A new low -- Holland v. Portugal

This is a new low for refereeing in the World Cup.

Why is it that the United States and Holland have drawn the worst referees of the tournament? This guy is even worse than the refs that the US got.

Once again in the World Cup, a team has decided that they can't beat Holland fairly, so they decide to reduce the game to a wrestling match. Both of the Portuguese players should've been red carded before they eventually were.

When you have refs like this, it just makes a joke of the game.

Saudi Arabia v Ukraine

4th minute -- GOAL! Rusol scores on a near post header from a corner kick. He nods it down from a little before the goal post on about the six yard line and it nutmegs the goalie. I like it when defenders score.


A great opening for Ukraine, after an embarassing 0-4 defeat to Spain. I have to root for Ukraine, as I'd like to see Andriy Schevchenko -- one of the best strikers in the world -- have a chance beyond mere group play. Also, Ukraine did quite well in qualifying. Despite being put in the most difficult qualifying group, they qualified over Denmark (always decent), Greece (fresh off its Euro 2004 victory), and Turkey (semis in 2002). They breezed through qualifying anyway, despite the electoral unrest in their country.

Fortunately for Ukraine, they're in one of the easier groups. Spain is a chronic underachiever, the Saudis are even more underachievers, and Tunisia isn't one of the stronger sides. So if they beat the Saudis today, they should still have a chance to qualify.

USA vs Italy bad ref? Yes.

One of my posts has been picked up by Google for Italy v US bad ref. This amuses me.

What FIFA should do

In order to alleviate the embarassment, FIFA should reinstate Pablo Mastroeni and Eddie Pope for the matches against Ghana. There should be no automatic suspension for either player.

Of course, I doubt FIFA will do it. But they should. What a joke.

Draw 1-1

We outplayed them entirely. We deserved the result, even if we only got a draw because of an own goal.

This was the worst refereed match of the World Cup. Terrible. Whoa...they said they are going to have "a very interesting story" about the referee after the commercial break.

Good for the US. I think we can all be pleased at the performance, although worried about our finishing. We're still extremely unlikely to advance, because even if we beat Ghana, we'll be behind on goal differential. We need to beat Ghana and have Italy beat the Czech Republic in order to advance.

UPDATE: In 2002, that ref was suspended for the World Cup because of "irregularities." Yikes. That ref shouldn't have been on the field, and it's a huge embarassment for FIFA.

Something tells me

That Italy isn't offside everytime they are being called. These are the best strikers in the world. I highly doubt that they are off every time.

Del Piero in the game.

That yellow to Zambrotta is ridiculous.

The US just looks exhausted. Interstingly, the ref has put his whistle away now, which definitely favors the Italians. Multiple American players are just walking. It's not their fault: that happens when you've got 9 men when the ref tries to give away the match to one of the best teams in the world.

Red Card to Pope

Terrible. Terrible.

This referee is a complete, thorough, and total joke. What a failure. It wasn't even a foul, in my opinion.

Conrad comes in for Convey. The US now has to play justs for a draw.

Red card to Mastroeni?

That's ridiculous! This is a ridiculously bad call, and the ref will definitely pay for it on his evaluation. Thoroughly horrendous, a makeup call by the referee.

This is classic terrible refereeing. This ref just became a joke with one call.

Also, he has to do something about all the diving by the Italians.

Red Card

Gotta be. De Rossi had to do it on purpose. He got caught, and the Italians will have to play with a man down.

It's a tie score, we have an extra man. Of course, the lack of a man will probably help the Italians focus. It certainly didn't matter against Brazil in the Round of 16 in 94.

And McBride, after sitting and getting stitched up for a bit, is back in the game.

Meanwhile, Rice is up 1-0 against UGA in the World Series.

Totti out for Gattuso? Interesting sub. Whew, and we get a lucky offsides call to save a nice shot.

Clint Dempsey is playing well. He is definitely bringing some needed confidence and aggressiveness.

OWN GOAL

Tie score. Awesome. and deserved.

The US has been the beneficiary of some key own goals when advancing in the World Cup. Columbia in 94, and Portugal in 02.

