time of the Confederations Cup playoff match.

CONCACAF Confederations Cup Playoff date moved to Oct. 10

The playoff match for CONCACAF's spot in the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia has been moved to October 10, according to U.S. Soccer's Twitter feed. The time has also been set for 6:30 p.m. PT--9:30 ET--and the location is the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, Calif. (already known). The USA and Mexico are facing each other s the winners of the last two Gold Cups (read: because CONCACAF decided that they wanted more money).

Credit U.S. Soccer

This slightly upsets me because I'll be in Morgantown for WVU's Homecoming game against Oklahoma State, which will most likely be a 3:30 p.m. kickoff, meaning I'll be doing other things that day. I'll have to make sure to watch it with The Liberty Forum or American Outlaws-Morgantown while I'm in up in West Virginia.

Y'all make plans accordingly.

LEAKED: New US Soccer logo for 2016 (and beyond?)

It is no secret that the United States Soccer Federation has an atrocious logo. It was first used in 1994 and perfectly described soccer in the U.S. at that time--cartoonish. When I heard the USSF and Nike re-vamped the logo in 2014 before the World Cup, I became cautiously optimistic. Then I saw the updated logo and vomited.

Now, there is a leaked version of the logo floating around the Internet that is, at the same time, different, the same and decent.

From FootyHeadlines.com

The good thing here is that we have a clean, simple, American crest/logo/emblem by which we can identify our national soccer teams. The bad thing is that it still looks super duper American soccer.

The shield itself is a definite improvement. It has clean, shaped lines that give the crest a modern feel. In graphic design, I always ascribe to the KISS method, which is "Keep it Simple and Sincere." I think the new shape does that. However, in my opinion, there is a bit too much white in the actual logo. I'm losing it on a white shirt.

Thankfully, the USSF and Nike went to RED stripes in the logo. Why did we have blue stripes in our old logo? How is that American? Our flag has 13 RED and white stripes. Red. The stripes should be red and now they are. Also, there are 13 stripes, so that's also like our flag, whereas the old logo had 11. The stripes are the biggest improvement in this logo.

Most national soccer teams use the country's football federation as the letters that emblazon their crests. The USSF has no plans to do that with this logo. An edgy "USA" in navy letters sits atop the stripes. This font and its positioning makes me think of USA Basketball, which I guess isn't a bad thing at all considering it's kind of our thing. However, I do think we have to remember the point of this is to be the crest of the soccer association/federation of the country. I don't think this (or the previous crest) did that well.

From FootyHeadlines.com

Two obvious omissions from the old logo are the shooting ball and the star. Most U.S. soccer fans refer to this ball as the "clip art" ball, which any Microsoft Office user can agree with. But without the soccer ball, how will anyone know that his is for soccer?? I do believe this is a valid question, because in America, us Americans don't really know what soccer is yet. But I think, ya know, seeing it on a soccer jersey will help.

What I do miss is the stars. The USA is full of stars, from our flag to our celebrities. I'm sad there are no stars on this crest. However, maybe the USMNT could earn them? Interesting thought. The USWNT has three stars above the crest (which I'm anxious to see how they look above this), which was the same amount the old logo had.

Overall, I think this is a definite upgrade for the U.S. Soccer Federation and our national soccer teams. It's cleaner, less cartoonish, and definitely modernized. Supposedly, we will see the new crests in 2016 at the Centennial Copa America, hosted by the U.S.

Also relevant, USSF and Nike extended their partnership until 2022, so let's hope Nike stops giving the U.S. national soccer teams the Oregon treatment and picks a home and away kit that makes sense.

It's important to remember that this is all speculation at this point, but "leaks" are often very correct. What are your thoughts?

UPDATE

It has been rumored (on BigSoccer's forums) that this could be the crest used for the Olympics, because teams apparently cannot use the federation's logo on their uniforms. I don't know how valid that claim is, so I'll investigate further this weekend. So it looks like this is the new look for the USMNT going forward

Spurs lose to MLS All-Stars, Bart is happy

Photo credit: Major League Soccer

Full disclosure: I hate Tottenham Hotspur. I'm an Arsenal fan and have been ever since I began watching soccer. So this MLS All-Star Game was one I actually wanted to watch because usually, the MLS-ers can put a European team in preseason mode to bed.

And that happened in the 2015 MLS All-Star Game at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo. The site of "La Guerra Fria" was a beautiful site on Wednesday. Truly stunning photos were circulating around Twitter and the celebration of MLS' 20th season was also wonderful.

The actual match, however, was a little underwhelming.

First off, Spurs are not a "big name" club. They aren't Bayern Munich, Manchester United or Chelsea. Heck, they aren't even Celtic in name recognition, but they're a decent European side with a name people recognize, thanks in part to Jason Sudeikis' wonderful EPL promos on NBC. Seriously, go watch Ted Lasso.

Starting for the MLS All-Stars were basically everyone who actually meant anything to MLS or the USMNT this season. In goal was Nick Rimando, the best GK in the league. Three USMNT-ers were in the back; Damarcus Beasley played leftback and Matt Besler and Omar Gonzalez paired at centerback. In the midfield, Gyasi Zardes and Graham Zusi played on the wings and up top we saw Clint Dempsey.

From the start, it was the USMNT players I cared about. Sure, it's cool to see Kaka and David Villa play together, but we know they're pretty much awesome. I want to see how the U.S. players can play together, seeing as we're about to start the qualifying process for the 2018 FIFA World Cup and all.

