U.S. Soccer: My Experience at the Gold Cup

Posted by Nick Verlaney on Jun 17, 2011 in Soccer | 1 comment

Hey everyone. I hope this post finds you enjoying Summer and all that it has to offer. Before I start, I would like to extend my thoughts and prayers for all of those families that are in the flooded areas in the Midwest. After driving down I-29 on Tuesday and Wednesday, I can say that the flooding looks absolutely devastating.

Quick Knowledge

This particular post is about my experience at the United States Gold Cup match in Kansas City. For those who don’t know what the Gold Cup is; it is a soccer tournament for the qualifying national teams in North America, Central America and the Caribbean. It is also a qualifying tournament for the Confederations Cup (a pre-World Cup tournament). The winner of the Gold Cup will end up playing better competition on the way to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, and the thought is, that team will be better prepared for the rigors of the month-long tournament.  So while the 2014 World Cup may seem like a long way away, it really isnt for a lot of national teams around the world who play these kinds of tournaments.

My Experience

The United States Men’s National Team (USMNT) played Guadeloupe, a small Caribbean nation, on Tuesday in a group stage match at the brand new LiveStrong Sporting Park in Kansas City. This was my first time seeing the USMNT play in person, and needless to say, I was extremely excited to root on our boys in person instead of yelling through a TV screen like I tend to do. A couple friends and I made the trip down on Tuesday morning to make sure we could take the whole atmosphere in before the games started. Not only was this the first time that I was going to see the U.S. play in person, it was the first time that I was going to see the brand new LiveStrong Sporting Park (more to come on this in a minute).

For those of you who have never attended soccer match of this level, I implore you to try it, even if soccer isnt your sport of choice. The pre-game atmosphere is top-notch, especially if you are in the vicinity of a supporters group like The American Outlaws. These guys know how to throw a party and make everyone feel welcome. They make the whole scene explode with chants, beverages, people playing mini-games and more. This was where we started our pre-game experience and it was a wise choice.

After meeting up with a few friends we made our way into the stadium, only to be greeted with a surprise; box seats. Our friend David’s dad is the strength coach for the Panama National Team and he got us box seats to watch both games in the Panama suite (again, THANK YOU). After watching Panama draw with Canada, we got to meet some of the players and talk with David’s dad about the team, life, etc. We even got our picture with the Panama captain, Felipe Baloy. Even though we were cheering frantically for the U.S., the whole group was extremely gracious and welcoming. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience to hangout with a National Team, and something I will never forget.

After watching the U.S. win 1-0, we made our way down to the field for a few pictures, and then into the tunnel where the Outlaws were partying, chanting and cheering. We joined them for about 45 minutes of celebrating that included high-five-ing every single person within reach. What a way to end a great experience.

The Stadium

LiveStrong Sporting Park (LSP) is absolutely immaculate. Kansas City soccer fans have craved a soccer-specific stadium for years, and now they have one of the best facilities on the planet. Not only does LSP look incredible from the outside, but its’ design makes it easy to access and get around. The facilities inside are equally impressive. No matter where you sit, there is a concession stand or bathroom nearby, with almost no wait at either station. The concourses are wide enough so that traffic flows consistently and the seats have plenty of leg room. From what I could see there was no seat with an obstructed view inside of the stadium either. Even standing behind people in the Standing Room Only sections at both touchlines, there was a clear view of the field. The pitch is said to be the finest in North America and seemed to play smooth throughout the match. Here are a few players thoughts on LSP and the atmosphere inside on Tuesday (courtesy of The Full 90).

“It was fantastic,” said Landon Donovan, the U.S. national team’s all-time leading scorer. “I think everybody involved should be commended. It was really good. The crowd was great, it was energetic, the stadium is beautiful, the locker room is beautiful. I’d definitely hope to come back here.”

That sentiment permeated the locker room.

“I was saying in the locker room that tonight you saw a really pro-American crowd,” midfielder Sacha Kljestan said. “That’s the most American flags I’ve seen in a stadium, so I hope we’ll have more games here. Maybe it will become the new national stadium.”

Even Clint Dempsey, who struggled to find the net on several golden scoring opportunities, praised the venue despite his finishing struggles.

“The game here in Kansas City is going to grow and I think the future here is looking bright for Sporting Kansas City,” Dempsey said. “It had a European atmosphere with the bench seats into the stands. It makes the fans feel closer and the fans feel closer to things.”