We outplay, they score

We've outplayed Italy, but they just scored.

At least it's been a good effort, but it's for naught when you screw up a set piece. The ref has been buying some of the Italian forwards dives. Most notably, the Eddie Pope card, which was a total dive. In fact, the Italian (I think it was Gilardino) was pulling Pope's shirt. The yellow should've been awarded the Azzurri.

The Ghana win over the Czechs means that the US doesn't need a win, necessarily. That's good. Personally, even though Italians aren't exactly the Brazilians (who are expected by their country to not only win but win beautifully), they will still have some pressure on them not to try and draw the US. I think the Italian media and fans will freak out if the Italians decide to play for a tie against the US.

So, I wouldn't expect Italy to just lay back, as they potentially could. They have more pressure on them to win than the US does.

My lineup

I've said it before: I think Arena needs to get the 11 on the field who have the greatest potential.

For me, that means Johnson and O'Brien have to be on the field at the start. They can't be brought on for the second half when the US is already down 2-0. Also, I want Landon Donovan to get the ball, and to have space to create. To me, that's when he's at his best.

So I'd put McBride and Johnson up top. O'Brien and Reyna in center mids. Landon Donovan out on the the right mid, and Beasley on the left. Beasley isn't playing well, but he's obviously much more confident on the left than the right.

I didn't mention it before the Czech game, but I definitely think Bocanegra should be on the pitch. I didn't mention it because it was obvious Bruce Arena wasn't going to start him. Pope and Onyewu will obviously start. and I'd probably have Lewis back there too, and make one of them play on the right. Defense is a little harder for me, because that requires thinking about matchups.

Ching on US and the media

US forward Brian Ching:

Despite what some of the media have written, we are a tight group and continue to be that way. I really feel that due to the loss people are trying to find a problem with the team or look for negative things to write. I guess a story about rifts in the team makes for better news. When it comes down to it we know we made a few mistakes and were beat by a good team, but it happens.

If the US plays frenetically and intelligently, I give them a definite shot against Italy. We may not be the favorites, but we're now at the point where we can compete against anybody.

Argentina -- Serbia

6th minute -- Rodriguez scores for Argentina off a Saviola assist. Pretty stuff. Argentina looks good.

They showed Maradona in the stands. Apparently, he's been down to the Argentina locker room before both games so far. Am I the only one who finds that bizarre?

US vs. England lineups

Joe Conway has a post that I completely agree with. He asks who on the US team could start for England.

His conclusion: none of the US players would play for England. Personally, I think Keller would start, Donovan might have a chance on the right half, and Eddie Johnson is good enough when he's on his game.

But that's it. I mean, heck, Japan and Ivory Coast have more players from Europe's top leagues. And that's why it's hard for me to be optimistic about the US (although I do hold out hope of a draw, and maybe even a win against Italy, I am realistic). But soccer isn't necessarily about individual talents. It's about playing smart, and making the most of your scoring chances. So the US still does have some chance to redeem itself from a frustrating opening match.

Today's games

8:55 a.m. Argentina vs. Serbia-Montenegro
11:55 a.m. Netherlands vs. Ivory Coast
2:55 p.m. Mexico vs. Angola


The first two may determine who advances in the group of death. So far, the two favorites won their first two games.

I'm particularly interested to see Argentina play, because I thought Argentina was the most impressive team in the first round, followed by the Czech Republic. Spain was also impressive, but they were helped out by some questionable refereeing. Ukraine is a very good team, and I still think they'll recover and advance.

Anyway, Serbia is a good team, so it'll be interesting to see what Argentina looks like against them.

With the near-demise of the US' chances (I never had high hopes. Rob Booth can testify that I told him before the Cup that I thought this Cup could be France 98 all over again (eg, winless and scoreless) for the US) Holland becomes my primary rooting interest. Ivory Coast has some very good players, and they played well against Argentina. This is a very crucial result for them. They need to pick up at least a tie today. Also, they need more than one simple breakaway. They also relied too much on Robben's one-on-one bravery against Serbia. A guy like Van Nistelrooy has the skills to be the best player in the tournament. And it would be a great revenge card for Van Nistelrooy to play against Manchester United. Who will be the third forward? Van Persie? Kuyt?

