US Falls to Belgium, 4-2, in Friendly & Houston Dynamo Advance in US Open Cup

Last night in Cleveland, the United States National Team was outclassed by a Belgium squad that exposed the American side's weaknesses, weaknesses that many US fans and Soccer House have conveniently turned a blind eye towards since the team's success in the 2002 World Cup finals.

While the USMNT has made great strides since its days of wandering the non-World Cup finals wilderness between 1950 and 1990, the team, and the USSF program in general, have much work to do. Not all of this work can be accomplished under one coaching regime or with the current generation of players. The biggest problem with the USMNT, which shines through often, and is just as often glossed over, is the poor state of technical skills in general - skills that players in footballing nations often learn and begin developing before they hit puberty. That being said, it isn't the US National Team's job to develop players beyond their teen years, those players are with clubs 95% of their playing time while the National Team only has small windows here and there to work with the players.

While I'm not a huge fan of or an apologist for Jurgen Klinsmann, who is a decent start to moving away from the stale Arena/Bradley years, his vision for what he wants the US team to be exceeds the tools and players at his proposal (he's out kicking his coverage, so to speak). Let's face it, a national team coach doesn't have the liberty of imposing his vision on a team, rather he needs to take the players he has at his disposal and find the right system in which they will succeed. Maybe next time Soccer House will perform a real coach search in which many candidates are interviewed and considered (though I don't except such a professional, sophisticated approach from Soccer House).

Despite last night's loss, in a friendly after all, the USMNT will advance out of CONCACAF and find itself in Brasil in 2014. Even without knowing the group draw, I'm 65% certain that the USMNT will advance out of the group stage, but not get any farther in the World Cup finals.

Finally, and I know this will fall on deaf ears, it would be nice to see some realistic expectations from USMNT fans. Before last night's match, US fans were again showing their naïveté about international teams with the notion that Belgium would be an easy team to beat. Maybe the manner in which the US lost last night's friendly will be a nice dose of reality to these fans, but a I fear that is too much to ask for.

Photo by Nigel Brooks

Meanwhile, the Houston Dynamo fared better than the USMNT as they beat FC Tucson, 2-0, last night at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston. The goals were courtesy of Alex Dixon and Giles Barnes. With this win, the Dynamo move on to the Fourth Round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, where they will play at FC Dallas on June 12th.

I did a little traveling over Memorial Day weekend and one of my flights had DirecTV on it, so I found myself watching a marathon of A&E's original show Longmire. I remember when season one began airing last year, I wanted to get into it, but for a variety of reasons never got around to watching the show. Seeing it on my flight, I got sucked in and am now watching Season 2, with plans to catch up on Season 1.

The series stars Robert Taylor as Walt Longmire, the Sheriff of the fictional Absaroka County in Wyoming, and is based on the books of Craig Johnson.

The show is a good mix of crime drama and western, with the added element of a (fictional) Cheyenne Indian Reservation located in the fictional county. The cast, which includes Lou Diamond Phillips, is top notch, and help create a good summer show that I highly recommend. While Longmire might not be the kind of highbrow writing you find on Mad Men, Breaking Bad, or Justified, it's an entertaining and enjoyable show, and adds to your tv viewing what a James Lee Burke or Nevada Barr book adds to your summer reading.

Longmire airs on A&E at 9:00 p.m. central on Monday evenings (with encore airings).

Oh, having lived in Montana, I do enjoy the fact that Walt Longmire only drinks Rainier Beer.

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Your Friday (U.S. Soccer) Goals For April 5, 2013

Bale and Messi are hurt, Real Madrid conquers Istanbul, and the United States Soccer Federation celebrates 100 years by taking over Times Square today, it's time for your Friday goals, but with a twist.

More after the jump:

Houston to Host 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup Double-Header

On Wednesday, March 13th, the Confederation of North, Central America, and the Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) announced the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup groups and schedule, with Houston being awarded Group B games featuring El Salvador vs. Haiti and Honduras vs. Trinidad & Tobago at BBVA Compass Stadium on Monday, July 15th. The doubleheader will kick-off at 6:00 p.m. The complete schedule can be found online at the official Gold Cup website.

The 2013 Gold Cup final will take place at Soldier Field in Chicago on Sunday, July 28th at 3:00 p.m. CST. As previously announced, the Rose Bowl will host the opening doubleheader of the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup on Sunday, July 7th, which will feature reigning Gold Cup champion, Mexico taking on Panama as part of that doubleheader.