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/06/14/2951241/its-a-festive-atmosphere-with.html#ixzz1PVen6ep6

Im with the players on the atmosphere as well. It was a completely pro-U.S. crowd (to be expected), but there was constant cheering throughout regardless of goal scoring chances missed. The seats allow you to feel like you are on top of the field, so even though LSP only seats 19-20,000 people, it sounds like there are more like 50,000 people there. The thing that put the stadium over the top in my mind was the service. I have never encountered such a friendly stadium staff. They were more than helpful getting directions or even filling up a beer. Overall grade: A+. No Red Cards here.

The Game

Contrary to the stadium, the match left something to be desired. Last year, the U.S. would have beaten this Guadeloupe side 3-0, maybe even 4-0 and cruised through the match from start to finish. This match was a little different. Sure, the U.S. never really looked uncomfortable, but they lacked goals and finishing quality that a team like the U.S. needs to show in a match like this. Clint Dempsey missed at least 3 very good shots at goal, and the last one he missed was pathetic. In fact, nobody in the stadium could figure out how he missed it (picture below). Notice how all he has to do is kick the ball and it would be the easiest goal of his life? Yeah, he didnt do that. Unbelievable.

The highlight of the match was easily Jozy Altidore’s wonder-strike from 20+ yards out. It was an outstanding piece of footwork and an even better power strike. The Guadeloupe goalkeeper had no clue that shot was coming until it hit the back of the net. To me, it is nice to see Jozy get back to goal-scoring form after he was not an impact player at the World Cup last Summer. He needs to play big for the U.S. to win crucial matches, and I hope this gives him confidence to shoot going forward.

Watch Jozy’s goal from a fans perspective here.

Here are my grades for the game:

Goalkeeper: A. Solid work from Timmy Howard.

Defense: B-. They were never consistently tested, but still looked vulnerable at the back at times.

Midfield: B. Bradley and Donovan controlled the pace, but didnt attack Guadeloupe enough for my tastes.

Forwards: A. Jozy’s goal was top-notch, but he maybe should have had 2.

Other pictures:

The State of US Soccer

This U.S. side has not be in good form since the World Cup last summer. They have played lazy at the back (even worse than during the World Cup), and their forward movements have not been nearly as crisp to score goals. The friendly against Spain in early June displayed all of these problems perfectly. Even with all of this though, the United States was favored to reach the Final of the Gold Cup because the competition they face isnt nearly as strong as a World Cup field. That was all de-railed when they lost to Panama last Saturday, the first time they have EVER lost a Gold Cup group stage match. Something isnt clicking with the team.

I was 100% against bringing Bob Bradley back as Manager last October, and right now I am 110% for firing him. The track record for National Team managers that go longer than 4 years is pretty awful, and it looks like that is what will happen to this U.S. side with Bradley in charge. I think his message has been lost among the senior players like Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey, and that his message never connected with players like Jozy and Charlie Davies. As far as his tactics go, Im at a loss with his team selection for most games. Consistency with any national team is key, especially since national teams do not play much together, in relative terms, throughout the year like club teams do. After seeing the Group Stage of the Gold Cup, it looks like Bradley’s time as manager of the U.S. is up. If I were Sunil Gulati, I have already called Jurgen Klinsmann to see if he is ready to coach the U.S. after the Gold Cup.

As far as formations go, I would love to see the U.S. ditch the 4-4-2 in favor of a 4-3-3. Instead of spreading the field so wide, the team could use its strength through the midfield to create a lot of problems for opposing defenses. Michael Bradley has been one of the most consistent performers for the USMNT over the past 3 years, and with him in the middle of the 4-3-3, anchoring the defensive midfield and driving forward, the rest of the team could move much more efficiently toward goal. It would also open up the front three of Dempsey, Altidore, and Aguedelo (or Davies) to be in sync with each others movements and create chaos for opposing defenses.

Here is how I would arrange the squad in a 4-3-3:

GK: Howard

RB: Cherundulo, CB: Goodson, CB: Onyewu, LB: Bocanegra

RM: Edu         CM: Bradley        LM: Donovan

F: Aguedelo     F: Altidore       F: Dempsey

With this formation, the U.S. can use its power down the middle of the pitch while also letting the wingers get wide enough to reach the forwards down the flanks. Lets hope the next U.S. manger uses this.

Thanks for reading.