The first goal was because Tottenham didn't realize touching the ball with your hand/arm while jumping is illegal. A corner kick hit Nacer Chadli n the hand and Kaka calmly converted the penalty (Hey, USMNT players, learn from him.)

After that, Tottenham woke up. Harry Kane the best goalscorer from the 2014-2015 ELP campaign said he got "unlucky" in minute 22 when his volley didn't find the back of the net. Well, what he didn't realize that that American goalkeepers are actually quite good and excel at those saves.

The second MLS goal was actually beautiful and involved beauty from U.S. players. Gyasi Zardes actually controlled a long outlet to him on the left wing. After, he cooly zipped the ball across the top of the box to Dempsey, who dummied (or slightly flicked) the ball to Kaka who was charging like a bull at a red cape. His cross was hit so hard into the box that Villa didn't actually make any effort to score other than stick his leg out. It went into the net for a 2-0 MLS lead by minute 23.

Finally, Kane found the net. Besler, who was less than impressive on the night, slipped on his way to intercept a pass, leaving Gonzalez alone to deal with Kane. To his credit, Omar did what he was supposed to do, pushing Kane to the to corner of the box. Unfortunately, he is that good and he found the opposite corner, past a diving Rimando.

To start the second half, MLS switched all its players and formation (to a 4-5-1). Tottenham also subbed several players. This killed the game a bit, but the MLS did have some good chances. The highlight of the second half, howeer, was the appearance of Deandre Yedlin.

I'm not really sure if he did a whole lot or FOX announcers just said his name a lot, but no goals were scored in the second half, so it was all an academic exercise.

Overall, the USMNT players did well. I was disappointed to see Besler not play as well, but I did think his pairing with Gonzalez was strong. They were mostly organized, even if Besler's athletic deficiencies were noticeable.

Gyasi Zardes looked impressive, but I believe a lot of people would look good when they receive a pass from Kaka or David Villa. Dempsey was aight. Beasley actually was pretty good and fun to watch. The leftback provides a lot of stability defensively, but still has something in his legs going forward.

Benny Feilhaber came on to start the second half and he was not as impressive as he needed to be to make it into the national team rotation. His setpiece delieveries were less than stellar, but he didn't have much to work with.

Overall, Tottenham lost, so I'm a happy camper. Back to actual MLS action for most of the USMNT and preparing for two friendlies in September: Sept. 4 against Peru and Sept. 9 against Brazil. Those will lead into the CONCACAF Confederations Cup playoff match on Oct. 9, and then we start 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying and 2016 Olympics qualifying.

Self implosion: U.S. bombs 2015 Gold Cup test

The U.S. men's national soccer team has tried to make its claim as the top dawg in CONCACAF the past decade.

They won last World Cup's final qualifying round. They won the 2013 Gold Cup. They have not lost to Mexico since 2011.

So going into the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup, the USMNT had a chance to solidify that claim; having won the 2013 tournament, they could win the 2017 Confederations Cup spot outright. A win in back-to-back tournaments hasn't happened often for the USMNT, only doing it in 2005 and 2007.

Despite head coach Jurgen Klinsmann touting this tournament as the highest priority in 2015, his team failed to medal. That hasn't happened since 2000. That's not good, Jurgen.

Yes, we lost to a Jamaica side that was playing like lightning, a hurricane and an earthquake rolled into one perfect storm, but the entire tournament left USMNT supporters wanting more. More goals, more passing, but the only thing we have more of is questions. So allow me to ask them here.

1) Why did Jurgen choose the Alvarado/Brooks pairing at centerback, when he claimed that his goal with his roster selection was Gold Cup experience?

This I utterly do not understand. What makes sense is to bring these two on board. Alvarado and Brooks have showed promise this year and prior, but together they weren't quite ready for CONCACAF. Why not pair Brooks or Alvarado with Besler or Gonzalez? I am a strong believer that you learn by doing, but it's good to have a teacher alongside you.

You saw this with the outside backs. Every single one has proven himself in CONCACAF competition. I believe Besler/Gonzalez would have given the stability that was needed in the backline.

2) Why is Zardes always on the field?

Why, Jurgen? He hasn't a first touch anywhere. He can't shoot. He can't pass all that well. He's really just a cheap Deandre Yedlin, except a converted forward, not a converted right back. Why Yedlin kept coming off the bench baffles me.

3) Other than against Cuba, why did we only score six goals all tournament? 

Hell, even with the Cuba match, why did we only score 12 goals in six matches? Ultimately, all the problems we had with the defense started with this team's inability to possess the ball. Who is to blame? Well, everyone, but let's start with the captain. Yes, Michael Bradley was absolutely crap this Gold Cup. Like...2014 World Cup bad. Where is the MB who was called "the best player in the world" by Miguel Herrera in 2013? The last two major tournaments have been nightmares for him.

Short passes were either mistimed or just off-the-mark. Long passes were decent, but never amounted to many chances. The most telling part of his problems may be with his positioning. Bradley has done so well with making late runs or collecting balls at the top of the box. That wasn't seen at all this tournament. I don't know if the "attacking" midfield roll is for him, but the problem when MB isn't on his game is that we don't have a guy who can do that for him. His lackluster 2014 WC was made up by Jermaine Jones' awesome tourney. We didn't have that this Gold Cup.


These are just a few questions I have for Jurgen Klinsmann, but there are a plethora of others. He MUST be questioned after this performance. Bob Bradley was fired after losing the 2011 Gold Cup, yet Klinsmann is apparently not on the hot seat after this abysmal performance. Step one in answering these questions would be to win the Oct. 9 CONCACAF Confederations Cup playoff match against 2015 Gold Cup champs Mexico.