Tickets for CONCACAF Gold Cup Group B doubleheader games will be available to the general public starting on Thursday, March 21 at 10:00 a.m. and will be available online at the BBVA Compass Stadium website, AXS, and the Gold Cup website, or by calling 888-929-7849. Tickets are also available at the Ticket Office, open Monday-Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

“We look forward to a successful tournament and an exciting 2013 Gold Cup final on July 28, right here at Soldier Field,” said CONCACAF President, Jeffrey Webb. “We also expect yet another competition fueled by passionate fans brought together in a celebration that will hopefully inspire a whole new generation of players.”

Mexico will anchor Group A, which begins play on July 7th, in a doubleheader that kicks off with Canada taking on Martinique at 4:30 pm CST the Rose Bowl. Honduras will lead Group B the following day, facing Haiti at Red Bull Arena on July 8th, with El Salvador and Trinidad & Tobago facing off earlier in the evening. The United States will play the following night, July 9th at Portland's JELD-WEN Field against Belize in Group C, which also will include Costa Rica vs. Cuba in the first match of the doubleheader.

The 2013 Gold Cup quarterfinals will be played in Atlanta's Georgia Dome and Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium, both first-time hosts in the tournament. The semifinals will head to Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX on Wednesday, July 24.

With a mix of historic venues and brand new state of the art soccer facilities that average 57,000 spectators, the 2013 edition of the Gold Cup promises to provide fans both in stadium and at home with unforgettable atmospheres. In 2011, the tournament drew more than 600,000 fans throughout 13 match-days, including nine sell-outs. Taking place every two years, the Gold Cup has established itself as the region's most popular national team tournament, routinely drawing capacity crowds and millions of television viewers across the region. It features the confederation’s best players from the top 12 nations.

2013 CONCACAF GOLD CUP™
GROUP A: Mexico, Panama, Canada, Martinique
GROUP B: Honduras, El Salvador, Trinidad & Tobago, Haiti
GROUP C: USA, Costa Rica, Belize, Cuba

The above is from a press release from BBVA Compass Stadium.

I'm Done With Landon Donovan

I'm done with Landon Donovan.

I'm done with his sabbatical.

I'm done with his Major League Soccer "return."

I'm done with his lack of passion.

I'm done with his lack of heart.

I'm done with his pouting.

I'm done with his unrealized potential.

I'm done with his body language.

I'm done with his lack of genuine displays of emotion.

I'm done with his monotone way of talking.

I'm done with the speculation.

I'm done with the Livia Soprano of U.S. Soccer.

I'm done with the what could have beens.

I'm done with the apologists.

I'm done with the accolades.

I'm done with the leniency.

I'm done with him not fighting harder.

I'm done with his penalty kick routines.

I'm done with him on the United States National Team.

I'm done with Landon Donovan.

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I reserve the right to change my mind and opinion based on the future performances of Landon Donovan.

U.S. Soccer Player Robbie Rogers Comes Out, Steps Away from Football

Today, on his website, U.S. Soccer player Robbie Rogers acknowledged on his website that he is gay and that he was stepping away from the sport of soccer.

Rogers, who is only 25, has played for Heerenveen, Columbus Crew, Stevenage, and Leeds United, as well as earning 18 caps with the United States National Team. Earlier this year, he left Leeds Unit in a mutual agreement with the club.

In the world of masculine sports, it is not easy for a male athlete to come at and tell the world that he is gay, so I applaud Robbie Rogers for his decision, for his bravery in being honest to his family, friends, fans, and more importantly for being honest to himself.

I wish Rogers would not end his career as a soccer player though; at the age of 25 he still has lots of good playing years left in him. If Rogers is making the decision to retire because he's concerned about how his teammates and opponents would receive him, I wish he'd reconsider. While soccer has its fair share of machismo mentality, it is also the sport that seems to have developed more acceptance of the LGBT community, especially Major League Soccer. In fact, I think MLS is much more progressive on this issue than any of the leagues in Europe, and if Rogers were to sign with an MLS club, he'd experience very little negativity from players and fans.

That being said, based on his statement, it appears that Rogers used soccer as a refuge from having to acknowledge the truth to himself, to others. If he feels he needs to retire in order to discover who he is, what he wants, then who I am to question that decision?

