United States Win Over Italy Marks Progress On Many Different Levels

For the past ten years American soccer has gotten better due to many players getting the chance to play with good teams in respected European leagues.

In the United States Men’s National Team’s 1-0 victory against Italy –its first win against the Azzuris ever—it looked like all the time developing has finally shown true progress as a soccer nation.

The win was a team effort but in a lineup that featured 10 of the 11 starters playing in Europe some names stood out: Michael Bradley (Chievo Verona), Clint Dempsey (Fulham), Jozy Altidore (AZ Alkmaar), Maurice Edu (Rangers), Carlos Bocanegra (Rangers) and Tim Howard (Everton).

Some may say that they are the team’s best players and they should stand out, but they all put in notable performances against one of the world’s elite teams. How they played and how they handled the pressure of the game said a lot about how they have improved over the years.



Tim Howard is the team’s most consistent player and didn’t have to make any miraculous saves tonight. But as the United States started to lose its interest in attacking once it had the lead Italy dominated possession and was a constant threat.

Howard and Bocanegra remained calm under pressure and time and time again turned away the Italian offense. Howard made some key saves and Bocanegra covered for mistakes from other defenders and kept another clean sheet—the 23rd of Howard’s international career.

Dempsey has been one of the hottest players in the English Premier League this season. Player of the Year for the club last year, Dempsey has scored 16 goals in 34 games in all competitions for the Cottagers this season. His confidence is soaring—a must for any goal scorer—and he isn’t afraid to let a shot fly.

His creativity and talent have always been there but his confidence and maturity were honed in England. He still celebrates in style and trash talks his opponents but in the game against Italy commentator Taylor Twellman commented on Dempsey’s newfound business-like approach to the game that he's noticed in recent interviews and how it shows that he is maturing as a player.

The central midfield tandem of Bradley and Edu was extremely efficient tonight. It’s been a challenging year for Bradley: his father was sacked as national team coach, he stopped receiving playing time with his club team—Borussia Monchengladbach—and even lost his starting spot in the midfield for the USMNT for the beginning of Jurgen Klinsmann’s tenure.

A move to Chievo Verona though put him back on the pitch and right at the center of the action. He is the team’s main central midfielder and has played very well. Against Italy he was all over the field breaking up plays. He always seemed to be in the right place at the right time and his ball movement was clean and crisp.

Edu, who hasn’t fared well with the USMNT since the 2010 FIFA World Cup, has continued to plug away at Rangers. A valuable member of that club, the team is scrambling to keep him before his contract expires. Against Italy he stepped in and played his best game for the team in the past year. He made good decisions both defensively and offensively and played a clean game. The fans watching the game didn’t hear his name much, but as a holding midfielder that’s a good thing, meaning he wasn’t out of position or making costly errors.

Klinsmann wants to make the team more possession-oriented. A key to holding onto the ball for longer and more efficient periods is play from the midfielders, specifically the central midfielders. Bradley and Edu are defensive-first-minded players but they can play both ways and against Italy they showed they hold the keys to the team’s progress. Both displayed fine footwork and an ability to move the ball out of trouble as well as link the defense to the offense.



Altidore is also another player that will play an important role in the team’s new mentality. He didn’t score and he will likely be criticized for that. But the things he was able to do speak volumes of his improvement.

The 22-year-old is having an incredible season with his club team, scoring 13 goals in 34 games across all competitions. He is gaining confidence week-to-week, developing good work habits and he is also finally learning how to use his size to his advantage.

At 6-feet-1-inch Altidore is a big, strong forward. The best plays he makes are when he shields the ball from his opponents and turns his defender. He has an advantage over guys and should use it. When he was younger, however, he would try to dribble and take guys on, usually trying to do too much and turning the ball over. Against Italy though he looked like a target forward. He got into space, played with his back to the goal, collected the ball and because he was properly shielding it he was able to pass it off—like he did on the assist of Dempsey’s goal—or turn and free himself from the defense.

Being able to hold the ball, as noted before, will be critical and if the team continues to play with only one forward Altidore will, at times, need to be able to collect the pass, shield and wait for help. He has been doing it more and more and the Italy game showed how much he has improved.

There is still so much for the team and these individuals to do to improve. In the second half, when protecting the lead, the team reverted to a more defensive-shell, something that they will need to un-learn.

But the first-ever victory over Italy, in Italy, against a top-tier country, in a pressure-packed environment and scoring against the run of play showed progress.

