Column: The Clumsy Challenge

     by Matt Anderson

Midfielder Michael Bradley (front) dispossesses England Midfielder Frank Lampard (whining).
The U.S. look to improve on a lackluster showing against England as they take on Spain today.

One week after a rather complacent United States side fell to England 2-0, they are preparing to face Spain in the second of three friendly matches taking place in Europe and the US. This is part of an effort of the United States Soccer Federation to expose their senior national side to the some of the world’s best. If you watched last Wednesday’s match against England like I did, you’re probably just as concerned.

Realistically, the United States stood a legitimate chance to win last week’s game, and even the most ardent of England supporters were expecting a hard fought game. Bluntly, it wasn’t. Instead of adopting an aggressive high speed, guns blazing, extra hot sauce tactic towards the English, the U.S. sat on their laurels and reacted (poorly) to wave after wave of England’s own dangerous attacks. Had Jermain Defoe or Wayne Rooney been able to finish their abundant chances to score, it could have been a thorough and extensive beat-down. Even with the 2-0 score, the United States appeared to rely on mistakes made by the English to stay in the game, which is a policy that will cost them dearly against Spain.

One of the favorites to win Euro 2008, Spain’s national team is every bit as lethal as their No. 4 FIFA world-ranking would indicate. They boast some of the world’s best players in Cesc Fabregas, David Villa and Fernando Torres. They are methodical, precise and patient. In other terms, they are polished, refined and are absolutely beautiful to watch. If I were Spanish. As an American, these are the qualities that scare me. Time and again, the United States have proven themselves extremely vulnerable against national sides that don’t have nearly the quality that Spain exhibits. If the US is to stand any thread of a chance to compete against Spain, they need to be the exact opposite of the side that showed up in England.

First and foremost, the United States must be aggressive. Against the English, the United States were comatose and made lazy attempts at goal (read: Eddie Johnson). Instead of one or preferably both of the forwards taking the initiative to make themselves a presence in the absence of Landon Donovan, Eddie Johnson (hereunto referred to as “EJ”) and Josh Wolff (hereunto referred to as “THE HORROR”) thought a better use of their time was to remain non-factors and be useless muppets. While the US again will not have the benefit of Donovan to create any danger from an offensive standpoint, the US must rely on yet unproven Fulham striker Eddie Johnson to lead the front. Those in support could be either Nate Jacqua or perhaps Freddy Adu, depending on how adventurous Bob Bradley is feeling.

The second key is possession. Against England the US had little possession, and what little they did have was squandered by poor passing, speculative shots and cheap turnovers. The England squad made their possessions last due to their precision passing and good decision making. Nothing was overly flashy or exciting, but against a US side that struggled to do much of anything, nothing more was needed. Spain is a much stronger side than England at this point, and they simply do not turn the ball over. The United States must handle every possession delicately and with great care. They can expect to see little in terms of their own possession, so it is absolutely critical that every pass, every touch, every step is well planned and has the best of quality, because nothing less than excellence will be enough to give them a chance.

The excuse that the U.S. doesn’t have a good talent pool to choose from is blatantly false and unfair. One look at our roster shows that Americans are in places like England, Portugal, Germany and Belgium, playing in the most competitive leagues in not just Europe, but the world. If Coach Bradley is trying to showcase that to the world (and nonbelievers in the United States), it is high time that our players start acting like they can compete with the world’s best.