Godspeed Robbie Rogers, many of us soccer fans hope to see you on the pitch again, but we know it's more important for you to find happiness first.

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The United States Drops It's First Hex Match to Honduras, 2-1

The Hex, the last stage of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying for the 2014 World Cup finals in Brazil, began on Tuesday February 6th, and the United States got off to a bad start with a 2-1 loss to Honduras at the Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano in San Pedro Sula, Honduras.

Due to the fact that I don't have beIN Sport on my provider and the fact that the match occurred while I was at my day job, I was not able to watch the match. I did listen to the radio feed out of Honduras, but my Spanish is far from adequate to fully understand what was going on. But, based on the comments and accounts of people who did watch the match, here is my impressions:

- The United States played like a team made up of players who played for their clubs over the weekend; flew to Miami; then flew to Honduras on Tuesday; barely had time to train and bond; and underestimated their opponent.

- The United States is striker deficient and Jurgen Klinsmann should have played Herculez Gomez.

- The existence of MLS has helped develop soccer talent across the CONCACAF region.

I did see a fair share of knee-jerk the sky is falling the US isn't going to qualify tweets yesterday, but let's be realistic here, this was the first match of the Hex, odds are the US was going to lose a couple road games. The hopes of reaching the World Cup finals in Brazil are not dashed for the US, there's plenty of time and matches left in this process.

Before some video from and after the match, here's the other CONCACAF results:

Panama 2 - 2 Costa Rica

Mexico 0 - 0 Jamaica

Highlights from the match:

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The Hex Starts Today - Prepare with a Look at the American Outlaws & USMNT Presser

The Hex, the last stage of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying, begins today for the United States National Team with a match at Honduras in San Pedro Sula. The match begins at 3:00 p.m. central time this afternoon and will be aired on beIN Sport.

To get you ready for today's match, here's a story Fox Soccer Channel did about the American Outlaws, the newest group of US Soccer supporters:

As you can see, that piece was filmed in Houston in late January 2013 when the USMNT hosted Canada in a friendly, a rather uneventful friendly that ended in a 0-0 draw.

Here's a bonus video of a Jürgen Klinsmann press conference down in Honduras:

With Win Over Guatemala The United States Advances to the Hexagonal

United States fans got an early scare on Tuesday night when Carlos Ruiz scored a goal in the 5th minute for Guatemala as it was taking on the United States in Kansas City during their final group stage match of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifiers for Brasil 2014. In the end, there was no need for US fans to begin the mourner's Kaddish or commission a requiem for the United States National team, because after 90 minutes plus change, it was the United States that was advancing to the Hexagonal thanks to one goal from Carlos Bocanegra and two goals from Clint Dempsey. In fact, the match was pretty much over at halftime with the United States going to the locker room with a 3-1 lead.

Despite their substantial lead at halftime, the United States never really took its foot off the gas and Clint Dempsey came oh so close to picking up a hat trick. The second half highlighted the difference between the USMNT under Jurgen Klinsmann and Bob Bradley - in the Bradley era the US would have gone into bunkering mode with a 2 goal lead in the second half.

Ruiz's early goal caused some dismay among numerous US fans who seem to forget that defense, with the exception of goalkeeper, has not been a strong feature of the USMNT in recent years. Even under Bradley the defense struggled to clear the ball and could leak goals like a sieve. In the world of soccer, defenders rarely get much respect, an issue compounded in the United States where all the parents seem to want their kid to be the team's leading goal scorer. When it comes to the USMNT, spreading the field and keeping pressure on the other team's defense gives the US defense the time, space, and field of vision it needs to keep the lead.

The Hexagonal begins in February 2013 and comes to an end in October 2013 with the top three teams advancing to the World Cup Finals in Brasil. In addition to the United States, the other CONCACAF teams advancing to the Hexagonal are Mexico, Honduras, Jamaica, Costa Rica, and Panama. The USMNT's last match of 2012 will likely be a friendly against Russia in Krasnodar on November 14th.

In addition to the Hexagonal in 2013, the CONCACAF Gold Cup will be taking place next summer, giving Klinsmann the opportunity to juggle rosters and look to see which younger US players will be able to provide much needed depth on the US bench.

