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| Friday, February 15, 2002 18:40 EST |
Playing with attitude
By Marc Connolly
[ABC Sports Online]
In the simplest terms, Italy converted on its only golden opportunity for a goal while the U.S. did not. That was the difference in the Azzurri’s 1-0 win over the Americans in Sicily on Wednesday night.
David Regis, left, linked up well with John O'Brien on Wednesday. |
Of course, the game meant much more than the “friendly” moniker it was played under. Not to the Italians, but for Coach Bruce Arena’s squad.
Deep down inside, each of the 18 players suited up in the National Team kit along with Arena and his staff had to wonder if the U.S. could compete against an Italian side that featured several of its mainstays who will surely have an impact on whether they make a run to the World Cup Finals once again this summer.
Even if they lost a 1-0 or 2-1 game - some of the most lopsided games I’ve ever seen have been 1-nil affairs -- it would have been disheartening and a confidence-killer to have been playing a game of chase the ball all night long as the Italians set up triangles and outclassed the Americans up and down the pitch.
That did not happen.
In fact, the U.S. played evenly with Italy, a true world power. Though the Italians dominated the second half from start to finish behind the brilliant offensive maneuverings of the rejuvenated Juventus star Alessandro Del Piero, the U.S. made the feared defensive-minded squad look like just another CONCACAF side in the first half when it carried the play and attacked at will from the left side of the field.
One could sit here and talk all day about the two golden opportunities that decided the game - Del Piero’s goal that came as a result of David Regis getting fouled/knocked off the ball by Gianluca Zambrotta and Landon Donovan’s post-knocker in the eighth minute from inside the 18. What it comes to is this: Regis was fouled but should not have taken a dive so far back in his end, and Donovan should have scored and will on such plays nine times out of 10.
What is to be taken from this match, one of several World Cup tune-ups for the Yanks, is the attitude the Americans brought with them into the game and maintained after the game.
During the match, they played with confidence, fearlessness and took the type of chances we usually do not see when the U.S. plays a stronger, more-respected opponent. There was no chicken-with-their-heads-cut-off running around or playing chase. They played as though they expected to win the match, not sit back and pray for a tie.
Afterwards, the comments echoed much of the same, with Arena saying “we would be foolish to look at this game as a moral victory.”
Stop and read that again. Do so because the U.S. could very well use this as a moral victory and no one would call them out on it. This sort of mentality starts at the top and has permeated on down the ranks of players, whether overseas or playing in MLS.
While watching the game and seeing the Americans press forth and take control in the first half, it was hard not to think of their somewhat arrogant - that’s a compliment, by the way - coach who refuses to scheme his game plan in the way Bora and Steve Sampson did, focused around having numbers behind the ball constantly.
That sort of mindset and confident play, ultimately, was the most impressive facet of the Americans’ play against Italy, and should be viewed as a very positive step in the continued development of this group as its journey continues towards the Far East in June.
At the same time, this match also served Arena well in his continuing roster-shaping process. Of the so-called “bubble players” who are not among the 11 or 12 easy names to fill in on the final list of 23, Gregg Berhalter and David Regis helped themselves the most.
Having the assignment to cover Italy’s world-class target striker Christian Vieri, who scored five times in World Cup ’98 to lead the Azzurri to the quarterfinals, Berhalter played what perhaps was his best match ever for the U.S. The 28-year-old who suits up for Crystal Palace (England) used all 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds of his frame to hold his ground against the physical “postings” of Vieri.
Using his body in a skilled, push-but-don’t-foul gamesmanship sort of a way, Berhalter didn’t let Vieri turn with the ball and several times beat him in the air on 50-50 balls played from out of the back in the first half. And when he switched to cover Roma’s playmaking guru, Francesco Totti, he baffled and frustrated him.
Regis may have been at fault for taking somewhat of a dive on a clear foul from Zambrotta in the 63rd minute, but it was one of the few times he didn’t standout. The FC Metz defender was especially effective in the first half, creating all sorts of problems on the left flank by his aggressive runs and solid balls up the side.
While his defensive shortcomings and speed were a factor in qualifiers last summer when the U.S. played a formation that really was without a left flank player, the addition of John O’Brien lifts Regis’ play. The two not only link well together and can create in tight spaces, but they also seem to communicate well as far as who is going to backtrack defensively when possession is lost.
Regis also came up huge on two separate plays in the second half when he roamed to the central defense to stop Del Piero on right-footed slide tackles from unleashing another shot on Brad Friedel. This sort of performance surely has Regis penciled in as the starting left back over players such as Carlos Bocanegra and Greg Vanney.
Tony Sanneh is not a bubble player, as he’ll surely be included in the 23 in some capacity, but he didn’t seem to do anything to take a front-runners position in the competition for the right back slot. He got behind the defense on a few runs up the side and made several strong tackles, but he also was beat down the right side more than a few occasions.
Before giving way to Frankie Hejduk in the 59th minute, he practically gave Del Piero a goal by making a poor decision to pass the ball to Jeff Agoos with his head at the top of the box. Del Piero pounded on the ball and, luckily for the U.S., blasted a shot right at Friedel in the 50th minute.
For the most part, the midfield was excellent. Chris Armas was everywhere as usual, backtracking at times to help Agoos and Berhalter cover Totti, Vieri and Del Piero. O’Brien was the best player on the field for the U.S. with his supreme footwork and quick one-touch passes.
He nearly scored in the 40th minute when he took the ball right down to the endline on the left side and tried to catch the right post from a tough angle.
Reyna was solid and covered well, but didn’t add much offensively, while Stewart played more on the right flank than in the central midfield as he’s been playing for close to a year now.
Up front, Joe-Max Moore and Donovan were both manhandled by the Italians. You didn’t have to know too much about the U.S. to realize who would’ve been useful against such a physical backline.
“We need(ed) a big, strong forward tonight who could hold defenders off,” said Arena. “Tonight would have been a good night for Brian McBride.”
Moore really was never sprung off of a run. Instead, his contributions were limited to creating direct kicks outside the box and making a few solid touches to on-rushing midfielders after backtracking from his striker slot.
Donovan was more effective, but also had a difficult time getting free.
“He needs to get stronger physically,” said Arena. “We still wonder if Landon makes a better midfielder or forward.”
Whether or not he does appear in the U.S. lineup as an attacking midfielder over the next few friendlies or not, the 19-year-old still has to be commended for his fearlessness.
There were a few times when he stared Italy’s captain, Fabio Cannavaro, in the face and took him on one-on-one without hesitation on the left side. On one sequence at the end of the first half, Donovan faked him out with a move to the inside and was able to crack a shot on goalkeeper Francesco Toldo that went high.
Perhaps he would have had more chances to utilize his skills had McBride been out there winning balls for him up top.
Now that the U.S. returns home to play Honduras in Seattle on March 2 and Ecuador in Birmingham on March 10, it’ll be most intriguing to see which European players are called in.
It could spell either the end of the line or the last chance for guys like Jovan Kirovski or Eddie Lewis or present another golden opportunity for Berhalter to shine.
Looking ahead, the biggest areas of concern to watch for will be what Arena does with the right back slot since all three candidates (Steve Cherundolo, Sanneh and Hejduk) play in Europe, and what he’ll do as far as striker combos.
Marc Connolly is a senior writer for ABC Sports Online. He can be reached at marc.connolly@abc.com.
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