Condederations Cup Semi-Fina: USA 2-0 Spain (or: Why Every Team in the World Should Play 4-4-2)

AHHHHHHHHHHHH OHMYGODIMSOEXCITED AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Cannot.wait.for.the.final.

Take that all you haters.

First of all:

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

Second of all yeah heters can suck one…. man…. i knew i shouldve put money on it…

I cant even find the words right now… this is awesome.

Are we doing points for confed predictions? cause i am owning that shit…

all we had to do was stop running that retarded one striker formation, that serves no purpose.

wow… awesome.

USA! USA! US OF FREAKIN A!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i am so proud to be an american soccer fan right now.

well done the USA, ’bout time someone gave Spain a good game and showed them they’re not invincible.

OMG!! OM F***** G!

This is freaking unbelievable. It means we can play, and we can play well, as long as we forget who we are playing against!! THATS the attitude to play with. WOW.

Not sure if we’ll get that red card over turned on appeal, but Bradley didn’t deserve it!!

Let’s see if we can establish our own 35-0 win streak now ;)

Tell you what, Daryl. Why don’t you go have a chat with Raymond Domenech about 4-4-2. Show him this post. Pretty sure it would work. You know how much he respects your astrological sign. ;-)

P.S. That Dempsey goal is a thing of beauty. Of maybe it’s tenacity + poor defending. Whatever.

P.P.S. I want these commentators in the US.

Huge win for the USA !!!

I second the want for better commentators. I feel like ours are always supporting the other team.

but anyways, AHHHHH WE WON!!!
boca-gooch-demerit-spector is my favorite American back line and we finally got to see it!!
Altidore is a man-child sent by God!

Yeah the ESPN Commentators suck. That was an AWESOME game, soo exciting, we got a bit lucky too, you always gotta be lucky. Guess Bob Bradley will be sticking around for a bit longer at least until after the World Cup I’ll bet. Possession Possession Possession, when ours got better Spain got more and more desperate.

Also yet ANOTHER Red Card! No it’s not harsh, every soccer player knows if you connect cleats up you’re hitting the showers. Quit testing the referees eyes US Team, you’ll just keep getting sent off.

Hey, Benedict Rossi! What’re you thinking of your choice now, huh?

One of the greatest days in US Soccer history! Lo freakin’ siento, Espana! Absolutely incredible spirit out there. We didn’t give a damn who we were playing and we showed it. Laurie, the Dempsey goal was indeed a beauty…though how about that lovely run by Benny that led to it?

Long live USA!

@laurie and her pps, i agree! i like the excited shouting, the espn people just sat there and all you could hear was an odd chuckle in the backround. (other people heard it too, right? i almost think i imagined it)

ps. dustin, it doesnt matter how you tackle somebody, if you get the ball first (which bradley did) its legal. who was the defender who used to say that he would always aim for the ball but make it hurt as much as possible to show the other guy that it “just wasnt worth it.”?

@laurie again, i still think rossi chose right, and he’ll do a lot better there regardless having been taught how to play by italians.

I heard it Weston, it wasn’t just you. It was a rather awkward reaction. Honestly, showing emotion doesn’t mean a lack of professionalism. Ask Ray Hudson.

Weston, I’m looking at the FIFA Laws of the Game. It doesn’t seem to say anything about getting the ball first. It’s simply incorrect that playing the ball first makes a challenge legal. I’ve been taught for years now to punish cleats up tackles with straight red cards. Just ask yourself, is it a tackle which endangers the safety of an opponent, it is Bradley could’ve broken his ankle.

“…it doesn’t matter how you tackle somebody” I don’t think anyone would consider that statement correct anywhere.

This win brings tears to my eyes. This is history and a miracle all in one. We have put the world on notice with this win. GO USA! By the way I don’t agree that every team should play the 4-4-2. Every team has their own style and strategy.

Cheers Dustin. You’re completely right.

dustin, i may be right and i may not be, but right now im too happy to care. USA!

Well to be honest I was gunning for Spain, being Euro 08 champs.

Good game to the USA Though :D
Knew Altidore had something stored up there! Fantastic work by Howard though!

-From the UK
YNWA

There weren’t any prostitutes involved…..were there? :)

Great game, did you see the look on the Spaniards faces after the Dempsey goal, PRICELESS! (I can see the next Master Card commercial right now) Absolutely sublime, and the BBC announcers(I’m currently in London) called a decent game, giving a lot of love to our D. Go USA!!

Geoff, If Prostitutes aren’t involved in the Final, we’re doomed!

Howard was genius.

