U.S. Tie Stokes Praise, Queries
England’s Guardian newspaper, making a rare and uncharacteristically flattering comment about the U.S. World Cup team, called its game with Italy a “blood and thunder” affair.
That it was, but at least three questions remain after the Americans’ combative 1-1 tie with the Italians in Kaiserslautern on Saturday night in a game the U.S. could not afford to lose.
* Why, after his team had been reduced to nine men and some of those nine were visibly wilting late in the match while fighting to hold onto the point, did Coach Bruce Arena not use his third and final available substitute?
* In light of its impressive 2-0 upset of heavily favored Czech Republic, will Ghana be drained or will it be inspired to even greater achievements? A victory over the U.S. would put it into the round of 16.
* What sort of defense is Arena going to patch together for Thursday’s match against the Africans in Nuremberg, considering that two starters, defender Eddie Pope and defensive midfielder Pablo Mastroeni, will be serving one-game suspensions?
First things first.
Arena could have sent forwards Eddie Johnson, Brian Ching or Josh Wolff on to replace forward Brian McBride, but opted not to. He could have sent on another defender, say, Chris Albright or Eddie Lewis, but opted not to. Why?
“It would have been difficult to put someone in the midfield,” Arena said. “The choices were really going to be a striker, but McBride was doing so much work, defending on restarts, defending on the run of play and being our target.
“We thought it would be a difficult situation to bring either Johnson or Ching in for the last five minutes of the game. McBride was doing well. He hung in there. We said, ‘Let’s stick with it and not bring a player in under difficult circumstances.’ ”
Italy’s coach, Marcello Lippi, said Sunday that he had been surprised by the Americans’ resistance under intense pressure, but added that his team shared some of the blame for not winning.
“We don’t expect to dominate every game, we are not robots,” he said. “It’s not possible. Our fans must understand there are highs and lows, that at times we can make mistakes.”
Some U.S. fans thought Uruguayan referee Jorge Larrionda had erred with the red cards he gave to Mastroeni and Pope, but Arena was not among the critics. Italy, he said, had perhaps received a break or two, but nothing substantive.
“I think it’s natural that the powers in the game probably get a little bit more respect from the officials,” Arena said. “That’s not unusual in any sport. One day the U.S. will get some of those calls in its favor.
“But again, it’s a difficult job refereeing at this level -- the speed of the games, the intensity, what they mean. If the referee made mistakes, we certainly made ours as well. We can’t dwell on it. It is what it is and I’m just pleased our guys responded the way they did under difficult conditions.”
Asked if the U.S. had needed to restore its reputation after the team’s earlier 3-0 loss to the Czechs, Arena bristled.
“We lost to the No. 2-ranked team in the world,” he said. “It’s not the end of the world. We only lost a soccer game. We didn’t lose our dignity, our honor or our respect.”
Ghana Coach Ratomir Dujkovic said his players have to “calm down” before Thursday. The same might apply to him. “The next match will be the most important of my career,” 60-year-old Dujkovic said.
Though the U.S. will be without Mastroeni and Pope, Ghana will be missing suspended striker Asamoah Gyan.
Chances are, Jimmy Conrad, who came on when Pope was ejected, will retain his place in the defense.
Mastroeni’s defensive midfield spot is tougher to fill. The job could go to Ben Olsen but more likely will fall to John O’Brien.
Whether O’Brien is match-fit enough to last 90 minutes is doubtful. Like all World Cup questions, one only leads to another. Thursday will provide the answers.