One big lesson that the USMNT and its fans need to take away from the group stage of CONCACAF qualifiers is that while the USMNT has improved over the years since 1990, so has the rest of CONCACAF and the Hexagonal will be no walk in the park. One of the biggest reasons that the level of soccer in CONCACAF has improved is the presence of Major League Soccer. While MLS is not on the level of the top leagues in Europe, it is better than most of the other top leagues in CONCACAF (except Mexico) and gives more CONCACAF players the much needed opportunity and environment in which to grow the game in the region.

U.S. National Team Picks Up Win Over Jamaica in World Cup Qualifying

After the United States National Team lost to Jamaica, 2-1, in Kingston, Jamaica in a CONCACAF World Cup Qualifier on Friday, the US fan base went into full on Chicken Little - "The Sky is Falling!" - hysteria mode, fretting that the US would not make it to the Hexagonal Stage of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying.

Last night in Columbus, Ohio, the US got a chance to redeem itself against Jamaica, which they did with a 1-0 win against a Jamaica side that came into the match clearly hoping for a 0-0 draw. Jamaica's "park the bus" approach to the match gave the US numerous shots on goal early in the first half, many of which were denied by the woodwork.

The winning goal finally came for the US in the 55th minute when Herculez Gomez got the ball by Jamaica's keeper on a gorgeous free kick. After the US goal, Jamaica finally turned up the heat offensively, but it was too little, too late as the US picked up the 3 points.

The US is now tied at the top of Group A with Guatemala and Jamaica on 7 points, but the US and Guatemala lead on goal differential. This stage of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying wraps up next month when the US heads to Antigua to play Antigua & Barbuda on October 12th and then hosts Guatemala in Kansas City, Kansas on October 16th.

One thing that has become increasingly evident in recent years is that CONCACAF is a much tougher Federation to play in as more players from the smaller countries, such as Jamaica, have gained valuable experience and development in leagues such as MLS. Last night's match was a reflection of this since Jamaica started 5 MLS players while the US only started 1 MLS player. This is a reality that fans of the US, and fans of Mexico, need to start accepting and coming to terms with.

The CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying structure is still weighted in favor of Mexico and the US, but said teams and their fans need to stop underestimating the other CONCACAF teams. That's a lesson the US learned this past Friday.

United States Gets Historic Win at Estadio Azteca

With an unlikely goal by Michael Orozco Fiscal in the 80th minute of last night's international friendly between Mexico and the United States at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, history was made as the United States beat Mexico, 1-0.

For the first time in its 75 year history, the United States, featuring a young, cobbled together squad, managed to beat their CONCACAF rival, Mexico, on Mexican soil. It was just a friendly, and a mid-August friendly at that, but it is proof-positive to the US National Team that it is possible for them to beat Mexico at the forbidding Azteca.

Despite the historic win, this was not necessarily one of the best performances by the United States. For the bulk of the match, Mexico controlled the ball, primarily in the US's half, and out-shot the US. In fact, but for the goal keeping of Everton's Tim Howard, Mexico should have picked up at least four goals.

The fact that Mexico was putting so much attacking pressure on the US, but was unable to score, highlights one of the bright spots for the US, its defense. The combination of Howard in goal and Geoff Cameron, Maurice Edu, Edgar Castillo, and Fabian Johnson on the back line showed great strides in the ability of the US team to shut down the attack; however, clearing the ball is something the defense still needs to work on.

The US's midfield was a bit of shambles, failing to play much of a role in either the defense or attack. The absence of Michael Bradley, who is now with A.S. Roma, and Clint Dempsey was evident in the midfield's ability to accomplish anything positive for the US. Meanwhile, Landon Donovan was apparently hampered by his left hamstring and left the match after halftime.

Herculez Gomez started the match as the lone forward but it's hard to put 100% of the blame for the US's lackluster attack during the first 77 minutes of the match on Gomez's shoulders since he wasn't getting much service from the midfield. The fact that the US only started one forward is disappointing not because US Coach Jurgen Klinsmann has promised a more attacking style from his side, but more because history tells us that the US tends to attack poorly when it only has one player up top.