I was laughing by the end because this whole thing just seems absurd at this point. Imagine if we play Brazil in the final and win? That would be outrageous. Even if our goals aren’t exactly beautiful goals(reminds me of a hockey game really) they’re still goals and they still count.

Go US! In FIFA 10 we better be rated higher than Mexico!

ALL HAIL ROBOBOB AND HIS SUPERIOR INTELLECT

seriously though we should be having Onyewu and Howards babies for saving our asses 48019820938120392183 times.

I’m happy that Spain finally got their wake-up call, from an underdog team nonetheless.

Still despise the USMNT but I must still congratulate them on their discipline and hard work.

Plus, Fernando Torres’ big mouth needed to be shut for a little bit.

Tim Howard, June 18: “They’re always going to be the better team, right?”

Tim Howard, June 24: “”I can’t explain it any more than you can. Sports is funny sometimes, but when you put your mind to something, you can achieve it.”

http://politicomix.blogspot.com/2009/06/confederations-cup-diary-tim-howard.html

Laurie – seriously? Im sure Rossi’s content with his decision lol.

Doesn’t everyone think this is a bit of an over reaction… #1 it is the confederations cup, which means nothing. #2 the entire Spanish team has had a grueling season and arent in the best physical shape at the moment. #3 US definitely deserved to win the first half but if you did watch the second half the USMT(does anyone else think TMNT every time they type this?) should have lost by four or five goals.

All that aside it is good win for an underdog but it is important to realize that had this been a world cup game Spain would have played differently from the first minute. Good job by the USMT but one game is just one game and this one really was an anomaly.

Onyewu was good in the air but this performance doesn’t make him a good player, as a matter of fact I think they need to find him a replacement soon because although he was lucky he can’t be lucky every game.

One last thing, does anyone else think that Sergio Ramos doesn’t know how to play defense?

Weston: Doesn’t matter if you played the ball. If the ref adjudges it to be reckless, careless, or using excessive force, it’s a cautionnable offense, read the rulebook. I would’ve given Bradley a yellow.

Oliviero maybe to you the confederations cup doesn’t mean anything but rest assured this cup has its value. You win it and you have won a tournament filled with the champs of every football federation. Its something to boast about. Also no matter what circumstance beating a team like spain(Euro Champions)is a big deal. As for the physical shape of spain, that maybe true but having played a man down almost every game I would say the US’ physical shape is not 100% either. I too think of TMNT when I see USMT. Lastly the US could of lost by 4 goals but didn’t and that wasn’t just luck but great heart and defense. Spain was the better team comming in but in the end were the losers. This could of easily happened in the world cup. Remember spain came in this tournament to win it. They fought hard against the US but proved no match. Its time to face facts the US are ready to take center stage in the world of football. I’m not saying that they will win this cup or the world cup, what I am saying is this game proves the US are a world class team that CAN beat any team.

Weston, I heard it too – the commentator flat out giggled! He tried to cover it up but there was definitely some glee.

The only thing I thought was a bit out of line was Donovan’s constant playacting. Especially there at the end when he ran into the back of Pique and theatrically fell down, rolling in agony. Poor Pique got a yellow for nothing.

It was funny (almost as good as his “Dida moment” earlier), but not very sporting.

Oliviero,

Um…yeah. True. So what?

I’m a fan of France. I’m a fan of Seattle. I’m a fan of a couple more teams that never get the lucky breaks, teams for whom the bounce always goes the wrong way.

It’s fun for once to have the bounce go the right way. My way. I’m not sure why anyone wants to take the joy of that away from all the fans like me.

Sure, there was luck involved. Sure, 9 times out of 10 Spain is the better team. But today was the other time. Today they were not. They could have won. They didn’t.

Today my team won. And nothing you can say to belittle that will change it.

“It’s fun for once to have the bounce go the right way. My way. I’m not sure why anyone wants to take the joy of that away from all the fans like me.
Sure, there was luck involved. Sure, 9 times out of 10 Spain is the better team. But today was the other time. Today they were not. They could have won. They didn’t.
Today my team won. And nothing you can say to belittle that will change it.”

QFFT

Most every team I support in any sport is notorious for failing miserably. The team I’m closest with, my college, is a punchline, the gold standard for underachieving, perennial losing, and failure. I said just last week after the Brazil loss “I’m so used to losing I wouldn’t know what to do with winning.”

Well, now I’m learning.

This tournament means something. We made a miracle happen and escaped the group. We played with the best team in the world and outscored them by 2. How many of those 24 shots had a shot of going in, how many got near Howard? In the single digits, and Howard got them all. Thats not luck, thats good defending against the best possessing and best attacking players in the world.

