Rarely is any win widely labeled as a failure, but the United States have captured that rare distinction tonight with their embarrassing 1-0 win over Guadeloupe. Though Jozy Altidore hit a fantastic strike in the 9th minute to put the United States up 1-0, they missed an absolutely unbelievable volume of chances and played completely lackadaisical throughout the second half. Guadeloupe hardly showed up to the game, and the fact that they were only able to win 1-0 in a must win game at home against such a poor side is extremely disappointing.
The general consensus is that the performance they put in tonight would get the USMNT embarrassed by Mexico and beaten quite easily by Jamaica and Costa Rica, so they will have to bring a much higher level of focus and energy against the Reggae Boyz
Clint Dempsey, in particular, had what can only be described as one of the worst games of his professional career. The attacking midfield player has been great for Fulham and the United States over the years, which is exactly what made his performance so shocking. He could have very easily had a hat trick, and his 75th minute miss was worthy of an all-time great misses lowlight reel.
Even more puzzling than the United States' atrocious finishing and their seemingly limited effort in the second half were the substitutions that Bob Bradley made. Despite the fact that his team had all of the possession and Guadeloupe appeared to have no chance to make anything happen, he brought in midfielders for strikers with his first two substitutions, then made a like for like change with the third. The decision to sit back and try to kill off a game in which his team held a 1-0 lead against an inferior opponent was baffling.
This was about the least impressive win that the United States could have possibly posted, and they look like a team that will be defeated by Jamaica without much of a problem. They have the rest of the week to sort themselves out, and despite the bad performances so far in Gold Cup, that quarterfinal matchup should be a close one.
The general consensus is that the performance they put in tonight would get the USMNT embarrassed by Mexico and beaten quite easily by Jamaica and Costa Rica, so they will have to bring a much higher level of focus and energy against the Reggae Boyz
Clint Dempsey, in particular, had what can only be described as one of the worst games of his professional career. The attacking midfield player has been great for Fulham and the United States over the years, which is exactly what made his performance so shocking. He could have very easily had a hat trick, and his 75th minute miss was worthy of an all-time great misses lowlight reel.
Even more puzzling than the United States' atrocious finishing and their seemingly limited effort in the second half were the substitutions that Bob Bradley made. Despite the fact that his team had all of the possession and Guadeloupe appeared to have no chance to make anything happen, he brought in midfielders for strikers with his first two substitutions, then made a like for like change with the third. The decision to sit back and try to kill off a game in which his team held a 1-0 lead against an inferior opponent was baffling.
This was about the least impressive win that the United States could have possibly posted, and they look like a team that will be defeated by Jamaica without much of a problem. They have the rest of the week to sort themselves out, and despite the bad performances so far in Gold Cup, that quarterfinal matchup should be a close one.
No comments:
Post a Comment