Results Matter
Posted on January 22, 2012 1:17 pm
We beat a baseball country in a friendly on a last minute goal. We could have easily given up a counterattack goal when we were pressing so much at the end. Even with the disgraceful time-wasting by Venezuela, we scored when the whistle might have fairly been blown sooner. If our “‘C’ is for Cupcake” team beats a baseball country’s B team, as Dan Loney might say, whoop-de-shit.
All true. But results matter.
We are approaching World Cup qualifying with a coach who replaced a coach who had gotten, at least, minimally acceptable results, with occasional superb results. Said coach is being paid cash by the ton, becuause The Sunil apparently considers him the best thing since under arm deoderant was invented. As an Ivy League economist, The Sunil does not need me to tell him he is paying squillions and squillions per victory more than he was paying Bob Bradley.
In fact, in the Klinsmann era, our main claim to fame is a road victory against a country only slightly more populous than metropolitan Columbus, Ohio.
Now the Cupcakers have a much better feather to stick in their caps than “we got drawn at home by a baseball country’s scrubs, but we had more chances.” Now they can breath down the necks of the guys who obviously need a little competition with a cry of “we get results.” Speaking of underarm deoderant, the assembled cupcakers at the end of the match raised their hands, raised there hands because they were sure that they, confident, confident, were dry and secure their worthy efforts had garnered victory, because it had.
Results matter.
Another issue is the reward for tactics. Klinsmann seems to think we should try to be Barca/Spain and play something like a 1-17-1 formation. We continue to suck and be ineffectual playing with one striker.
Our “famous” victory in the fog in Slovenia in which we scored three goals came while playing two strikers. Tonight, Klinsy started with his preferred 1-17-1, and we had possession, lost it a lot, regained, lost it again, and generally spent the night stepping on our feet, or other members of our collective body.
Then Wondo subbed in for a midfielder and we started dominating the game and being dangerous. I know Claudio Reyna has a cunning plan to make us a nation of Messis, but, until that happens, the USofA plays better in a quaint, old-fashioned 4-4-2, so getting a win after going to that formation starts to flaccidify the hard on Klinsy obviously has for the 1-17-1.
So tonight matters. If we hadn’t got that goal in time added on to time added on, it would have been yet another night in which we had the better of the play in terms of possession and chances and still not gotten anything done.
Results matter.
It should be noted that the shining star on the night was one Jermaine Jones, a “fake American” according to Preston Zimmerman. My objection to Zimmerman’s observations, other than the obvious ugly zenophobia ironically coming from an expatriot living IN GERMANY and earning a soccer living there, was that they distracted from the more important point that Klinsmann’s natural preference and comfort level with German-based players was not getting results. And, aside from his “fakeness,” he is a hothead suspended from Bundesliga play for violent conduct. Klinsy cannot be faulted for lacking the courage of his prejudices - he brought the guy in, praising his Champions League cred, and didn’t stop there – he gave him the freakin’ captain’s armband. Whether aimed at Zimmerman, a person Klinsy might dismiss as “a boil on the butt of humanity” were he channeling his inner Momma, he certainly went all in for his preferences in a way that might make even UVa-preferring Bruce Arena blush. Tonight, Jones was the most dominant player on the pitch and assisted on the winning goal.
Results matter
In other news, MLS has decided to turn back the clock to 1910 in terms of our understanding of how worthy universal values should be applied. By associating in a project of leadership development with Boy Scouts of America, they have decided to acquiesce to a policy of official discrimination against atheists, agnostics, and gays. My personal opinion is that the USSF is a quasi-governmental organization, as it operates outside of the normal constructs of anti-trust law and has, in effect, granted a monopoly to MLS. MLS is, in effect, a company town. MLS should be held to the same standards as the U.S. Government with regards to equal protection. Plus, as a matter of good manners to folk like me and the heteros who love people like me, if they want to promote leadership among yout’s,
All that aside, there is the human decency angle – we soccer fans come from all sorts of places and opinions and from all sorts of human categories. The organization that depends on all of us for its commercial success should not favor any organization that discriminates against a segment of us. If they want to promote leadership among yout’s, why couldn’t they have picked a non-discriminatory organization?
Then there is the Viva Pete story. As a survivor, Pete Vagenas is beginning to take a place among ferns and cockroaches. He is like a fern because he dates back to pretty early in the development of life in the history of MLS. Not quite back to bacterial stage, but pretty close. He is like a roach, because, for several teams now, the fans of the teams whose locker rooms he inhabits consider him more of an infestation than a welcome guest.Pasadena Pete, aka Pass Back Pete, aka
Pete's Alter Ego
, is STILL employed, apparently, as a first division professional soccer player, and back at home, too. It couldn’t happen to a nicer guy, and I am sure Robin Fraser knows something we don’t.
Except, whose car will Chivas fans vandalize now?
buzzkiller…
Count chocula?
http://www.google.com/search?q=peter+vagenas&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=Iy1&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&prmd=imvnso&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=RUIcT9-5H4rViALV5qy2CA&ved=0CDUQsAQ&biw=1024&bih=609
The resemblence is uncanny.