Next up for the United States is the start of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying as they travel to Kingston, Jamaica to face the Jamaican National Team on September 7, 2012. The win over Mexico should give the US some good momentum going into the qualifiers and should give them a boost of confidence the next time they face Mexico at the Azteca, which, should be, a match that matters in the hexagonal.

p

Neymar & Brazil Beat USA 4-1

Last night a crowd of 67,619 was on hand at FedEx Field in suburban D.C. to watch the United States host Brazil in a friendly, the second friendly for the US as it prepares for CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers. After a 5-1 drubbing of Scotland in Jacksonville on Saturday night, the US entered Wednesday's match with a little extra momentum, but Brazil is Brazil and they picked up two goals early in the first half, one of which was a penalty kick converted by Neymar in the 12th minute.

The US gained some ground at the end of the first half when Herculez Gomez, with some help from Michael Bradley and Fabian Johnson, scored for the US.

The US played strong in the second half, with numerous shots barely missing goal or being heroically saved by Brazil's keeper Rafael, but the US was not able to pick up another goal, let alone enough goals to beat Brazil. Brazil, which was primarily fielding a U-23 Olympic squad, managed to add two more goals thanks to Marcelo in the 52nd minute and Pato in the 87th minute.

While last night's match against Brazil marked the 16th time that the US has lost to the South American powerhouse, the US side acquitted itself well. The 4-1 loss to Brazil is a small stumble in the Juergen Klinsmann era, but Wednesday's match evidenced both growth and the further need for growth by the US national team. The never die, never quit attitude of last night's US side was refreshing to see and definitely sets this squad apart from the Bruce Arena side that played in Germany in 2006. On the other hand, the US needs to learn how to defend better against sides like Brazil and needs to learn how to finish some of those excellent goal scoring opportunities that they had last night.

One thing seems clear after last night, Michael Bradly and Herculez Gomez have secured national team roster spots for the foreseeable future.

Up next for the US is a friendly against Canada on Sunday June 3rd. Meanwhile, Brazil faces Mexico at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas on Sunday June 3rd.

Web Redemption for Victoria Zarlenga, Who Sang the National Anthem Before US v. Scotland

My Twitter feed typically blows up whenever the United States National Team is playing, but last night it blew up before the match started as a result of 18 year old Victoria Zarlenga's rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. It's a tough song, and I'd never want to sing it live in front of tens of thousands of people and on national television, that can be disconcerting. In the vein of Tosh 2.0, I'm giving Victoria her own little web redemption. First, last night's version:

Here is a statement that Victoria, a Jacksonville native, posted on her Facebook page:

In response to the comments I have received about tonights National Anthem ... I totally hear you, this was not a good performance and I take full responsibility for it! I did not realize I would need ear buds as monitors to block out the stadium sounds. Therefore, I had to borrow a pair from the sound crew that were too large for my ears and were popping out. Watching this video you can see that I was trying to hold the left ear bud in with my hand. That said, I was unable to hear myself and was only hearing the delay of my voice in the stadium. To add to the challenge, the crowd was singing in sync with my few seconds delay. It was like I was singing the song twice word after word after word. I heard from a few fans that said the view on the Jumbotron was not in sync with what they were hearing. Apparently the TV recording and stadium sound were two separate systems - you had to be present at the stadium to see and hear the delay. I was very disoriented with all these variables!

I would like to share with you a previous rendition and live performance of the National Anthem from about six months ago without the technical challenges!

I for one applaud Ms. Zarlenga for her mature response to last night's song.

"Camp Cupcake" Wins Two

Last night the US Soccer's "Camp Cupcake" Team followed up Saturday night's 1-0 win over Venezuela with a 1-0 win over Panama. I admit that the "Camp Cupcake" moniker is not my favorite for the annual US Soccer winter camp that primarily gives numerous MLS players and some European journeymen an extended audition for the US National Team, but I think it's important to use this moniker in light of the apparent "every match is a live or die match" attitude that seems to dominate the most vocal of the US Soccer fan base.

My favorite comment last night though came from outside that extreme portion of the US fan base, and is a comment that best sums up the whole concept of Camp Cupcake:

While it was nice that Ricardo Clark managed to pick up a late goal to beat Venezuela and while it was nice that the team managed to maintain the early lead that Graham Zusi's goal gave them against Panama, despite going down to ten men for over 35 minutes, the important thing about these matches and the winter camp in general is that they gave US Coach Jürgen Klinsmann and his coaching staff a rare opportunity to work directly with players who caught their eye and then evaluate these players when they're tossed into the semi-deep portion of the USMNT pool.

