scott plummer

on the eve of the final group game against algeria, i thought it was time to give my thoughts on the usa/slovenia match.

the yanks fell prey to a problem that has plagued them for some time. the early goal. the team looked lackluster in the first half and the eager slovenians took advantage of it by potting two first half goals. the jose francisco-torres experiment seemed to not work as i, and i suppose bob bradley expected it to. a 2-0 deficit at the half was worrisome to say the least.

the changes made by bradley at the half were exactly what the team needed. dempsey moved to a more forward role where frankly he should have started.

the second half is a different story. when down by two at the half anyone who knows anything about the sport will tell you that an early goal in the second half greatly improves your chances of making a comback. not only did the usa get an early goal, it got a brilliant early goal from landon donovan. along with maicon from brazil, landon has the top goal of the tournament. the usa fed off of that goal and controlled most of the play for the second half yet it took untill less than 10 minutes left for them to find the equalizer through the coaches kid, micahel bradley. bradley's sliding finish to tie the game would have been just fine with me. a win would have been nice, but a tie was sufficient.

now let's talk about that win.

it should have been a win. moments after bradley tied it the usa won a free kick on the right hand side. donovan did what donovan does and served in a beautiful ball that maurice edu snuck in and tapped home for the win. oh, but wait. there was an offside call. or was it a foul by dempsey? or was it a foul by bocanegra? i don't have a problem with the fact the goal was disallowed. it happens. i get that. what i don't get is the referee and fifa refusing to discuss it or say what the call was. the only fouls i saw were the bear hugs from two slovenia players on bocanegra and dempsey.

moving on. the usa face algeria tomorrow in their final group game and it's quite simple. win and you move on to the round of 16. here's what i'd like to see. i want to see edu start alongside bradley in the midfield. i want to see dempsey starting up front with altidore. clint is better and more effective when he plays in a more forward position. replacing clint on the right wing has to be stuart holden. he has proved himself as more than a worthy replacement for dempsey on the wing.

final prediction. usa 2 algeria 0. goals from altidore and dempsey.

mark my word. micael bradley will be playing his club football in the english premier league sooner rather than later.

peace

~scott

i was going to break down the group as a whole prior to the first match but i decided what i wanted to do was break down each of the usa's games after they've played and talk about what i think they need to do in the next game in order to come away with a win.

the usa have had a problem starting out games recently, conceding a lot of goals in the first twenty minutes of matches, and this game was no different. at around the four minute mark emil heskey slid a slick pass into the box for the three lions that steven gerrard ran onto and slotted a shot passed american keeper tim howard. the defense collapsed for that goal but it wasn't a defender, rather a midfielder, ricardo clark, that was pedestrian as gerrard ran onto heskey's pass. it was shocking defending at it's worst. after the goal, i said to the people that i was watching the match with that if that happened again, tim howard was going to start breaking necks. he didn't need to break necks, but he did take a boot to the chest from heskey which had me worried until he was back up and between the pipes.

i was a little surprised that england went with rob green in between the sticks. i thought for sure that they would go with the veteran david "calamity" james. imagine my surprise when green came up with a james-esque howler as he bundled a tame clint dempsey shot over the line to tie the contest at one late in the first half.

the second half saw several chances for each side but the keepers were making big saves and keeping their teams in the contest. from my point of view the goal of both teams in the second half was to preserve the point that they would get from the draw. a draw which to england may have felt like a loss, while the usa probably viewed it as somewhat of a win as they kept pace with one of the best teams in international football.

the three lions controlled most of the game but the usa's defense kept one of the most dangerous strikers in the world, wayne (shrek) rooney, in check all match long. the usual suspects stepped up and had solid games for the yanks. dempsey, donovan, and howard were all playing as we've come to expect. for what it's worth, my man of the match was tim howard. he stood tall after england scored theiry early goal, and he kept his team in the game with some world class saves.

up next for the usa is slovenia, a team that the usa should beat, but i am a little concerned. after slovenia moved to the top of the group with their win over algeria, they are going to be looking for a big scalp and a win that would all but gurantee their passage into the knockout stages. i look for slovenia to come out and attack and try to get an early goal. if the usa can withstand some early pressure without conceding i think they will pick up a win. slovenia is a small eurpean country and i think that the americans have too much talent not to win this match.

i'd like to see a few changes to the lineup however. i'm not a fan of robbie findley and i don't like seeing dempsey out on the wing. i'd like to see dempsey up front with jozy altidore and have stuart holden inserted on the wing to replace depmsey. i'd also like to see ricardo clark taken out for a more attack minded player like jose francisco torres. someone that can run the game from the center of midfield is going to be key and i think torres, or benny feilhaber can fill that roll quite well.

my prediction. usa 2 slovenia 0. a clean sheet and another man of the match performance from tim howard. goals from jozy altidore and landon donovan.

peace

~scott

A Fine Frenzy - You Picked Me

One, two, three
Counting out the signs we see
The tall buildings
Fading in the distance
Only dots on a map
Four, five, six
The two of us a perfect fit
You're all mine, all mine

And all I can say
Is you blow me away

Like an apple on a tree
Hiding out behind the leaves
I was difficult to reach
But you picked me
Like a shell upon a beach
Just another pretty piece
I was difficult to see
But you picked me
Yeah you picked me

So softly
Rain against the windows
And the strong coffee
Warming up my fingers
In this fisherman's house
You got me
Searched the sand
And climbed the tree
And brought me back down

And all I can say
Is you blow me away

Like an apple on a tree
Hiding out behind the leaves
I was difficult to reach
But you picked me
Like a shell upon a beach
Just another pretty piece
I was difficult to see
But you picked me
Yeah you picked me