WORLD CUP USA ’94 / THE FIRST ROUND : Balboa Is Leading Man for U.S. : Group A: Defender takes charge on the back line, delighting the coaching staff.
The transformation of Marcelo Balboa was not physical and it was not mental. It was verbal.
In the U.S. team’s opening World Cup game Saturday, the emphasis changed, from offensive strength to defensive prowess. Balboa’s role in the game in the Silverdome at Pontiac, Mich., was cited as key to salvaging a 1-1 tie with Switzerland.
Balboa’s contribution? He spoke. For the first time, he assumed the leadership role the U.S. coaching staff has for so long been coaxing the veteran of the 1990 World Cup to grab.
Few U.S. players have been willing to act as the vital communications center at the back of the formation, to be the player who directs the movement and tactical alignment of the team. Balboa did all of that Saturday.
“Marcelo really lifted his game,” U.S. assistant coach Steve Sampson said Sunday. “Something I haven’t seen from Marcelo in a long, long time--he was very vocal. Every coach on this team has talked to him about that aspect of the game. It’s important that he organize the defense. He demonstrated leadership. Maybe it was the event. Thank God, it was desperately needed.”
Balboa didn’t make an issue of his new voice in postgame interviews, but those who have followed the team immediately spotted--and heard--the change.
“It’s something I’ve had a hard time doing,” Balboa said. “(Saturday), it was a thing I had to do. I had to yell more. It was difficult to do because there were so many people in the stadium. But we needed to communicate.”
While the contact and communication between the U.S. defense and midfield was good, the space between the midfield and the two forward players was lost against Switzerland. Midfielders were able to help out by dropping back on defense, but, as the game played out in 106-degree heat, midfielders were reluctant to join the attack.
“As the game wore on, everyone got tired,” Balboa said. “We weren’t able to push up. We dropped back a little too far. Defensively, it worked well for us, but offensively we weren’t able to go forward.”
Balboa’s performance was all the more impressive in light of the general ambivalence of U.S. Coach Bora Milutinovic regarding Balboa and where, if anywhere, he might play. It began with Balboa’s absence because of a knee injury and, after his return, Milutinovic’s vagueness about whether he planned to employ a sweeper--Balboa’s longtime position--or abandon the position in favor of a four-back defense.
Milutinovic chose to compromise, using a four-back system in which Balboa does some sweeping chores.
“There was some uncertainty,” Sampson said of Balboa’s place. “Everyone was aware of it, even Marcelo.”
For the most part, the defense played well against Switzerland. Alexi Lalas was particularly effective against Swiss striker Stephane Chapuisat, a world-class player whom Lalas rendered a non-factor. Chapuisat’s teammate Alain Sutter was roaming the midfield dangerously, but he drew one and at times two defenders. His presence created space that--had Chapuisat been unmarked--the striker might have exploited.
The U.S. team returned to its sequestered hotel in Dana Point late Saturday night and the non-starting players practiced Sunday. Midfielder Claudio Reyna, who did not play Saturday because of a strained hamstring, practiced Sunday, but he still has pain when he strikes the ball and is listed as probable to play against Colombia on Wednesday at the Rose Bowl.
Eric Wynalda, who scored the U.S. goal Saturday, did not practice and is still recovering from an allergic reaction that caused him to break out in hives. Team officials say the condition is expected to clear up in a few days.
