Soccer is a sport that often times defies logic. At the Copa America Centenario currently being played across the United States, nowhere does that truth seem more evident than in the performances of the host nation so far.
Albert Einstein once famously defined insanity as the repetition of an action while expecting different results, but in the case of the US national team at the Copa, repetition has beared exactly that.
Entering the tournament, head coach Jurgen Klinsmann had been slightly embattled over the past year, to put things mildly. A disappointing 4th-placed finish in the Gold Cup, the loss to Mexico on home soil in the CONCACAF Cup, and unconvincing play in World Cup qualifiers were only very slightly offset with some positive play in the tuneup exhibitions, where the US won three straight games.
Concerns about Klinsmann’s squad selection and tactics seemed close to reaching a boiling point, and as the Copa America neared, an interview with the Wall Street Journal seemed to indicate that Klinsmann was feeling a deep sense of frustration with the developmental setup in the US.
Was this a tactic to light a fire under some players and motivate them to better form so as to re-enter the national team picture? Was Klinsmann trying to shift the blame for the lack of players coming through the national team system onto the federation? The latter would seem to indicate two troubling possibilities – that tension between Klinsmann and the USSF was growing, or that the USSF was setting him up for failure.
In either case, one thing was clear as the tournament inched ever closer: the US needed to do well for Klinsmann to have any chance of remaining in the job. Defining “well” proved to be difficult, however, as Klinsmann’s own attempts to simultaneously talk up the US’ chances in the Copa while downplaying expectations had raised eyebrows on social media:
Perhaps most glaring of all was this statement Klinsmann made about the squad on the eve of the opener against the Colombians, a quote that was understandably called into question:
If Klinsmann or anyone on the US squad thought that the manager’s seat was warm before the game against Colombia, the heat was about to get turned up.
Taking the field at Santa Clara that evening, hopes were reasonably high that in spite of having to face the world’s third-ranked team, the home field advantage that the US had would translate into an inspired performance to get their Copa America bid off to a good start.
Instead, the US were down a goal inside of 10 minutes, and while they were able to probe deep into the Colombian half numerous times, those forays inevitably broke down due to a giveaway, poor pass selection due to lack of movement, or just plain lack of creativity from midfield.
Stalwarts Michael Bradley and Clint Dempsey, on whose shoulders Klinsmann and the US have leaned on heavily, were unable to exert their usual influence on proceedings, and Bradley was not anonymous so much as he was downright poor on the night.
As for Dempsey, a fairly strong first half faded into a subpar second half as the US failed to recover from the two defensive lapses that allowed Colombia to run out 2-0 winners.
To be fair, the Americans were not outplayed by the Colombians, and did enjoy several spells of good possession. Ultimately, however, the lack of imagination and grit showed as the players seemed to be merely going through the motions.
Forced into a near must-win position against Costa Rica and with his team failing to impress in its previous match, it was inevitable that lineup changes were necessary, right? Surely the time had come for a rising prospect like Darlington Nagbe to get his chance? Would there even be any consideration to benching either Dempsey or Bradley? Was there any chance that precocious teenager Christian Pulisic would be given a chance?
Flying in the face of conventional wisdom in an international tournament, the exact same lineup took to the field to face another World Cup quarterfinalist, but this time with a vastly different result as Jermaine Jones keyed a resurgent performance by the Americans.
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To a man and in just a matter of days, the starting eleven was a transformed unit and played with an energy and drive that had been missing for some time from US performances going back to the thrilling wins in Europe last summer over traditional powers Germany and the Netherlands on their own soil.
The highlight of the night for the US was easily Jones’ effort, winning balls in midfield and distributing the ball with ease to get attacking moves going. Elsewhere, Bradley quietly but effectively played from a deeper role than his traditional playmaking role further upfield and stifled Costa Rica’s ability to put pressure on the US.
In the back four, Geoff Cameron, whose lack of concentration on a corner allowed Cristian Zapata to shake free and score Colombia’s opener, combined with John Brooks in the heart of the defense to frustrate a talented Costa Rican attack led by Bryan Ruiz and Joel Campbell.
Exactly what changed between Friday in Santa Clara and Tuesday night in Chicago? For starters, while Costa Rica is one of CONCACAF’s best teams currently, they are not at the same level as previous opponents Colombia and also lost one of their most influential players in Marco Urena early.
With that being said, however, it was the intangible qualities that the US demonstrated in the 4-0 thumping that provided the most encouragement. Bradley, Dempsey, and Jones all displayed veteran leadership when the whispers for either of them to be benched had become slightly louder, the entire lineup pressed Costa Rica continually the entire night, and there was a sheer refusal to back down that was literally epitomized by Bobby Wood‘s pushing away a Costa Rican player who tried to employ some gamesmanship to get under Wood’s skin.
With all these improvements in mind, the inevitable question that has to be asked now is what can the US reasonably expect on Saturday when they face off against Paraguay in the final group match?
Now that Colombia has sealed qualification to the quarterfinals, they may not be as willing to press for a win against Costa Rica in the stifling Orlando heat. With a 6-goal advantage in goal difference, a draw with the Paraguayans should be enough for the US to seal qualification.
Paraguay have been no pushovers, and stretched Colombia to the limit in the Tuesday nightcap. In fact, they might have even won had they enjoyed the comforts of the extra day of rest and much shorter travel time that their opponents had.
With star midfielder Oscar Romero suspended after being sent off against Colombia, the US has a good opportunity to take control of the midfield area and control the tempo of the game. The Bradley-Jones-Dempsey triumvirate will be the keys yet again, and US fans will be hoping that they see more of the Dr. Jekyll version of their team at work. With the amount of experience they have, there should be no need whatsoever for a reminder of just how high the stakes are on Saturday.
The keys to the game for the US are simple:
- Continue to play with the same high workrate and intensity that they showed against Costa Rica.
- Technically, the US holds a slight upper hand, and they should expect the Paraguayans to use a more physical style to limit the damage that speed can do.
- Be mindful of how well Paraguay played in the latter stages of their previous match and maintain focus to avoid mental lapses.