The primary thing that I take from the fact that both of these matches were victories is that there is finally a glimmer of potential USMNT roster depth. The Venezuela and Panama squads, while clearly not the best in the world, contain enough talent to provide tests for a large number of American players who, if called up for meaningful matches, would spend a substantial amount of time on the bench; therefore, the fact that these raggedy squads of players straight out of off season break managed to pull off these two, rather ugly, victories is a testament to the slow but surely improving world of American soccer.

Even if the team had lost both of these matches, I still think the 2012 Camp Cupcake would have been a success in that we are not getting a sense of the core second team, and potential future first team, that is developing in this new chapter of US Soccer history. Many US Soccer fans might not have recognized the team that played these last two matches, but in the next couple years some of the players on the 2012 Camp Cupcake team will become regular fixtures in US kits.

An American in Verona: Who's the Flying Ass Now?

This week it was announced that American midfielder Michael Bradley, who was on the outs with German side Borussia Mönchengladbach, managed to secure a transfer deal to Chievo Verona in Serie A, along with a multi-year contract. Bradley, son of former United States National Team Coach, Bob Bradley, will be the only American playing in Serie A this season. He's the first high-profile American to sign with an top flight Italian side since Oguchi Onyewu's recent, but doomed, signing at Milan. The last high profile American player to see serious playing time in Serie A was Alexi Lalas, who played for Padova for a couple seasons following the 1994 World Cup finals.

Bradley, who is coming off a lackluster loan at Aston Villa, has a bit of a reputation of being a red-ass, so it will be interesting if the 24 year old can keep his temper in check as he adjusts to a new team, a new league, and a new culture. Once criticized for a boring defensive style of play, in recent years Serie A has become known for a more aggressive and open attacking style that, along with financial issues, has created a level of parity not found in most top flight leagues in Europe. If he gets some serious playing time, expect to see growth in both Bradley's technical skills and soccer IQ, which will be a benefit to the U.S. National Team.

Not sure about you, but I'm looking forward to the first time Bradley and Gennaro Gattuso of Milan are on the pitch at the same time, which should be on November 27th, assuming the current player strike comes to a swift end. But before that date, we need to see how quickly Bradley gets playing time. If the player strike gets resolved in time, Chievo Verona is set to host newly promoted Novara on Sunday September 11th at 8:00 a.m. central time.

Here's video of Michael Bradley saying hello to the fans of Chievo Verona (note that the club's nickname is The Flying Donkeys):

Bye Bye Bob: But Imagine if the US had Fallen to No. 37

Today the United States Soccer Federation announced that it had parted ways (fired) US Men's National Team Coach Bob Bradley. The Era of Bob Bradley began after the 2006 World Cup finals in Germany where the US failed to get out of their group. The poor showing in Germany resulted in Bruce Arena being fired and Bob Bradley being named interim coach, and then, in 2007, being named coach.

Those familiar with my opinion know that I'm not a big fan of Bob Bradley, never have been. I gave him the benefit of the doubt in 2007, pleased he coached the US to a Gold Cup finals victory and giving him a pass on the type of squad he had no choice but to take to the Copa America (anyone notice Mexico had to do the same thing this year thanks to FIFA player vacation rules?). It was the horrible losses to Brazil and Italy in the 2009 Confederations Cup group stage that turned me against Bradley, realizing he was not the guy to take the US to the next step in the world of international football. While many will remember Bradley for the US's win against Spain in the Confederations Cup semifinals, it's those two group stage losses that are most representative of his tenure.

The sins of the Bradley tenure were clear for all to see: questionable roster decisions, conservative play, poor substitution decisions, poor defense, poor in match tactical decisions, lack of backbone in dealing with foreign clubs.

Soccer House should have given Bradley his walking papers after the World Cup finals in South Africa in 2010; instead, they gave him a contract extension. Speculation that Bradley was out as US coach hit a high point again in June when the USMNT had a lackluster showing in the group stage of the Gold Cup and then lost, 4-2, to Mexico in the final.

US Soccer is set to make an announcement on Friday. Speculation is that Soccer House will announce the hiring of Jürgen Klinsmann as coach, that Soccer House had quietly taken the month since the embarrassing loss to Mexico to search for a coach and/or come to terms with Klinsmann. If that's what happened, I have to give Soccer House credit for doing so totally under the radar. Yes, US Soccer fan was distracted by the 2011 Women's World Cup finals in Germany, but let's be honest, it's still amazing that such could occur without any leak.

