Soviets Steal the U.S. Show, 3-1 : Soccer: Super Summit becomes extravaganza, but estimated crowd of 61,000 at Stanford Stadium is left disappointed.
Americans showed the world Saturday the contribution they can make to its favorite sport.
An estimated crowd of 61,000, the most ever to see the U.S. national soccer team play a game other than at the 1984 Summer Olympics, settled into Stanford Stadium. Bands played, parachutists landed on the field, pigeons and balloons were released into the hazy blue sky, a space shuttle Discovery astronaut presented a ball that he carried into space with him and a wild man nicknamed Crazy George did whatever it is that he does.
But then the game started, and the reality soon sunk in that the United States was no more ready to send its soccer players onto the field against the Soviet Union in the so-called Super Soccer Summit than it is to send its watchmakers out against the Swiss.
The final score, 3-1, was misleading only in the sense that the Soviets seemed more than two goals better than the United States. “This was the test we thought it would be, and I think we learned some lessons,” U.S. Coach Bob Gansler said.
The circumstances seemed right for a U.S. upset. One of the world’s best teams at full strength, the Soviets are far from it at this point because so many of their players are injured or under contract to European professional teams.
The players available to the national team are getting into shape for the Soviet first division’s regular season, which begins March 5. To speed them along and get a look at a few young prospects for this summer’s World Cup, their federation sent them on a 25-day trip, which began with 10 games in Italy, resumed with two games last week in Los Angeles and concluded here.
Meantime, the U.S. team spent a week in Bermuda, won two games there against modest opposition, then trained in Palo Alto for a week. Except for midfielder Hugo Perez, who is playing in the French second division, the team that probably will play in the World Cup was intact.
But it was the Soviets who put the more cohesive unit onto the field. On their first goal, which came at 28:40, veteran defender Oleg Kuznetsov passed in front of the penalty area to midfielder Fedor Cherenkov, who found defender Vladimir Bessonov open on the right flank. One-on-one against goalkeeper Tony Meola, Bessonov won with a right-footed shot into the left corner of the net.
On the third, the only goal of the second half, defender Andrei Zigmantovic made a run down the center of the field toward the goal, drew four defenders, then passed to an open Oleg Protasov, who had to beat only Meola for the score.
John Harkes scored the only U.S. goal, briefly tying the score at 41:56, but the offense was accepting no congratulations because it came on a penalty kick after a questionable foul call against Oleg Luzny.
