Apologies for the extended hiatus from my Air Hearn activity. Although I do not plan to blog with the proficiency as my first few months of this site, it is my intention to add something new to the site every week. The following piece deals with the upcoming 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup final match between the United States and Mexico. Unlike my previous pieces, this post is written from a predominately emoitional first person perspective. As always, thank you for indulging my desire to write about the things I love.
Last night's 1-0 United States win over Panama in the semi-finals of the Gold Cup should have been expected; they were nearly a 3-1 favorite to advance. Yet somehow the match induced a love for the men's national team I have not felt since their heartbreaking 2-1 extra time exit in last year's World Cup to Ghana. To completely comprehend my feelings after that loss, I flash back a few days prior to the first game of group play against England. A few friends and I traveled to Philadelphia for a party that happened to take place that afternoon. As I donned my Landon Donovan jersey, party-goers peppered me with questions ranging from "why do you care about a team that always sucks anyway?" to "you actually think the offside rule is good?" Despite an early goal from English midfielder Steven Gerrard, the United States took control of the first half and eventually equalized via the now infamous hand of clawd goal by Clint Dempsey. As the game progressed tied at 1-1, those insipid questions morphed slowly into "do you think we can win this game?" and "how far can we go in this tournament?" The judgmental second person turned into first person plural, and I nearly teared up a few times as people gained a respect for our players that day. Fast forward to the Ghana game, and there I was, missing the beginning of an annual river lot get-together to experience all of the things those friends said were true about American soccer.
For the first 65 minutes last night, the Stars and Stripes played an uninspired, listless game dominated by lazy passes among the back four and keeper Tim Howard. The team lacked creavtivity in the midfield, poise on the ball (we made between 20 and 65345 panic passes under very little pressure) and discipline during counterattacks. Ten minutes into the second half, the American-born announcers began mentioning the possibility of extra time and penalities. Close ups of the Panamanian players showed a side brimming with confidence as they had prevailed in a shootout with El Salavador a few nights prior. Searching for something to spark his side, US Coach Bob Bradley subbed out the relatively effective forward Juan Agudelo for the egnima known as Freddy Adu. To the casual soccer fan, Adu has spent time with 5 different clubs over the past 3 years and hasn't played for the national team since the 2009 Gold Cup when Bradley purposely chose a weak side to rest the regulars for the much more important Confederations Cup. As I described to my friend Twigg as the sub happened, "Freddy Adu is a spectacle, NOT a soccer player!" This was easily the riskiest move of the tournament, and possibly the coaching career of Bradley, who surely would have lost his job had the Americans failed to advance from the game.
As with so many other times during his tenure as head coach, the move payed immediate dividends for Bradley as Adu provided the fire needed, culminating in him playing a wonderful pass on the wing to Landon Donovan who expertly picked out Dempsey for the only goal of the game. After watching Dempsey sprint over to Landon and Freddy to point at them, shouting "it's theirs," I thought back to that time when my friends asked me why I cared so much about our little soccer team that could. These guys represent the spirit of an America we now only pontificate about but rarely exemplify. A historical anomolly, comprised of outsiders fighting for recognition yet cognizent of the fact that it will likely never happen. A ragtag bunch gathered together by circumstance for a prize greater than them as individuals. It's with that spirit that I adore them so fondly, and the win last night over Panama fortified that. If the United States wins this Saturday against rival Mexico, it places them into a tie with that country for most regional cups won. Countries around the world such as England, Spain and Brazil already recognize the potential soccer powerhouse the United States continues to become. Hopefully performances like those against England and last night against Panama continues to win them more fans in the home of the brave.
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