Progress was displayed not only by the team as whole but also by individuals. As more individuals like Altidore, Bradley and Edu take their games to top-level teams the whole team will continue to make successful leaps in terms of ability.

Photo Credits.
All phots: AP Photo/Luca Bruno

Jozy Altidore Remains the Best Forward for the United States National Team

While the United States Men’s National Team failed to score against Costa Rica on Friday, Jozy Altidore—the starting striker whose primary job is to score goals—proved that he still is the top forward on the depth chart.

Under former head coach Bob Bradley Altidore was the starting forward—sometimes with a partner, other times alone—but due to a lack of goals with the national team and a lack of scoring and playing time at the club level many wondered how much longer that would last.

Some, albeit prematurely, labeled the 21-year-old a bust and longed for a better striker to come along.

Then came the emergence of Juan Agudelo. The 18-year-old scored two goals in his first three matches with the National Team. His energy and work rate when he entered matches brought the team’s play to another level and he exuded confidence. Many labeled him the next best thing, even though Agudelo has failed to score a goal in his past eight games with the United States.

While Agudelo is a promising prospect, Altidore, in his first game playing for new head coach Jürgen Klinsmann, showed that he is the better option up top for the time being.

Altidore has 39 caps compared to Agudelo’s 11 and the elder forward showed his age, experience and skill set are more valuable to the team than what Agudelo brings to the table, especially considering the sample of both players from the Costa Rica game.

Altidore likes to take on his opponents one-on-one from time to time, but he is at his best when he is playing as a target forward with his back to the goal. He is a very strong forward with broad shoulders. Defenders cannot outmuscle him. Altidore’s greatest goal of his career came against Spain in the 2009 Confederation’s Cup when he turned defender Joan Capdevilla off the ball and blasted a shot into the back of the net.



Against Costa Rica Altidore did a good job of making himself a target to his teammates and creating passing lanes. His ability to hold off defenders helped the team get more players involved in the attack. His passing was good and he linked up very well with his teammates, especially Brek Shea and Landon Donovan, which created a number of close chances.

Altidore was active and his presence helped other players get involved which made the U.S. very dangerous in the first half.

Agudelo came on as a second half substitute for Altidore, and although he played with much energy, like he usually does, the offense seemed to stall a bit.

As a lone forward it wasn’t all Agudelo’s fault. The defensive back four, Maurice Edu—the holding midfielder—and the rest of the midfield seemed to tire a bit causing a break in the transition and smooth passing from defense to offense.

Agudelo, however, has a smaller frame than Altidore and got pushed off the ball a bit, especially when the game grew more physical as it dragged on.

While Agudelo seems to have a good partnership with Shea—evident in the tying goal against Mexico in Klinsmann’s first game—his biggest fault is that he can become a bit individualistic.

Part of it is inexperience but Agudelo holds onto the ball for too long. His decision making isn’t always the best and he has a tendency to try and dribble his way out of trouble. This causes teammates to start standing and watching, draws more defenders to Agudelo and causes turnovers.

Agudelo still has his moments of brilliance and he is dangerous when he slips behind the defense. A partnership with Agudelo and Altidore would be one to watch and develop.

But at the current stages of the careers of both players Altidore is the guy who belongs at the top of the depth chart.

Photo Credits.
Jozy Altidore: AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh
Juan Agudelo: AP Photo/Alex Brandon

Stop Calling for a Soccer Savior in the United States

Editorial

I recently read an article that asked if Juan Agudelo was the savior of U.S. soccer. The thought behind the piece began, as it always does, listing the names of players who have not lived up to expectations but that maybe this time we had found the one.

Agudelo is an impressive player, and hopefully he continues to play well. But this style of writing needs to end. It’s lazy writing and accomplishes nothing. It is in fact the type of writing that makes the audience resent the media: building a character up in order to tear him down even harder.

The article linked to above isn’t the only one that deploys this technique, it is just the most recent I’ve seen. The names of “failures” are the typical ones mentioned: Charlie Davies, Jozy Altidore, Eddie Johnson and, of course, Freddy Adu. This isn’t to say they haven’t been disappointing, or that we shouldn’t expect more from them. But why must every young, talented American soccer player be a savior? The writers make knee-jerk reactions to good and are just as quick to criticize and devalue through times that are not as fortunate.

The first problem with the “soccer savior” story is how it originates. Far too often a potential savior is pulled from an extremely small sample size.

