2011 Team USA-Based Gold Cup Preview

*Disclaimer - All responses to the following questions were typed up before the Canada - US match but due to logistical problems, the post was not completed until afterward. Keep this in mind.

Sunday, the 2011 Gold Cup commenced in Cowboys Stadium with Costa Rica blasting Cuba 5-0. It will conclude with the championship game on June 25th in the Rose Bowl. This once every two years tournament crowns the CONCACAF (Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) champion, and in this case, clinches a spot for the winning team in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup. The first prize is a nice pat on the back kind of award, but the second is even more vital for the United States National Men's Team. Though CONCACAF is typically known as the weakest world region (excluding Oceania), this tournament is the closest US fans will get to important international competition for the national team until World Cup qualifying matches start in 2012. So, with this in mind, we've brought in three soccer minds, varying from somewhat knowledgeable to quite knowledgeable and asked them questions about the Gold Cup and the US squad.

1. How (if at all) important is the 2011 Gold Cup to US soccer and why?

Mark (regular contributor at DRD) - I think the Gold Cup is very important to the US for a few reasons. First and foremost, the winner of the Gold Cup gets a spot in the 2013 Confederations Cup. That was a great experience in 2009 for the national team and it really lifted their confidence going into 2010. Also, getting into a tournament with an elite talent pool is always good to develop your first squad and figure out what works and what doesn't. Second, the US needs to see what it has in terms of the future. It needs to play some of its younger talent like Agudelo and Ream to see if they can compete against other national teams when it counts for something. Though the competition isn't necessarily stiff, these games mean something. These aren't friendlies. Lastly, Coach Bradley might need to use this tournament to tinker with his usually rigid 4-4-2 formation. Rumor has it he will be attempting to toy with a 4-5-1 with two holding mids and an attacking mid but two essential pieces of that puzzle, Stuart Holden and Benny Feilhaber, won't be playing due to injury. The evolution of Bradley's strategy could effect this next World Cup cycle, which only further emphasizes the importance of this tournament.

John (original founder of and "seemingly occasional contributor" to DRD) - You can look at this a few ways depending on your mindset. If we’re looking short-term then it’s not too important. This Gold Cup roster is going to be very similar to the World Cup lineup. We already know what Howard, Spector, Bocanegra, Bradley, Cherundolo, Edu, Dempsey, Donovan, Bornstein, Jones, and Altidore give us, and they’re probably going to make up a majority of the starting lineup this summer. So it’s not imperative they do well for developmental purposes. That being said, I have higher expectations for this group, considering that they’ve been together for a while. I want to see them clicking on all cylinders, no excuses to why they cant score or have a shaky defense.

If we’re looking long-term (which I am) then I think it’s very important for the U.S. to win this Gold Cup so that they can play in 2013. The whole goal is to win the World Cup, or more realistically play to full potential getting as far as possible. I believe playing in the Confederations Cup is vital for the U.S. team in order to perform their best the following year. Two years ago is a prime example. Not only did the Confederations Cup provide a perfect platform for players to create chemistry, develop, and get a feel for South Africa, but it also gave them copious amounts of confidence. Beating Spain and hanging with Brazil (for at least the first half) proved that the U.S. could hang with the big boys. I think those matches gave the whole squad a sense of belief and poise heading into the World Cup. But back to this Gold Cup; Bob will get a chance to tweak formations and lineup combinations, as well as get a look at some youngsters such as Agudelo, Ream, and Lichaj. This tourney may not give us a glimpse of our 2014 lineup, but will be one developmental step closer.

Logan (guest writer and "soccer guru") - Fairly important. Obviously, winning brings the Confederation's Cup, and you only need to look to 2009 to see how helpful that can be. But also vital is the continued dominance of CONCACAF. Right now, it seems almost a given the US and Mexico will qualify for the World Cup in 2014. A poor showing in the Gold Cup would reduce confidence and give opponents hope, the last thing we'd want before qualification.

2. Who needs to step up on the squad and who is in position to have a breakout tournament?

Mark - The regular suspects need to have good tournaments for the US to bring home the trophy. By regular suspects I mean Tim Howard has to be as good as he usually is and Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey need to continuously wreck havoc in the attacking third creating chances and instilling confidence in our strikers. And those strikers need to finish chances. Jozy Altidore, Juan Agudelo, and Chris Wondolowski need to score goals. We didn't have a single striker score a goal in the World Cup last year. That is not a good sign for our attacking players. So I'll be looking for the strikers to step up and put a "bulge in the old onion bag," as Tommy Smyth would say. Considering those poised to break out, I believe there are four candidates, all with slightly different circumstances. With a good tournament, Tim Ream could establish himself as a mainstay on the back line for the US for the next 8-10 years. He's shown spunk and tenacity in his first appearances, qualities which our back line has a reputation of possessing. With Feilhaber going down with an injury, his replacement on the roster Alejandro Bedoya could be poised to break out and toss his name into squad consideration further down the road. Juan Agudelo, already being overly hyped for 2 goals in his first 5 appearances, needs to establish himself as a force in non-friendly matches. If he has a good tournament, he will be considered the future of the US attack. Lastly, and most surprisingly, I think Freddy Adu could have a breakout tournament. Consider that he is still only 22 years old, younger than everyone on the roster besides Agudelo, Altidore, and Eric Lichaj. He could still be an important piece in the US puzzle if he gains some confidence and performs well in this Gold Cup.

