It’s easy for the blind faithful to spout off the following as evidence we have “arrived”: Qualified 1st to the Wolrd Cup out of CONCACAF Got to the final in the Confederations Cup by knocking out #1 ranked Spain Got to the final of the Gold Cup But like I said in the last post, […]
National Team
US Soccer 2009 Year In Review (Part III: The Senior Team)
Thought to be kings one day and subservient the next – this is the mark of a team that wants to join the exclusive club of world soccer powers. The case for US Soccer was no different in 2009. We climbed Mount Everest by beating #1 ranked Spain, and then got obliterated by Mexico a […]
US Soccer 2009 Year In Review (Part II: U-20s)
We continue our 4-part series on recapping the US Soccer National Teams with a look at the U-20s performance. This is the age group that is most frequently targeted by critics as the point where our system fails in player development. While 18 to 20 year-olds in other countries are making regular professional appearances, our […]
US Soccer 2009 Year In Review (Part I: U-17s)
This is the first of a 4-part series that will recap the results of our National Team’s 2009 results. We start out by examining the U-17s. Usually the players on this squad form the foundation upon which the U-20s and the senior team are built. So if you want to look at the likely future […]
World Cup Coaching Salaries
The globalization of markets has enabled soccer to grow regardless of current economic conditions. One only need look at expanding player salaries and astronomical investments clubs are making. The $94 million Real Madrid recently furnished to acquire Cristiano Ronaldo is a clear example of the money that circulates the modern game. But clubs aren’t the […]
US U17s fall to Spain (Luis Gil a Bright Spot)
The US under 17s began their quest for World Cup glory on Monday against their Spanish counterparts. It was a promising start to their dream of World Cup Glory on Nigerian soil. It is a coaches dream to start a game off and see the opposition receive a straight red within a minute of kick-off. […]
US U-20 World Cup Performance Falls Short Due to Match Readiness?
U.S. coach Thomas Rongen, a Dutch-born veteran manager of Major League Soccer clubs, pointed to his player’s lack of game experience as the main reason for World Cup failure. His statement was: “We have a bunch of part-time players, quite frankly. Players around the world play hard games every weekend. Our players don’t,” Rongen said. […]
Report: US U-18 National Team Camp
I was at the U-18 National Team camp last Thursday at the Home Depot Center – primarily populated with 93s. They played two games, one with Arsenal (1-1), the other with Chivas USA (2-0). There were a couple big reasons for going. First, there are several players on both Arsenal and Chivas that use to […]
The Cream Isn’t Rising To The Top
I think we can all agree that the best should always get recognized and rise to the highest level. It is a basic principle that enables any country, company, team, etc to maximize their potential. In the case of a soccer team, we obviously want the best players, coach, management and staff possible. Today we’ll […]