Two groups are set

Advancers:

Group A: Germany and Ecuador advance. They will play the third game to determine who is 1st and who is 2nd.

Group B: England advances. Sweden has a win, Trinidad a tie, and Paraguay two losses. Sweden is likely to go through, unless Trinidad beats Paraguay and Sweden loses to England.

A1 plays B2, and B1 plays A2, so England and Germany definitely have some incentive to avoid each other.

No robot

Crouch scores in the 85th minute!

But, unfortunately, Peter Crouch did not do the Robot. How disappointing.

Meanwhile, Wayne Rooney is in the game, and looks pretty energetic.

Arena: First goal, first goal, first goal

They just interviewed Bruce Arena on ESPN2, and he focused solely on the first goal.

He's got a point. The early goal completely changed the match, and allowed the Czechs to play the game they wanted to play against us...sit back, focus on defense, and then use their speed to counter.

But on the other hand, the Czech's first goal was a counter-attack, so in some ways they were already playing that game. Also, he failed to address the fact that the team didn't look that energetic. Compared to how hard they challenged every ball against Portugal in 02...they looked like they'd already qualified for the next round.

Nor did he mention that they failed to involve McBride or Donovan in anyway. Donovan isn't a back-to-the-goal target man. Arena should've taken my advice and put him at right midfield.

US -- Czech

Nightmare start. Czech goal and yellow card to Onyewu. Moreover, they scored the way we want to.

They were expected to control, with us countering. So far, it's the opposite, and they pulled it off. They're supposed to be a little suspect defensively, so maybe we have a chance still.

25 -- I'm not pleased with the refereeing right now.

27 -- 10 people behind the ball for the Czechs when we advanced into the final half of the field. The US will need to move quickly when countering.

28 -- Great US counter. Reyna takes a solid strike off the post. Sigh.

32 -- Pope with great defensive work inside the box. How come he's never gotten a huge contract to go play in Europe? I've never understood that. Does he not want to go? Does he not want the money? Has no one ever wanted him?

36 -- Sick shot by Rosicky. 2-0 Czechs. Sigh. All the predictions to my friends that Germany 06 could be as bad for the US as France 98...they look true right now.

42 -- So, I think it's obvious if you've read this blog that I think John O'Brien and Eddie Johnson have to be on the pitch for the Americans. I really don't understand why they aren't, and I think with the way the game is going right now, those two would be perfect for the game.

43 -- Koller goes down clutching his knee. It's not obvious how much of this is theatrics....well, they've got the stretcher for him, so maybe he's going out. Ouch. This guy is a 6'7" beast.

46 -- Koller subbed out, and is still on the stretcher. That sucks for him, hopefully he'll be okay. Appears to be a muscle pull of some sort.

59 -- Arena agreed with me, as he brought on O'Brien and Johnson. About time. May be too late at this point...well, it's almost certainly too late to affect the result.

Remember all the hype about Onyewu? Sounds like maybe he believed it too much. He hasn't looked good.

60 -- Reyna gets yellow. He got away with another cardable foul previously. Great.

62 -- What's wrong with them? Reyna fails to hurry on a possible counter, which is really our only chance, because if we give the Czechs time, they'll have 10 people behind the ball. Then, Reyna gives away possession on a sloppy pass. He's not his usual steady self.

63 -- Is Landon Donovan on the field? I'm not saying it's his fault, but haven't heard from him.

70 -- Couple ESPN2 graphics errors. First, I'm 99% sure it was 'Austria' that the US played in the 90 World Cup, and not 'Australia.' Second, I'm 100% sure that despite what the graphic said, the United States did not lose to the 'Czech Republic' 5-1 in 1990. It's hard to lose to a team that doesn't exist. Czechoslovakia did exist though.

71 -- Couple good Eddie Johnson possessions.

78 -- Rosicky scores. 3-0. Goal differential means that we have about a .5% chance of going through to the second round. The World Cup is virtually over for the Americans. Go DUTCH!