John - Lets look at the first part of this question by answering who doesn’t need to step up. Tim Howard, Landon Donovan, Michael Bradley, and Clint Dempsey, the obvious core of the team. Ok, so that basically leaves us with the whole back line and the man who’s jersey I so recklessly and impulsively bought a year ago, Jozy Altidore. Now I’m not ready to jump on the “I hate Jozy” bandwagon yet. He’s young, has potential, and a big frame to throw around. Ideally he’ll become a one-two punch with the speedy Agudelo or possibly Davies in the years to come. However Jozy can do better, now. And the U.S. needs him to. The goals have to come from somewhere, and well that’s kind of his job as a forward. But more concerning to me is the aging U.S. defense. Defense has always been a strength of the stingy American side, even in this past World Cup. However this past World Cup was pretty much the last hoo-rah for Bocanegra, Cherundolo, and Bornstein. That leaves us with the “at times barely capable In”-Spector Gadget, “I’ve never been the same since my ACL injury” Onyewu, and young Tim Ream/Eric Lichaj. I have hopes that the back line will develop and become solid for the future, but for this Gold Cup I have my doubts.

And who’s in position for a breakout tourney? I think Juan Agudelo is the obvious answer, and I’d take Jermaine Jones as my dark horse. Agudelo has quite a bit of pressure on him after his ferocious start, especially if other forwards such as Jozy fail to produce this cup, but Agudelo is going to get a lot of minutes and is in prime position to seal his team U.S.A. future. As for Germany Jones, I think he’ll settle into the distributor role. He’s probably the most capable deep ball/through ball passer and I hope to see some as we say in hockey “tape to tape” passes this cup.

Logan -Jozy Altidore. 10 goals in 35 appearances isn't a good ratio for a striker. Plenty of caveats do apply: distribution is often lacking, some of his appearances have been as a substitute, he has scored against quality opposition, and mostly, he is 21. Still he is far too inconsistent, going anonymous too often. The time is now for Jozy to make that next step - we need a reliable striker.

3. What do you think will be the greatest challenges the US will face?

Mark - The greatest challenge the US will face will be the inevitable task of digging themselves out of hole either within their group or within a pivotal match. A prime candidate for such an occurrence is the first group match versus Canada tonight. If the Yanks don't take their neighbors to the north seriously, they'll be down 1-0 before you can say Saskatchewan. (Edit: Apparently this wasn't a problem) They better be prepared to get everyone's best or they will find themselves with a very close match or, possibly, a very unfavorable result. On a less metaphorical side of things, the greatest challenge will be to instill confidence in their strikers. They need to score goals. Fast.

John - Besides their shaky defense? Mexico. Duh.

Logan -Hernandez, Manchester United's poacher extraordinaire. He has an uncanny gift for making the right run and the right time, and could be a terror against a US defense has the tendency to ball-watch and has trouble closing down. Also, overlooking teams on the way to Mexico could be an issue. The US will have a target on their backs.


4. How does the 4-0 thrashing from Spain factor into the mindset of the team in the Gold Cup?

Mark - I would hope it wouldn't factor into their mindset at all. We didn't put our A squad out there against Spain and they are the reigning world champions, so it's hard to expect a favorable result. I don't think too many of them will be worried about the Spain match when they take to the field against Canada, but the problem with that result is that it further fuels the critics of US football who say the Yanks can only beat up on the overwhelmed CONCACAF teams and can't compete against Europe or South America when push comes to shove. I would say minimal effect on the squad for the Gold Cup but marginal effect on the perception of the Son's of Sam throughout the rest of the football world.

John - It doesn’t. Or at least it shouldn’t. The U.S. wasn’t starting Donovan, Dempsey, or Bradley. That’s like taking Harry, Ron, and Hermione out of Gryffindor. No way they’re winning the House Cup. Also a feeble back line of Spector, Lichaj, Gooch, and Ream were starting on defense, that’ll change for the Gold Cup...oh wait it wont. But in all seriousness Spain is Spain. As the angelic voice of Ian Darke said in the ESPN broadcast, “there is no shame in losing to Spain.” It’s true, B team or not, Spain should kick the U.S.’s butt, and everyone knew that going in. A 4-0 shellacking won’t change anything in the upcoming games.

Logan -Unless this US team is much more mentally weak than imagined, hopefully none. The Spain game seemed more of a symptom than a problem. Sure, they're the World Cup champions, but some of the defending was shockingly poor, and the relatively few attacks were wasteful. Against most teams in the Gold Cup, we can expect the US to have most possession, so won't have to be super efficient in attack. Beyond this tournament, its an issue that needs to be resolved as the US roster starts to turnover to the next generation. The run in the Confederations Cup was partly a result of efficiency in attack, and that's starting to slip away.

5. What are your predictions considering the field, and specifically, the US?

MM - I think the US will win their group with Canada qualifying for the quarterfinals in second. Mexico will win their group with Costa Rica placing second. I'm going to go out on a limb and say Jamaica wins the group and Honduras gets second. It's hard to think with any eight teams left that the final would be any other match up besides Mexico and the US, so that will be my pick. Though I wouldn't be surprised if something crazy happened in the single-elimination part of the tournament. And I'll take the Yanks to beat El Tri because I'm a homer and I'll cry in a corner if we don't get to go to the 2013 Confederations Cup.

John - Predictions: Canada will suck cause they’re Canada. Central American teams will suck cause they’re tiny. And the U.S. will beat Mexico in the final. This is one of the few times America actually gets to play their rival Mexico, so I hope it’s a dandy and I’m forced to make the homer pick.

Logan - The smart money is on a US-Mexico final. In my crystal ball I see a Dempsey double breaking the hearts of Mexico. Word of warning - if the US slip to second in group play, though, it'll be a much harder road, starting with a quarterfinals match against (I assume) Honduras. That means the tricky Panama match will be vital.