I suspect that Bob Bradley's firing was more a result of the United States falling to No. 30 in the most recent FIFA rankings, which were released on Wednesday. Say what you will about the rankings, but they are important to Soccer House (just as polls are important to the politicians who say they don't care about polls), and a 6 place drop in the rankings was more than Sunil Gulati and friends could stomach. If this is the case, Friday's announcement may concern the process by which Soccer House will go about its search for a new coach for the Men's National Team.

If my suspicion is correct, I ask Soccer House to show some guts and imagination by performing a broad and extensive search for a coach that has what it takes to push US Soccer forward.

2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup - The Final: Mexico Wins

Over 93,000 soccer fans filled the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California to watch Mexico and the United States face off in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup Final. After 90 minutes and 6 goals, it was Mexico that emerged victorious on a 4-2 scoreline.

Despite the end result, it was the United States that scored first in the match, thanks to Michael Bradley:



In the 23rd minute, it was Landon Donovan who picked up the US's second goal:



With an early 2-0 lead, things were looking good for the United States, but then, in the 29th minute, Pablo Barrera put Mexico on the scoreboard:



The United States was unable to maintain its lead going into halftime, with Andrés Guardado getting a goal in the 35th minute:



While the United States started the first half with an early goal, it was Mexico who picked up an early goal in the second half, thanks to Barrera:



The United States was unable to score again, but that didn't stop Giovani Dos Santos from picking up an insurance goal for Mexico:



With this victory, Mexico has earned a spot in the 2013 Confederations Cup in Brazil. Meanwhile, US soccer fans are left wondering if changes will be made, or if the current coaching staff will remain intact as the US looks ahead to World Cup qualifiers.

Go USA?

I think big changes need to be made at Soccer House, but I still want USA to win tonight.

2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup - Semifinals: US & Mexico Advance

Photo by Katy Umaña

Wednesday night a sold out crowd of over 70,000 soccer fans was on hand at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas for the semifinals of the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup, featuring the United States playing Panama and Mexico playing Honduras.

Just last week, the US had lost its first ever Gold Cup group stage match to Panama, so Wednesday featured a rematch between the two sides. On Tuesday, US players said they obviously wanted to win the semifinal match, but it wasn't an issue of revenge. In the end, it was native Texan Clint Dempsey who played the hero for the United States picking up the match's only goal in the 76th minute. Post-match audio from members of the USMNT can be heard in the most recent episode of The Zygo Soccer Report Podcast.

Mexico had been dominating the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup and going into it's Wednesday night match against Honduras it was expected that Mexico would win the match and advance to the final. Honduras, however, chose not to go quietly into that dark night and managed to hold Mexico to a 0-0 scoreline through the end of 90 minutes, sending the match to extra time. In the 92nd minute, Mexico's Jesús De Nigris finally broke the scoring drought, giving El Tri the lead, and ultimately the win. In the 98th minute, Javier "Chicharito" Hernández picked up the insurance goal for Mexico.

On Saturday, the United States and Mexico will meet at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California for the final. In 2009, the US lost to Mexico in the Gold Cup final, but this year a slot in the Confederations Cup is on the line and US has brought it's A team, but will that be enough to get by Mexico?

2011 Gold Cup Edition of The Zygo Soccer Report - Part 2

The United States Men's National Team beat Panama 1-0 in the semifinals of the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup at Reliant Stadium on Wednesday night thanks to a goal from Clint Dempsey. As of the posting time, it appears that Mexico will beat Honduras by 2-0 to also advance to the final. Here is raw, and I mean raw, audio from the US side following their victory. The audio includes Clint Dempsey, Bob Bradley, Sunil Gulati, Eric Lichaj, and Freddy Adu.

Photo by Katy Umaña

2011 Gold Cup Edition of The Zygo Soccer Report - Part 1

Mexico, Panama, Honduras, and the United States are all in Houston for the semifinals of the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Got some audio today from Tim Howard, Clint Dempsey, and Sacha Kljestan after the USMNT's practice at Reliant Stadium, as well as the audio from the entire Bob Bradley and Landon Donovan press conference.

Music by Ozomatli, Pat Green, and Calexico.