82 -- Eddie Johnson is the only one to do anything.

86 -- Nedved with a smart foul to shut down the counter. They've made some smart fouls, and not been given cards for it.

Australia -- Japan

I've anticipated this match for a few days. Both are interesting teams, and both have plenty of players with experience in the top leagues of Europe.

They also both have interesting coaches. Japan is coached by Zico, a former Brazilian player. Australia is coached by Dutchman Gus Hiddink, one of the world's most renowned coaches right now.

Judging by their coaches, they'll both play beautiful soccer. One of the premier Japanese players apparently isn't a fan of his coach's style.


30th minute or so -- Japan scores on a cross where one of the strikers hits the Aussie goalkeeper. A controversial goal, at best.

A few minutes later, the Aussie striker nearly scores a great goal, but the ball goes over the bar.

The TV announcers have made such a huge deal about how they think the goal should have been taken away because of the foul. I think they're overdoing the certainty that it was a foul. Frankly, the Aussie goalie did a bad job either way. He should've gotten to the ball.

My guess for US starting lineup

As I've written (see below), Bruce Arena will probably surprise us with his lineup today against the Czech Republic.

My thought is that they have to get their eleven best. Here's what I think Bruce will do:

Defenders: Lewis, Onyewu, Pope, Cherundolo

Midfielders: O'Brien, Beasley, Donovan, Reyna

Strikers: Johnson, McBride

If a late sub is needed, I'd bring on Wolff for his speed.

THE DUTCH! v Serbia

This game is huge. I'm as psyched for this as I am for Czech v. US.

Van Basten decided to go with van Persie up top instead of Kuyt to accompany Robben and Van Nistelrooy.

13th minute - Serbia had a good chance where the dribbler for Serbia got free on the end line around the six yard box. He had two open players, but the Holland defender (Mathijsen I believe) made a great play.

18th minute -- Robben scores!! Breakaway counter-attack. Play started deep, 30 yard ball to Van Persie who touched it over to Robben who was off to the races with plenty of time.

22nd minute -- Robben has a great near post strike that almost knuckles in.

56 -- Ref gives card to Van Branckhorst. This is a very weak card. I don't see what in that foul was worth giving a card to.

63 -- Very bad offsides on Robben. He was definitely onside. Bad call by the linesman. The bad call wastes a pretty little scoop by Van Nistelrooy.

66 -- I'm getting a little nervous about the Serbs hanging around. They've had some chances on the counter. Meanwhile, we look a little sloppy in the final attacking third of the field.

We win 1-0. A good result, though not a stellar performance. Solid though. Of the expected heavyweights, I think Argentina has looked the best so far.

Postgame England -- Sweden wrapup

We'll compare the leads of coverage of England-Sweden.

ESPN:

David Beckham got England's World Cup campaign off to a winning start by setting up the early goal that clinched an unconvincing 1-0 Group B victory against Paraguay in Frankfurt.

Sven-Goran Eriksson's men then struggled to create clear opportunities -- and also took off striker Michael Owen early in the second half -- but held on to claim three points with the win.

Washington Post:

The arrival of English fans on foreign soil to support their national soccer team often overshadows the presence of the international superstars themselves. For all of the posh panache of matinee-idol midfielder David Beckham, for instance, the regular blokes traveling to Germany for a World Cup holiday command the most significant local attention, given the English history of hooliganism and outlandish behavior while abroad.

An estimated 40,000 English fans filled the streets of Frankfurt on Saturday, with roughly a quarter of them among the 48,000 who saw England defeat Paraguay 1-0 at Commerzbank Arena in the opening match of the World Cup's Group B. Early Saturday morning they descended near the main train station, draped in flags with faces painted, but at match time there had only been a few minor incidents requiring police response.

Houston Chronicle:

Today’s showdown between Argentina and the Ivory Coast is not unlike the World Cup opener between Germany and Costa Rica. Perennial powerhouse (Argentina) takes on the minnow (Ivory Coast).

Elsewhere, England defeated Paraguay, 1-0, in Frankfurt. Sweden plays Trinidad & Tobago in Dortmund.

