While U.S. Struggles, Others Have Eyes on Cup

By GRAHAME L. JONES

Oct. 19, 1997 12 AM PT

Up at Big Bear Lake, Steve Sampson has the U.S. national team undergoing altitude training in preparation for its next World Cup ’98 qualifying match, against Mexico at Mexico City.

If Sampson is wise, the players will be getting a little attitude training as well.

After the team’s dismal display in its 1-1 tie against Jamaica a couple of weeks ago, it desperately needs to rediscover the attacking spirit it showed when Sampson first took over as coach.

That was in 1995, when the U.S. went to Uruguay for the Copa America and showed such flair and commitment to offense that it took South America by surprise. Sampson’s squad went all the way to the semifinals, defeating Chile, Argentina and Mexico (on penalty kicks) before eventually losing to Brazil.

Since then, the team has taken two steps sideways or backward for every one forward. The closer it has come to qualifying for France ‘98, the more defensive it has become, the more paranoid it is playing.

Whether this is being generated by the players or is a reflection of the coach’s increasing concern in a very tight qualifying race is unclear. It is probably a little of both.

Whatever the cause, it needs to be dealt with and Sampson has only two weeks to correct the situation.

The United States’ World Cup fate will be determined in three games over 15 days between Nov. 2-16. Unless it wins at least one of them, it will not be going to France. A victory and a tie will secure a place in the World Cup.

Given, however, that a loss to Mexico on Nov. 2 is a foregone conclusion--since 1937, the U.S. is 0-17 against Mexico at Mexico City, where a crowd of 120,000 at Guillermo Canedo Stadium will be urging Mexico on to the single point it needs to qualify for France--Sampson needs to be concentrating on the final two games.

The United States is too good to lose to Canada at Vancouver on Nov. 9 or to El Salvador at Boston on Nov. 16. If it plays in the manner it did at Copa America in 1995, it should sweep those countries aside.

But if it plays scared, it could fail to reach France.

Attitude training, therefore, is even more important than altitude training. Going to Big Bear Lake is all very well, but not qualifying for the World Cup would be the height of absurdity.

ADIOS, URUGUAY

The United States’ struggles are of little concern to those teams that not only already have qualified for France but have a legitimate chance of winning the World Cup.

Only six nations have done so--Uruguay in 1930 and 1950; Italy in 1934, 1938 and 1982; Germany in 1954, 1974 and 1990; England in 1966; Argentina in 1978 and 1986, and Brazil in 1958, 1962, 1970 and 1994.

A glance at that list shows that by next summer it will have been 20 years since a “new” country won the quadrennial tournament. Argentina, in 1978, was the most recent addition to the honor roll.

Chances are, that won’t change next year, but the odds are not quite as lopsided in favor of former champions as they might seem.

For one thing, Uruguay is out. Its 0-0 tie against bitter rival Argentina in Buenos Aires last Sunday mathematically eliminated it. The two-time winner tried every trick in the book to stay alive, but even the fact the game was played on the 80th birthday of its coach, Roque Maspoli, did not save Uruguay. Maspoli was the goalkeeper on the day of Uruguay’s greatest triumph, when it upset Brazil, 2-1, at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro to win the 1950 World Cup.

BRAZILIAN FIFTH?

So, one former winner is out of the running. That leaves five others. But the odds do not favor Argentina or defending champion Brazil. Only once in the 67-year history of the World Cup has a South American team won the trophy on European soil. That was the Pele-led Brazil of 1958, in Sweden.

Brazil’s coach, Mario Lobo Zagalo, was a left wing on that team and scored in the final. Since then, he has become the only man to have won the World Cup four times--as a player in ’58 and ‘62, as coach in ’70 and as technical director in ’94.

In his search for a fifth title, he has spent the past three years chopping and changing the Brazilian team, trying to discover the combination that will unlock the World Cup trophy case next June 10-July 12. Brazil’s loss with an under-23 team in the semifinals of the Atlanta Olympics only strengthened his resolve.

Since then, Brazil has finished second in the Tornoi de France--a sort of World Cup warmup tournament in June in which Brazil tied France and Italy and defeated eventual winner England--and won the Copa America, or South American championship, in Bolivia later that month.

Most recently, Brazil struggled against fellow France ’98 qualifier Morocco last Sunday, eventually winning, 2-0, on goals by Denilson after the North Africans tired in the heat and humidity of Belem, a city at the mouth of the Amazon.

FRENCH LESSONS

France, staging the tournament 60 years after it first played host to the world, has the players to win the World Cup for the first time. Whether it has the nerve, however, is another thing.

