I don't know if anyone caught the "friendly" between the U.S. men's national team and the Mexican National team last night.
The game was a friendly meaning there was nothing on the line except pride.
It was a 2-2 draw and although my general feeling was that Mexico totally dominated the U.S., I am still scratching my head over the offside call that would have given the U.S. a 3-2 win.
We were playing a lot of our younger up and comers....one name in U.S. soccer that I suspect will become a household name over the next few years is Jozy Altidore. He is 18 years old and a standout in the U-21 World Cup.
They finally have played him in 3 International level matches and he is getting more comfortable with each game. Last night, he scored his first goal on the international scene and almost knocked in a 2nd. He is overshadowing Freddy Adu who was considered the best U-20 soccer player ever in the U.S. but Altidore is better than Adu...bigger, stronger, and more aggressive.
Freddy Adu has great footskills but I don't see him as a dominant player. Even though he was the youngest player to enter professional soccer at the age of 16, he was never good enough to start much with D.C. United. He is playing for Benefica in Portugal currently and isn't a starter there either.
Altidore plays for the N.Y. Red Bulls, a starter, and has been a standout. Rumors are that he will be going to Europe to play and expect that he will be able to hold his own on any team over there.
Really exciting game for anyone who caught it...Mexico is ranked 15th in the World currently and USA 20th. Personally, I think they are better than their rankings say since I believe F.I.F.A. to be a little biased but so be it.
I personally watched the U.S. Brazil game last year with both teams bringing their best players. Although it ended in a 4-2 Brazil victory it was a dead even match with Brazil scoring two goals off of penalty kicks which made the score appear higher.
I am optimistic about the future of U.S. soccer. Since I coach at the youth level, we are seeing the first generation of youth being coached by adults that also played soccer and understand the game. I really think the U.S. is going to be a World powerhouse within 12 years....it takes a long time to build a good program. Once we get there, we will consistently stay at the top.
The game was a friendly meaning there was nothing on the line except pride.
It was a 2-2 draw and although my general feeling was that Mexico totally dominated the U.S., I am still scratching my head over the offside call that would have given the U.S. a 3-2 win.
We were playing a lot of our younger up and comers....one name in U.S. soccer that I suspect will become a household name over the next few years is Jozy Altidore. He is 18 years old and a standout in the U-21 World Cup.
They finally have played him in 3 International level matches and he is getting more comfortable with each game. Last night, he scored his first goal on the international scene and almost knocked in a 2nd. He is overshadowing Freddy Adu who was considered the best U-20 soccer player ever in the U.S. but Altidore is better than Adu...bigger, stronger, and more aggressive.
Freddy Adu has great footskills but I don't see him as a dominant player. Even though he was the youngest player to enter professional soccer at the age of 16, he was never good enough to start much with D.C. United. He is playing for Benefica in Portugal currently and isn't a starter there either.
Altidore plays for the N.Y. Red Bulls, a starter, and has been a standout. Rumors are that he will be going to Europe to play and expect that he will be able to hold his own on any team over there.
Really exciting game for anyone who caught it...Mexico is ranked 15th in the World currently and USA 20th. Personally, I think they are better than their rankings say since I believe F.I.F.A. to be a little biased but so be it.
I personally watched the U.S. Brazil game last year with both teams bringing their best players. Although it ended in a 4-2 Brazil victory it was a dead even match with Brazil scoring two goals off of penalty kicks which made the score appear higher.
I am optimistic about the future of U.S. soccer. Since I coach at the youth level, we are seeing the first generation of youth being coached by adults that also played soccer and understand the game. I really think the U.S. is going to be a World powerhouse within 12 years....it takes a long time to build a good program. Once we get there, we will consistently stay at the top.
Comment