In today's early game England went ahead for good in the fourth minute against Paraguay on an own goal by captain Carlos Gamarra. England captain David Beckham's in-swinging free kick glanced off Gamarra's head and eluded goalie Justo Villar for the own goal.

England played today without star striker Wayne Rooney who is still trying to make it back in the lineup at some stage during the World Cup. Michael Owen, recently returned from injury, was in England's starting 11.

AP:

England won - and didn't even score a goal.

Unable to find the net on its own, England used an own-goal for an early lead and held on to beat Paraguay 1-0 Saturday in the World Cup.

It was not pretty, and the English were helped by Paraguay's reluctance to attack. Still, it was a victory that will have England's boisterous fans celebrating - at least until its next match.

Sweden -- Trinidad & Tobago

9th minute -- It's an uptempo game so far. The Swedes look good. A couple of decent chances, most for the Swedes.

24th minute -- This is a very fun match to watch. The energy is very high, with both teams looking to be creative. That means that it's a little sloppy, with possession changing hands quite a bit.

47th minute -- Second yellow, and thus red, card given to Trinidad defender Avery John. I didn't like the foul or the card. I don't think the ref should've tried to give away the game to Sweden.

England-Paraguay

A Beckham free kick from about 40 yards out turned into a goal for England when the Paraguayan captain accidentally deflected the ball into the goal with his head. Own goals are part of the game...although I'm happy to say that in my many years as a defender, I never suffered an own goal.

Parguay's goalie apparently aggravated some back spasms by sliding to clear a through ball. As he limped off the field, he was crying. Tough luck for him to both suffer a goal (not his fault) and have to leave the pitch. I'm sure I'd be crying too.

England is mostly controlling the pace and the game. The TV commentators said that the Parguayan captain said a few times that England was the third best team in their group. Yeah right. England is stacked, even without Wayne Rooney.

I'm definitely hoping to see Michael Owen explode this World Cup. We saw what he can do in Euro 2000. I want to really see him make a name for himself. Same could be said for Beckham too, who has never really had great international tourneys.

35th minute -- So far, Paraguay has rather set back, and hasn't really tried to counter-attack. Instead, they've tried to take possession and slowly build. They simply haven't been able to hold the ball long enough to gain any territory so far. England hasn't really had any great chances either though, despite possessing the ball around the box a few times.

55th minute -- 10 minutes in, no real chances. Paraguay had one good one, and has controlled more of the game so far this half.

61st minute -- if they say "with that phenomenal crossing ability" about Beckham one more time, and I'm going to put the TV on mute.

Paraguay GK

The Paraguayan goalie who got injured and was seen crying at his misfortune can take some solace. He is -- according to the ABC announcers -- the fastest goalkeeper ever to be replaced in a World Cup. So at least he's now an answer to a trivia question.

Beasley made some comments a few days ago -- which were reported by several media outlets -- about wanting to know where he'd be playing. It's about as contradictory a statement as you'll hear from a national team player.

When you think back to the 2002 Cup, it's hard to remember that Beasley only started 2 of the 5 games. But he should be on the field somewhere.

So do you think Arena has told the team who is starting yet?

O'Brien: I'm ready

I've said here that I think John O'Brien may be the best US player ever. The problem is that he's never healthy.

He tells Yanks Abroad:

"I've been training consistently," the Chivas USA man told reporters on Friday. "I'm feeling good and ready to play. I think I'm strong enough to play 90 minutes."

"I'm in good form. Training is going well."

That's so key for the US.

Peter Crouch -- The Robot

If you've ever wondered where The Robot dance came from, it's Peter Crouch, England's striker. He does it to celebrate goals.

So hopefully Crouch will score today. Here's a video of Crouch on YouTube.

The Dutch

Ernst Bouwes on the team I'm rooting for: the Dutch.

It would be so awesome if the Dutch won, as it would show how awesome Marco Van Basten is.

The Dutch have always played the game beautifully, and had some amazing teams that should have won. Maybe this time it will happen, now that they're playing a little less beautifully.

