U.S. Heads To South Africa

The fans at Lincoln Financial Field waited long after the final whistle to see their their country's best soccer players depart from the field. Adorned in red, white and blue, this day had been a long time in the making. It has been four long years for the U.S. national team after a disappointing showing in the 2006 World Cup, and now the time is almost here to face-off again against the best in the world.

Yesterday's 2-1 friendly win over Turkey left this soccer writer feeling confident about our nation's chances in the World Cup. That's not to say that there are still some worrying trends with this team; most notably a tendency to leave opposing players unmarked at key times. But what is to like far outweighs these concerns.

Let's start with the most telling fact about this team: 19 of the 23 players play their club soccer in Europe. This is by far the largest contingent of any U.S. World Cup squad. Playing against some of the best competition the planet has to offer can only boost the capabilities of these respective players, instead of being complacent in the sometimes plodding atmosphere of Major League Soccer.

My example of this point is Clint Dempsey. He scored one of the goals yesterday, and has recent experience leading his club, Fulham in the English Premier League, to the Europa League final. His wonder strike against Juventus grabbed the tie back in the Cottagers favor. This kind of experience only helps come crunch time in South Africa.

Another recent revelation has been the play of midfielder Jose Torres. He commanded central midfield with creativity and strength in the tackle. He definitely put in a better performance yesterday than Ricardo Clark, who looked sloppy and had trouble completing passes. Could this effort warrant a starting spot for the Texan come June 12th? It will be a tough decision as Maurice Edu will battle Torres for the right to accompany Michael Bradley as a defensive midfield pair.

The starting 11 for the United States can compete with any squad in the world. We already know this after watching the performances of the team in the Confederations Cup last summer. That 2-0 defeat of Spain was no fluke. We have England in the first game in South Africa, so we will learn straightaway if we are up to the challenge once again.