U.S. Tries to Fulfill Gold Cup Dream
When the United States won its first and only Gold Cup title in July of 1991, Landon Donovan was 9, growing up in Redlands with dreams of one day being part of the U.S. national soccer team.
Today, Donovan has the chance to help the U.S. win its second regional championship when it plays Costa Rica at noon at the Rose Bowl.
It has been Donovan’s inspired play, as much as anything else, that has sparked the U.S. in the sixth biennial Gold Cup. He scored the team’s first goal in the 12-nation tournament, and his speed and vision have added another dimension to the U.S. attack.
In part, that has been because Coach Bruce Arena moved the 19-year-old from a forward position into an attacking midfield role. Donovan is adapting well to the switch.
“I feel more comfortable,” he said after the U.S. had turned in one of its most positive performances in some time in Wednesday night’s semifinal against Canada. “I’m getting used to [teammate] Chris [Armas], and getting used to playing in the middle. Overall, it’s making me more relaxed and easier for me to play.”
With Donovan playing alongside Armas, Eddie Lewis and Cobi Jones in midfield, behind a front line of Brian McBride and Josh Wolff, the U.S. ran the Canadians ragged. The torrid pace continued when DaMarcus Beasley replaced Lewis and Clint Mathis replaced Wolff, and later still when Brian West replaced Jones.
“I thought we played great tonight,” Donovan said Wednesday after the Americans tied Canada, 0-0, but advanced on penalty kicks, 4-2. “It was probably our best performance so far.”
In that game, U.S. goalkeeper Kasey Keller came up huge, flinging himself to his left to save Kevin McKenna’s penalty kick and, later, throwing himself to his right to deny Tom Nsaliwa.
Donovan, McBride, Jeff Agoos and Mathis were a perfect four of four on the penalty kicks for the U.S.
A similar strong showing will be needed today against the Costa Ricans, who finished first in the North and Central American and Caribbean (CONCACAF) region’s World Cup qualifying group, ahead of Mexico and the U.S. The Americans are 3-0 against Costa Rica in Gold Cup play, but Costa Rica holds a 9-8-4 edge in the all-time series.
Jones, who reaches a milestone today by playing in a record 150th game for the U.S. national team, believes USA-Costa Rica is becoming as good a series as USA-Mexico.
“It’s definitely a good rivalry,” he said. “We’ve been battling for the past couple World Cup [qualifying tournaments]. All the games have been very close and hard fought.”
The U.S. defense, which allowed South Korea one goal in the opening game, has since shut out Cuba, El Salvador and Canada. Costa Rica, however, presents a different series of challenges.
For one thing, Costa Rica Coach Alexandre Guimares has better-quality players on his squad than any other U.S. opponent in this Gold Cup. The Central Americans are experienced, gifted and astute.
Forwards Paulo Wanchope, Ronald Gomez and Hernan Medford present a variety of problems with their speed and shooting power. Midfielder Harold Wallace is also a threat in Guimares’ fluid formation, in which left back Carlos Castro frequently moves up to turn a 4-4-2 alignment into a more adventurous 3-5-2 formation.
The U.S. back line has not been severely tested during the tournament. Agoos and Pablo Mastroeni have secured the center, while Frankie Hejduk and Carlos Bocanegra have held down the right and left back positions, respectively.
When opponents have managed to break through, Keller has been virtually unbeatable. And his best moments have come in one-on-one confrontations.
He stopped a penalty kick by South Korea’s Yoo Sang-Chul in the opening U.S. game before his two penalty saves Wednesday.
Keller, who is battling Brad Friedel for the starting spot in the World Cup, believes it’s his turn to win.
“I’ve had a few good tournaments in the Gold Cup,” he said. “This is my third time. The first time [in 1996], I finished third. The second time [in 1998], I finished second. Now, I think it’s time for first.”
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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)
Today’s Game
What: CONCACAF Gold Cup final
Who: United States vs. Costa Rica
Where: Rose Bowl, Pasadena
When: Noon
TV: Univision
Also: Canada vs South Korea, 10 a.m., for third place
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PREVIOUS FINALS
1991: United States 0, Honduras 0
(U.S. won on penalty kicks, 4-3)
1993: Mexico 4, United States 0
1996: Mexico 2, Brazil 0
1998: Mexico 1, United States 0
2000: Canada 2, Colombia 0