Liveblogging Costa Rica vs. Germany

We're underway! I have no idea how much I'll be writing, but I have my laptop in front of me.

GOAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL! In the 6th minute. Great shot from near the left corner. Midfielder (I think) Philip Lahm scores from the very edge of the right corner of the box right into the upper 90 right corner. What a shot to open the World Cup. The goalie wasn't even close.

9th minute -- Wow, Germany just made three tackles in about 10 seconds that I would've carded for each. Instead, the ref didn't call any fouls. Interesting.

12th minute -- Wanchope scores for Costa Rica! Wow. Germany is complaining that he was offside. He wasn't, though it was close. Perfect timing on the through ball, and he was all alone on the breakaway.

17th minute -- Mirosla Klose scores!


Sorry got caught up in the game. Klose scores the second and third, and takes an early lead for the Golden Shoe, given to the player who scores the most.

Lineups for the first game.

Germany (4-4-2):

1-Jens Lehmann; 3-Arne Friedrich, 21-Christoph Metzelder, 17-Per Mertesacker, 16-Phillip Lahm; 18-Bernd Schneider, 8-Torsten Frings, 13-Michael Ballack, 7-Bastian Schweinsteiger; 20-Lukas Podolski, 11-Miroslav Klose

Coach: Juergen Klinsmann

Costa Rica (3-5-2):

18-Jose Francisco Porras; 4-Michael Umana, 3-Luis Marin, 12-Leonardo Gonzalez; 20-Douglas Sequeira, 5-Gilberto Martinez, 8-Mauricio Solis, 10-Walter Centeno, 6-Danny Fonseca; 11-Ronald Gomez, 9-Paulo Wanchope

Ballack: I can play

German midfielder Michael Ballack, considered one of the best players in the world, was ruled out yesterday by coach Jurgen Klinsmann. And yet today he says he can play, and isn't injured.

'I am fit, I want to play,' he told Bild. 'I am ready and without problems.

'Whether I will be playing or not is up to the national team coach.'

Ballack has been accused of lacking professionalism after waiting more than two days to report the injury, which he sustained in a 3-0 victory over Colombia on June 2.

The newspaper hinted the difference of opinion was the sign of a rift between coach and captain, perhaps caused by Ballack's recent comments about the side not concentrating enough on defence.

Generally it's not good to have your best player fighting with your coach the day before the game.

Bruce Arena will surprise you

Bruce Arena will have some surprises when he unveils his starting lineups this World Cup. If I recall correctly, he changed his lineup for every game of the 2002 World Cup, and not because of injuries.

Here's a chart for the 2002 World Cup. The chart lists:

Position, Name, Games played, Games Started, Goals, Assists, Minutes Played

F Brian McBride 5 5 2 1 374
F Landon Donovan 5 5 2 0 435
F Clint Mathis 3 2 1 1 204
M John O'Brien 5 5 1 1 450
M Eddie Lewis 3 2 0 1 196
D Tony Sanneh 5 5 0 1 450
F Josh Wolff 2 1 0 1 67
D Jeff Agoos 3 3 0 0 215
M DaMarcus Beasley 3 2 0 0 219
D Gregg Berhalter 2 2 0 0 180
GK Brad Friedel 5 5 0 0 450
D Frankie Hejduk 4 4 0 0 334
M Cobi Jones 4 0 0 0 105
D Carlos Llamosa 2 0 0 0 12
D Pablo Mastroeni 3 3 0 0 258
M/F Joe-Max Moore 2 0 0 0 48
D Eddie Pope 5 5 0 0 439
M Claudio Reyna 4 4 0 0 360
M Earnie Stewart 4 2 0 0 154

Tony Sanneh and John O'Brien (!!!) played every minute, as did Brad Friedel.

Arena started 15 different people in the 10 field positions. Only McBride, Donovan, Sanneh, O'Brien and Pope started every game (Friedel did too). In total, 19 people saw time on the pitch (including Friedel). Cobi Jones subbed in 4 of the 5 matches, so he saw a bit of time too.