This tournament means something not only because these teams are giving it their all. This tournament means something because we make it mean something.

“Onyewu was good in the air but this performance doesn’t make him a good player”

I dunno, he looked pretty awesome to me – especially in the last 10 minutes of the game when Spain was parked in front of the US goal. He was in the right place at the right time more times than I could count. He shut Spain down. It was impressive and I think it does show that he is a good player – especially given that this was all at the end of the game when mistakes usually happen.

I think Spain came into this game totally underestimating the US. I guess the football world will take us all a little more seriously now!

Altidore’s text don’t look so silly now does it!!

All I see is talk talk talk talk WHO HAS THE BEER WE JUST BEAT THE BEST TEAM IN THE WORLD.

Doesn’t matter, who was the better team on the field. What does is who capitalised on opportunities. Spain had over 20 shots at the goal, they couldn’t convert even with their contingent of world’s top strikers and playmakers.

US played from the heart. It showed on the field. It won and is on to the finals.

For those who feel Confederations Cup is not worth the penny, in my opinion it’s just reflects a bigoted (even if its too harsh a word) mind. Football is a world game, all nations play. Bring together continental champs on one platform is laudable initiative. It would help development of the game worldover, not restricted to European and Latin American nations.

Finally. I’m from India. I am a die-hard fan fo the Oranje (Holland). And I have nothing against Spain or USA. Its just the love for the game that has drawn me in here to express my feelings.

Confederations cup should be encouraged and could be made more broad-based. It would be good for Football.

Anyways, all the best to all US fans down here. See ya all at the final.

“For those who feel Confederations Cup is not worth the penny, in my opinion it’s just reflects a bigoted (even if its too harsh a word) mind. Football is a world game, all nations play. Bring together continental champs on one platform is laudable initiative. It would help development of the game worldover, not restricted to European and Latin American nations.”

Just like the massive development football has undergone since 2000 thanks to the Club world Cup. Especially in Africa, Oceania and Antartica.

What does mean something is the fact that the US actually could put chances away and look quite good in defense against the big boys. It doesn’t matter where the game was played or when it was played. That is the attitude the US team has to develop going forward. Don’t squander chances and pull together in the back. The fact that Donovan has shown some real toughness in this tournament and really has been a leader on the pitch is the real bright spot.

Let’s put this in some historical context: Was it the greatest win in U.S. soccer history?
http://bit.ly/X4xqN

Anyone who want to fire Bob Bradley?

I hate all the glory hunter bandwagon(ers) people who write off the mighty US before the game (and refuse to support their league) against any european competition, and then when the US wins, they hop on the b-wagon and in the celebration….the real fans are the ones who go through the “thick and thin”. impossible is nothing.
THE YANKS ARE COMING !!!!!

Not to belittle Deuce’s goal, which was beyond priceless (Ramos is going to have recurring nightmares about that one), and he had a solid match overall…but how on earth did he get man of the match again with the herculean effort our defense put in? C’est la vie, I guess.

Of course…I was waiting for the inevitable “Yeah, but like, the Confederations Cup doesn’t really count and stuff” comments. Really? Because it sure looks like it counts when a country puts out their best starting XI in an international tournament, no matter where it is.

And lose. Case closed. Adios.

I watched the game in a cramped room with 25 random dudes on a 17 inch tv, and when i jumped up to cheer the altidore goal and i said “YES!!!” i guess everyone realized that there was a yankee in africa :p

btw, HELL YEAH USA

I also complained about the ESPN commentators. I know a good old Latinamerican style GOAL shout is too much to ask, but to have these HUGE goals followed by silence seems antisoccer. Wasn’t Lalas commentating the game? I guess he was the one celebrating in the background.

Victor, I don’t think it was Alexi Lalas commentating, pretty sure it was Harkes and Hopkins doing it. Or so while I was watching it.

Altidore’s goal was great, and you can expect the fake on-the-ground crap from Spain after he muscled the defender out.

Wish Boca had played better, but I have to give props to Jay DeMerit for stepping up.

Johanna, Pique got a yellow for dissent, it was someone else (Riera?) who Donovan flopped all over. Yes, it bothered me a little, as did Dempsey rolling around, but I happen to think that we’ve grabbed a few yellow cards because of other players flopping around after a hard challenge too. Didn’t Landon get booked in the first ten minutes because someone was acting like he’d been shot?

In short, I don’t like it, but if we are going to be penalized because other teams do it, I understand some of our players doing it also.

nice blog….