Coach Aime Jacquet’s squad tied Brazil and Italy in the Tornoi de France but lost to England and finished a disappointing third. Still, the loss to England was only the team’s second in 37 games under Jacquet and it has since gotten back on the winning track, although not altogether convincingly.

Last weekend, at Lens, host France had to come from behind to score a 2-1 victory over South Africa, which already has clinched a World Cup berth. Shaun Bartlett, who plays for Major League Soccer’s New York/New Jersey MetroStars, gave South African the lead just before halftime, but second-half goals by Stephane Guivarc’h and Ibrahim Ba saved France’s blushes.

Next up for the French is a Nov. 12 game in St. Etienne against Scotland, which earned its place in the World Cup last weekend.

The Scots were quick to assure their French hosts they are not English and that the hooligan minority that seems to disrupt every England game has nothing to do with Scotland.

After the Scots had clinched their World Cup berth, Jim Farry, chief executive of the Scottish Football Assn., traveled to France to assure the French that Scottish fans are well behaved.

“They bring color, exuberance, party spirit and no small amount of humor to these occasions,” he said. “These are the positive elements we will be concentrating on in any discussions with [French] chiefs of police.

“We must separate the fact that we are Scottish. We have qualified as Scotland and we will be playing under the Saltire [Scotland’s flag] and no other flag.”

Jacquet, meanwhile, remains upbeat about France’s chances next summer.

“Spirit, a bit of luck and the occasion will allow us to do something important in the World Cup,” he said in June, and there is no reason yet to doubt that.

ITALIAN WHINE

In the most eagerly anticipated World Cup qualifier of the year, Italy and England met last weekend at Rome’s Olympic Stadium. The game was a clear indication that England’s fortunes are in the ascent, while Italy’s are falling fast.

The 0-0 tie before 81,200 put England in the World Cup and sent Italy into a not-at-all-pleasant playoff against Russia for a berth in France ’98. The reactions were predictably different.

“Something is growing in the squad, we have an inner belief . . . but next year we’re going to be facing the likes of Germany and Brazil and we’ve still got things to work on,” England Coach Glenn Hoddle said.

Cesare Maldini, Italy’s coach, criticized FIFA’s World Cup qualifying system as unfair, saying the allocation of places by continental confederation allows weak countries to qualify for the World Cup ahead of stronger ones. Italy was unbeaten in its eight qualifying games but still was forced into a playoff series that will knock one of the 1994 participants out of the World Cup.

“I’ve got a bitter taste in my mouth about all this,” Maldini said. “We won five games and drew three and still have to go to the playoffs. It seems a little unfair.

“FIFA’s qualification system is open to criticism because a European country--undoubtedly a strong one--will be excluded to make way for Jamaica, for example.”

All of which will go down well in Kingston. One can but hope that Italy and Jamaica both reach France and are drawn in the same group.

Chances are that Italy, the losing finalist in the USA ’94 World Cup, somehow will get past Russia and rebuild in time to be a threat next summer. In other words, England should not take too seriously Maldini’s praise after the Rome game.

“They’ve become a great side,” he said of England. “They’ve got a great physical presence in midfield, technically accomplished players like David Beckham and Teddy Sheringham and a defense made up of towers. It’s a great combination.”

OKTOBERFEST, SORT OF

Inevitably, that leaves Germany. The reigning European champion is the team many believe is most likely to take the World Cup away from Brazil.

But Coach Berti Vogts’ team looked anything but convincing in the bizarre 4-3 victory over lowly Albania in Hanover last weekend that secured Germany’s place in France.

Still, Oliver Bierhoff, the forward who scored the winning goal in Euro ’96 in England and who netted the injury-time winner against Albania, believes history might be ready to repeat itself.

In 1989, Germany had to come from behind to defeat Wales in its final qualifying match for the Italia ’90 World Cup, which it won. This time it had to do the same thing against Albania.

“I hope it’s a good sign,” Bierhoff said, “because it was just like for the 1990 World Cup. In our last game we also needed a draw and we also frightened ourselves before winning.”

Vogts was less interested in history than performance.

“We certainly did not look like World Cup favorites,” he said. “We’ve got interesting matches coming up against Nigeria, Brazil and probably South Africa. We must use them to improve our playing style.”

Which is something Sampson and the United States also should be considering.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

World Cup ’98 Field

The following countries either have qualified for the 32-nation France ’98 World Cup or are close to doing so:

AFRICA

* In: Cameroon, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa and Tunisia.

ASIA

* Closing in: China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, United Arab Emirates.

CONCACAF

* Closing in: El Salvador, Jamaica, Mexico, United States.

OCEANIA

* Closing in: Australia.