Arena just isn't afraid to go with his gut. Have you ever heard Arena question himself or his decisions? I haven't. He seems like a self-assured coach. He's not afraid to buck the conventional wisdom. Remember how he started unproven DaMarcus Beasley against Luis Figo in the first game last Cup, despite the fact that Figo was considered one of the top 5 players in the game?

Expect to be surprised. Arena won't release his starting lineup until an hour before game time.

Games to watch

Chron sportswriter John Lopez thinks these are the games to watch:

Here are the World Cup games that must not be missed ... Germany-Costa Rica. (No one should miss the opener). Every USA game -- do this and even casual or new fans will find themselves caught up in it.

And: Germany-Poland, June 14; Sweden-England, June 20; The Netherlands-Argentina, June 21; France-Switzerland, June 13; Spain-Ukraine, June 14; Brazil-Australia, June 18 ...

I'd add Portugal-Mexico over France-Switzerland, and I'd also choose Brazil-Japan over Brazil-Australia.

Portugal-Mexico is the third of three games. Both Portugal and Mexico can be expected to have favorable results against Angola and Iran. However, if one slips, then it could be a must-win game. Alternately,

Observations from watching 2002 World Cup games

Today I've watched USA v. Portugal and USA v. Mexico from the 02 World Cup replayed on ESPN Classic. Here's some observations:

1. Brad Friedel is an awesome goalie. He was phenomenal in the 02 Cup. And yet Kasey Keller may be an even better pure shotstopper than Friedel.

2. Landon Donovan looks really young. Personally, I loved seeing Landon have space. He wasn't as tightly marked as he will be this Cup, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Landon Donovan on the flank at some point this cup, despite the fact that he mostly played in the center during qualifying.

3. I'd forgotten how much Bruce Arena mixed around with his lineup in each game. I'm going to put a separate post up: expect the unexpected.

4. The US outworked and outhustled Portugal. They were always on their toes, always aggressive. Portugal's technical ability was certainly better, but the US wanted it more. Donovan also had some great vision for runs and where to be...something we haven't seen as much lately, because he's often the playmaker for the US now.

Ching blog

If you haven't seen it yet, check out US National Team forward Brian Ching's blog. Chron.com looks like it will have some good World Cup coverage.

Reyna claims he's totally OK and ready to go

Captain Claudio Reyna claims he's healthy and fully ready to play.

Dempsey profile

Wayne Drehs profiles Clint Dempsey for ESPN, the only Texan on the national team.

The Clint Dempsey story is nothing new in professional sports. Talented athlete overcomes humble background to become a star in the sport he loves. But it is unique for American soccer.

American soccer stars don't grow up in a trailer in their grandparents' backyard in East Texas, learning the game from the Hispanic kids in their neighborhood. They don't grow up playing on dirt fields, kicking rock-hard basketballs with their bare feet while using T-shirts and socks as the outline for goals. And if they do somehow, someway overcome all that to make it to the big time, they don't make a rap video when they get there, sharing their life story in a head-bobbing hip-hop tune for Nike that shows up on BET and becomes the soul of the shoe conglomerate's U.S. World Cup promotional campaign.

Bruce Arena and scouting

I'm watching a 30 minute show on one of the Fox Sports channels (not a premium one, I don't know the name of the channel) and Bruce Arena just said that he scouted the first two US opponents (Italy and the Czech Republic) but that he didn't bother having anyone scout their last opponent, Ghana. He also noted that his was the same system he used in 2002.

That's pretty interesting. For one, Arena said that he did the scouting personally, rather than assign it to any assistants.

Bruce Arena is unparalleled as a homegrown American coach. He's been successful in every job he's had. Heck, I was rooting for US Soccer to pick Arena as national team coach in 1995 (I think it was) rather than Steve Sampson, who was ultimately disastrous. . . so I think it's very surprising that he's not scouting Ghana.

Arena's reasoning is that Ghana will give away their strategy in the first two World Cup games, so he doesn't need to scout them. Perhaps; but what's to stop them from playing a different system? Switching tactics is definitely a possibility for a sophisticated team.

Maybe Arena is right or perhaps he's just practicing a little Machiavellian deception.