"All of the critics in America who said we were no good after losing to Italy and Brazil, let's see what they say now." - Michael Bradley
By Andrew Dixon - MIAMI, FL (Jun 24, 2009) USSoccerPlayers -- Michael Bradley doesn't know who I am, but this Grown Man has been one of those critics that he's talking about. I don't regret being one, nor do I take back anything I've said over the past year. The results against Costa Rica away and the first two matches of this tournament only exposed the team's shortcoming in key areas of which top sides took advantage.
That's why the win against Egypt was so brilliant. While a lot of commentators put this win down to heart, that alone does not win matches against good teams. To quote Roy Keane, "You have to have the heart and passion but that only gets you so far."
Heart is how teams like Fulham command a place in Europe. Don't get me wrong, it takes heart to pick yourself off the mat after some of our recent results. But the US won this match with its vast improvement in several areas in which top teams perform well, game in and game out.
Offensive Purpose + Ball on the Ground + Individual Skill = Success
For the first time in this tournament, the US had purpose going forward. There was no launching hopeful balls forward expecting a Jozy Altidore to win it and hold it while everyone runs to catch up with him. When the US had success going forward, the ball stayed on the ground allowing our players to use their individual skill to apply pressure on Egypt's midfield and back line. The result? Goals scored from open play and Egypt on the back foot for most of this match. Yes, Egypt gave us a little more room to operate but this is still the same team that shut out Italy and we broke them down.
Consider the first two goals.
Altidore receives a throw in but instead of just holding it and passing backwards, he turns on his defender and slips a cross in towards Charlie Davies whose persistence in front of goal allowed him to score. Jozy almost turned that trick again in the 68th minute, abusing a defender with the ball at his feet and sending a nice cross that unfortunately no one was able to connect with. But by keeping the ball at his feet, Altidore was much more dangerous then expecting him to be Brian McBride circa 2002 and play with this back to the goal and pass backwards.
The second goal starts not with Brad Guzan sending an aimless 60 yard ball down field but rolling it ON THE GROUND to Bornstein on the left. Bornstein almost gave it away by putting the ball up for grabs, but Ricardo Clark won an important header by redirecting it to Donovan. His one touch ON THE GROUND cleared Bradley who charged forward. He laid a pass to Donovan ON THE GROUND who returned it ON THE GROUND and Bradley slid it home. That's how you break down a defense.
These weren't the only examples. Time and time again, the US kept the ball when pressured, opting not to simply boot the ball forward when there were no options ahead but reverse the field. By keeping the ball and prolonging their attack, especially in the second half, it was Egypt who were forced out of their shape. That opened the field for passes played to the feet of Davies and Altidore. The third goal came from such a ball reversal as they played from left to right where Spector delivered the cross to Dempsey that sent the US through to today's match.
The team's confidence going forward, especially in the second half, was built on keeping the ball. Again, I recognize that Egypt's pressure wasn't the same as Italy or Brazil's, but the US was certainly much more patient than they've been. It paid off with the type of soccer you need to play to produce results.
Players in positions to succeed = Success
Bob Bradley's lineup moves worked, full stop. Bringing on Davies to partner Altidore allowed more balls to be played to Jozy's feet instead of trying to bring down balls launched form 60 yards away. Though his control let him down from time-to-time, he was involved in the match instead of chasing it and had a substantial role in the first goal. Davies' speed plus the ball played ON THE GROUND to his feet also proved vital in stretching out the defense and he was in position to gather Altidore's spilled cross. I've never been a fan of the single forward and Davies introduction was an immense help.
A lot of people were calling for Ricardo Clark to never don a US uniform again but he came back with a very strong game in front of the defense. That allowed Michael Bradley to maraud forward and be aggressive with the ball around the area. Even moving Clint Dempsey forward when Benny Feilhaber came on paid off with the third goal.
Players were simply put in positions to succeed and they did.
Leadership = Success
Success always starts when someone stands up to man up. Offensively, Bradley and Donovan, deputizing for Carlos Bocanegra as captain, drove the team forward time after time. Donovan has always had the ability to pick the ball up in the middle of the field and run at players, and we saw it in abundance in this match. Bradley, as well, got forward and shot anytime he thought he had a sniff on goal. This was the Bradley that we read about at Herenveen.
Defensively, Oguchi Onyewu was immense. With Bocanegra named as captain, most of the credit has gone to him for the team's defensive success. But with Boca injured and Tim Howard chilling on the sidelines, it was Onyewu who marshaled the back line and stamped his authority on this match. Egypt got absolutely nothing though the air and he constantly snuffed out threats on the ground. Easy example, his first-half injury time step in to stop a ball cut back from the end line. A goal there by Egypt would have halted the USA's momentum. The sight of him charging forward with the ball in the sequence that led to the disputed handball off Jozy Altidore's shot was simply brilliant.
Consistency = Success
So now it's out of the frying pan and into the paella, so to speak. What the US now needs heading into today's match is to stay consistent. We don't usually see the type of performance we saw against Egypt on a game-by-game basis. I'm not predicting any upset against the #1 team in the world but if the US has to go down I want Spain to beat us, rather than us not being in the match. Continuing to do the above will give us a chance.
So what does this critic say? Go USA.
Andrew Dixon is a soccer writer based in Miami and a weekly columnist for USSoccerPlayers. Contact him at: golnoir@golnoir.net
