*** Official World Cup 2010 Thread***

Clark starting was an odd decision. I'm sure Bradley will be asked about his reasons for it and I'll be interested to hear what he was thinking. Despite that, the goal was not Clark's fault alone. He started it by losing the ball, but the defense failed to close down the ball and then, shockingly, Howard let himself get beaten at the near post. All of them are to blame, as any one of those three doing their jobs right would have prevented that goal.

That said, the US usually plays better as the game goes on and they've already started pulling their heads out of their collective asses. Still, they aren't closing down the ball fast enough and they are giving Ghana way too much space within 30 yards.

As we transition, we're not giving the ball carrier enough options. Many times he'll only have one option and that's just not acceptable. And then building into the attack, we're rushing too many passes. Too few options once again and the ball carrier resorts to just kicking it.

Pretty poor soccer from the US, but they are showing signs of life at least.

Edit - And Ghana is playing well, but I don't believe they can keep up this level of play for an entire game. They already showed some signs of fading out towards the end of the half and the US will only strengthen.

 
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Well that was pretty miserable. If our D could get through a match without giving up ridiculous goals and giving up one in the first fifteen minutes, you might see a real contender for all the marbles. The US simply doesn't look good enough to be a team that's going to win the cup when they only play one good half per match. You have to have the skill and the ability to play a full 90, or 120.

EDIT

I'm pretty new to the sport, but I have to say that my continued interest in the game is jeopardized by the way injuries and time management are handled. The US should have gotten ten minutes added onto the end for all the bullsh#t that Ghana was pulling. Phantom injuries, strolls for substitutions, taking a minute to execute a throw in. I'm sorry but fans of the sport have to realize that this is working the system in absurd ways that have no peer in popular American sports. Milking the clock is a part of the game, but do it on the damn field, not when play has stopped. Add onto this that refs are allowed to disallow goals without telling anyone the call or being subject to official review, soccer has some deep, deep issues to hammer out before it contends with the likes of football in America.

 
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The US needs a player who can finish, plain and simple. Altidore is probably the laziest 20 year old i've ever seen. I have always questioned Bob Bradley's ability as a coach, but coming out and letting them score in the first 15 minutes rests solely on him for not getting them ready. Clark was the main cause of that but the defense had some blame and Howard played like he has never played an international game as well. Bradley can't light a fire under his teams and we need a coach who will bring the best to the WC. This US team will never get any farther than the quarter finals with Gulati as the pres and Bradley as the coach. These guys simply can't compete with the worlds soccer powers with that much interference and lack of passion from a coach.

Just my opinion of course.

 
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