“Ignorance is such sweet bliss!” There is either an obvious lack of knowledge, or, a bias in this article. The third choice is you are a pompous Azz!
I’ll go for door no. 2. If you care to share a differing point of view, you are welcome to.
This is a load of garbage!
As someone who also makes blog posts covering more than one topic at a time, I’d like to say that comments like this, while not as welcome as unstinting praise, would be greatly improved by specificity. Unless you disagree with Bad MF’s points on all three, and are really in a hurry to comment before your plane boards or something, I dunno
I appreciate the blogger solidarity, Dan. But I can take a punch. You have taken more than a few.
What I find curious is the folks with specific criticisms. I am to old to feel as cool as Mike Gray, but if I were younger, to the ones who pointed out that “baseball countries” include Korea, Japan, the United States of America, and the country that produced the indispensible holding midfielder of my favorite MLS team, I might have said, “See what I did there?”
How so. Please outline?
I meant: How so? Please outline.
our C-team beat Venezuela B-team
to me that’s good news
This “baseball country’s” A-team is currently ahead of Argentina & Brazil’s A-team in WCQ. It’s a shame that EVERYONE who blogs on soccer thinks they’re now a soccer (sorry, FOOTBALL) expert.
And keep in mind that the USA isn’t exactly the world’s biggest “soccer country” either….yet.
Fair point. They are acquitting themselves well, these days.
They’re ahead of Argentina and Brazil in World Cup qualifying? Huh? They’re tied with Argentina on points, and trailing on goal difference. Brazil isn’t even in World Cup qualifying this time around.
I can’t see a win in a January friendly against a country that has never qualified for the World Cup as all that earthshaking.
Maybe it is no longer fair to regard Venezuela as just a baseball country. They’re certainly a lot better than Nicaragua, Cuba, Puerto Rico or the Dominican Republic. But they’re still a long way from being in a class with the best South American nations. Good win, yes. But an important win?
We’ve been mighty short on results lately. I think it important we don’t make losing a habit.
I guess you’re right about not wanting to lose yet again. Maybe it was important in the sense that Klinsmann was starting to get blue in the face. Our lack of numbers lately does make the result look welcome, the more so since lots of people know why our finishing was absent: It spent the day scoring three goals against Newcastle.
Germain Jones is suspended by the Bundesliga for violent conduct and he gets called to the USNT? And given the captains armband? That’s classy right there.
The US team, from another baseball country, beat a watered-down Venezuela that was never really in the match. The last second goal? That’s soccer, son. Where the hell have you been.
And Venezuela’s first eleven are a good team. Wake up.
i’m glad their goalie decided to waste time, without him, we didn’t have enough of added time to win.
Venezuela aren’t slouches. Mateo, do you know how I know that you didn’t watch the last Copa America?
Yes, Venezuela sent a depleted B-Team. And yeah, so did we. The result was that Venezuela had to play some of the most negative football I have seen in a long while to attempt a draw. This was a great test of what future CONCACAF qualifiers will look like, as the game really reminded me of USA vs. Guatemala in RFK back in 2000.
The one good thing about this game was that the referee was fair. He let everything go, but yes, the US eventually learned to take that to their advantage, and knew that the Venezuelan antics were racking up stoppage time. Then, with 4 minutes added on, the Venezuelans promptly stalled through nearly all four of them. The result was that we scored in stoppage time, as the ref fairly added time for the Tinto’s ridiculous play.
This was the first time, in my life, I saw a ref make grassrolling a non-factor in a game. We need more of that.
We agree there. I said that the whistle could have been blown sooner, but I am glad it wasn’t.
The other interesting thing about the refereeing is that they were letting a lot go. Don’t imagine that will become a CONCACAF trend, but who knows.
” . . . the game really reminded me of USA vs. Guatemala in RFK back in 2000.”
Scary that you remember that.
Off topic – but do we consider Korea/Japan/Columbia/Panama/Netherlands/Mexico, to be “baseball countries”, too?
My baseball country schtick was rather playing devil’s advocate. You are all correct that they are a respectable soccer country, too, which makes the result even better. In case you didn’t catch it, I think this a good and maybe important win.
shut up dude
Really? We had two players tackled in the box without a penalty granted. We had two sure goals stolen by phenomenal saves. We could have just as easily walked out with 5-0 instead of 1-0.
We controlled possession for what felt like 80 minutes of the match. This was a much better performance than the prior work under Klinnsman. This was the first glimmer of what may lie ahead as long as soccer people are in charge and blind bloggers aren’t.
Am I blind to see that we play with much more purpose when we have two forwards?
As for controlling possession, that’s good. I just get worried when we keep doing that and not winning, so actually getting that goal at the death seems more important than your average friendly result to me because of the way things have been going.
I want my two minutes back. What a bunch of drivel.
I want my two seconds back, but thanks for stopping by.
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