WORLD CUP USA ’94 / THE FIRST ROUND : ANALYSIS : U.S. Made Its Point, It Wasn’t Convincing

Was it a point won or two points lost?

In holding Switzerland to a 1-1 tie at the Silverdome on Saturday, the United States accomplished something it had not done since 1950--it earned its first World Cup point.

But the Swiss were supposed to be the team the Americans could beat, especially in the sauna-like atmosphere of the Silverdome, described by Switzerland Coach Roy Hodgson, as “like playing in a hot dog stand.”

A victory would have given the U.S. team three points and good chance to advance to the next round from a group that includes Romania and Colombia. Romania took the lead in the group with a 3-1 victory over Colombia.

Instead, both teams walked away with a share of the spoils after a game that featured two excellent goals scored on free kicks and a lot of hard work by both sides but little else.

Hodgson said the postgame atmosphere in the Swiss locker room was anything but upbeat.

“It’s like a morgue in there,” he said. “People are very disappointed because we thought we played quite well. We passed the ball well. We thought we did enough to win the game. The atmosphere in the dressing room is more like after a defeat than after a point won.”

There was much the same feeling among the American players.

“It was a very lackluster performance, really,” midfielder John Harkes said. “The main thing is, we know we can play better. We’ve got to lift our spirits. Coming away with a point is a lot better than coming away empty-handed.”

Especially considering how much the Swiss dominated play, particularly in the second half when it was all the U.S. defense could do to hold them at bay.

Marcelo Balboa and Alexi Lalas, the two central defenders, threw themselves at everything that came their way. Left back Paul Caligiuri seldom made a wrong move. On the right, Cle Kooiman appeared a lot less comfortable and time and again was forced to hoof the ball aimlessly out of bounds under pressure from the ever-dangerous Alain Sutter.

But the defense held. Had it not been for Thomas Dooley’s ill-timed tackle that led to the first-half goal by Swiss midfielder Georges Bregy, goalkeeper Tony Meola might have had a shutout. He deserved one. Meola played a solid game and did well to handle the numerous crosses that came flying in from the wings.

It was there, Hodgson acknowledged, that the Swiss broke down.

“We didn’t do enough with our crosses,” he said. “We got the ball wide like we wanted to do and got the movements going in the wide positions quite well, but the quality of the final ball in (to the center) wasn’t good enough.

“Also, we didn’t take our chances. There were two very good chances which we didn’t take, and at this level of football if you don’t take your chances you don’t win the games.”

Bregy, 36, certainly took his chance, firing home a free kick that flew past the wall and left Meola rooted to the ground.

Wynalda’s strike on a free kick from a similar position was perfectly placed, finding the angle of the crossbar and goal post beyond goalkeeper Marco Pascolo’s reach.

Wynalda’s emphatic goal erased the stigma of 1990, when he was red-carded in the opening game. But the Americans did not capitalize on the momentum when they came out for the second half.

Instead, it was the Swiss who mounted attack after attack, only to see their offense foiled by the U.S. defense, Meola or poor finishing.

Coach Bora Milutinovic’s team relied on counterattacks, but those became more infrequent as the match wore on.

Harkes, for one, was unhappy with the way the U.S. midfield--with the exception of himself and Tab Ramos--consistently refused to move forward on offense. The result, he said, was to give Switzerland the upper hand.

“We invited the pressure on top of us,” Harkes said. “We didn’t really get at them, and when we did it was only with one or two players attacking five at the back and it made it very difficult to score.”

Hodgson, meanwhile, was taking a better view of the tie than his players. Switzerland last took part in the World Cup in 1966, when it was knocked out in the first round.

“I’m taking the chance (to enjoy it) while it’s here,” Hodgson said. “It took us 30 years (actually 28) to reach this World Cup, it might take us another 30 years to get to the next one and I’ll be long gone. So I’m going to enjoy it.

“I think that we gave a good account of ourselves, a good account of Swiss football, and that’s very important for me.”

The Americans are showing they can play the game. But there still are those who wonder what might have been.

“I was a bit frustrated,” Harkes said, “because I think Switzerland was there for the taking. I would have liked to have gotten three points from the first game. But they’re probably happy with the point, as we are.”

After 44 years without one, the United States should look on this as a point well-taken.