The majority of Juan Agudelo’s mainstream hype has come from an entire three games with the U.S National Team; his third appearance against Argentina in March was, at the time, one more game than he had played in with the New York Red Bulls total. Jozy Altidore made 43 total appearances with the Red Bulls, his first professional club team. That’s just over one full MLS season. Eddie Johnson’s most impressive run with the National Team was for his seven goals in six World Cup qualifiers. And Freddy Adu, he never played in a professional match in his life when the media firestorm anointed him the chosen one.

How can greatness be judged in a handful of games? You can learn some things about a player, but his eventual career path has so many active variables that you just can never tell that soon. The media justifies these responses by saying things like, “The American public is hungry for its own soccer superstar.” Really, it is sports writers hungry for a quick easy story. One that is framed around little information and could very well turn out wrong, but even then it would create another story.

There is a good reason the sample size is so small—the age of the players. Adu and Altidore are 21-years-old, Davies is 24 and Agudelo is only 18. Johnson is the oldest of the aforementioned players, at 27, but even so the tipping point of his success came roughly seven years ago (making Johnson a mere 20-years-old).

The point is all these players burst onto the scene at a very young age—they couldn’t even legally buy a beer. Yes, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Wayne Rooney became superstars at equally young ages and have become the biggest name in the sport. But that doesn’t mean that if these American players haven’t reached their peak at the same age then they are failures.

For starters the youth development programs in the country are notoriously not as strong as those overseas. Places like the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida and MLS academies are helping to close the gap, but it’s not there yet. Therefore it takes more time for players to properly develop.

Bob Bradley, the head coach of the USMNT, has brought players like Altidore, Adu and Agudelo in for developmental purposes. In order to make the team more successful (and in doing so helping the sport become more popular in the country) Bradley’s philosophy was to make the available player pool deeper. That has meant expanding the pool to bring in younger players and bring them along at the senior level. Some, like Agudelo, flourish in the early stages. It is a process, however.



By no means is Agudelo a complete player because of his good showings in three international matches. And Adu not making a World Cup team thus far does not mean he never will. There is still a lot of time for both of these players to hit their primes and until then they will be learning the game, improving their skills and becoming good soccer players, regardless of the superstardom they achieve.

One thing that halts these players is the moves they make in the transfer seasons. With a little help from the media hype that surrounds them, the players’ profiles grow attracting them to big name teams. They move but are not ready to see the field and get buried on the bench.

Bought by Fulham in 2008, Johnson has only made 20 total appearances for the English Premier League club. He’s been loaned out three separate times. Altidore, after signing with Spanish giant Villareal, is on his third loan and Adu is on his fourth loan from parent club Benfica in Portugal.

The problem is that the players aren’t allowed to develop at the proper rates. Even the teams they are loaned to are in top flight leagues around the world and are looking to win games, not develop other team’s talents.

While these young players are training at high levels and learning what it means to be a professional, at the end of the day they have to crack the lineup and see the field. Otherwise they are no longer fit for games, their confidence gets shaken and they get rusty, dulling their once dazzling talents.

Then the media swoon over them like vultures, declaring their careers all but over.

The media is not at fault for player’s choosing the wrong team to transfer to. But for some reason the lack of proper time to develop gets lost in the coverage.

There is nothing wrong with being excited for a young player’s success. And if that player will help lead soccer to a higher status on and off the pitch then that’s great. But expectations need to be kept in
check.

The soccer savior theme needs to be put to an end. It’s beyond hyperbole now, it’s a cliché. Anytime a young player has a good run of form, even for only a handful of games, he becomes the new flavor of the week. And then when the hot streak cools and the player must work through adversity—an essential part of a player’s development—the media turns their back on him, labeling him a failure.

It’s a tired form of writing and accomplishes nothing other than squeezing as many headlines out of a buzz worthy player as possible. It makes it look like writers are not out to cover the beautiful game but rather essentially create and manipulate their own stories.

Besides, with the USMNT improving its quality of play on the pitch, MLS becoming a financially stable establishment and pure interest in the global game on the rise (i.e. sales for the FIFA video game, TV ratings for the World Cup and English Premier League matches) is a savior really needed?

Photo Credits.
Juan Agudelo and Teal Bunbury: AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill
Freddy Adu: AP Photo/Nick Wass

Viva Jozy

AP Photo/ Charles Rex Arbogast

Jozy Altidore had his coming out party Wednesday night against Trinidad and Tobago in a World Cup qualifier, registering a hat trick in the United States’ 3-0 victory. The win came days after Altidore scored in a 2-2 tie against El Salvador. Altidore’s emergence has a huge effect on the national team.

While not as documented as another teen soccer sensation, Freddy Adu, U.S. soccer fans have had their eyes on Altidore for quite some time, and he has been considered one of the future stars for the men’s national team. At 16-years-old, he was the youngest player to score in the MLS playoffs, when he did so as a member of Red Bull New York. In the summer of 2008, he was transferred to Villarreal of Spain’s La Liga for an MLS record transfer fee of approximately $10 million. He competed for the United States in the 2008 summer Olympics and scored a goal against the Netherlands. Since then, Villarreal loaned Altidore to Xerez of Spain’s Segunda División in order to give the young player increased minutes and continue to adapt to Spanish culture, however it has not worked out so far as Altidore has yet to dress for the club. U.S. men’s national team head coach Bob Bradley still called him up for the team’s two qualifiers against El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago, even though Bradley is notorious for wanting his players to receive consistent minutes and Xerez’s coach’s insistence that Altidore will continue to sit if he misses time for national team duty.

As of late, Bradley has gone with Brian Ching as the team’s lone forward. Ching is excellent at collecting the ball, holding off defenders, and then distributing it. However, he is not the most efficient goal scorer, which is what a forward is judged on, especially when he is the only striker in the starting lineup. He has played well, but his lack of goal production has had fans clamoring for Altidore to take over. Saturday, down 2-0, Bradley opted to sub in Altidore in the match’s 61 minute and keep Ching in, hoping the two forwards would generate the offense needed to make a comeback. The move paid off, as Altidore scored in the 77 minute, and the team eventually came back to tie the game and earn an away point in qualifying. Altidore’s performance earned him a start against Trinidad and Tobago alongside Ching, and he didn’t disappoint.



Starting two forwards works better for the U.S., especially given the different talents of Altidore and Ching. While Ching uses his strength to hold off defenders and distribute, Altidore uses his size and athleticism to get open and attack the defenders. The two can work off of each other, which opens up the field, keeps the defense honest, and creates more attacking opportunities, rather than having the defense focus on one striker and stalling the offense.

In order to slide Altidore into the starting lineup, someone needed to be taken off the pitch. Bradley opted to remove left back Heath Pearce, who was removed for Altidore in the El Salvador game. Without Pearce, Bradley moved left midfielder DaMarcus Beasley into the left fullback spot. While not a natural defender, his defensive abilities are solid and his pace could be beneficial in leading the attack from the defensive end into the opposing teams half. Beasley played much better against Trinidad and Tobago than he did against El Salvador, and his attacking abilities helps make the defense much more of a threat to start the offense. He and right fullback Frankie Hejduk make good runs from the back to help the midfielders on the flanks push the ball. Coupled with center back Oguchi Onyewu, who stands at 6’4” and moves forward on set pieces to try and get a header on net, the defense has become much more capable of getting the offense going, which previously was a concern. Hejduk may be replaced when former starter Steve Cherundolo comes back from an injury, but he makes a compelling case. In the future, if Marvell Wynne can polish his touch on the ball, his speed could be very dangerous coming out of the back and keep the defense involved in developing the attack.

Altidore’s start also had an impact on the midfield. Because there were two forwards, Landon Donovan moved over from a central attacking midfield role to the left winger in place of Beasley. This allowed him to go at the defenders, attacking them with the ball, as well as cut the ball into the middle onto his dominant, right foot, making for better shots, passes, and crosses. Donovan assisted on all three of Altidore’s goals.

Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley remained at right wing and center midfield, respectively. Defensive minded Pablo Mastroeni replaced the struggling Sacha Kljestan as the other center midfielder, but going forward, expect Kljestan to earn his spot back, as again, he bolsters the attack and has formed a good playing relationship with Bradley.

Altidore has made things happen. A once offensively challenged U.S. squad has now been infused with new, young life. Inserting Altidore and shifting others around has created a squad that can attack from any part of the field, keeping the defense on its toes, opening up the field which allows creative players like Altidore, Donovan, and Dempsey more freedom.

It is only one game, not against prime opposition, and the lineup changes aren’t etched in stone, but the result and play was promising. If nothing else, Altidore proved he belongs on the national team, and that it’s his time to start.

Hopefully, Villarreal and Xerez were watching.

Highlights from Wednesday night's U.S. match against Trinidad and Tobago. Video from U.S. soccer's channel on Youtube.



Second photo credit: AP Photo/ Mark Humphrey