Last time the US soccer team faced Mexico they went home with a lost in the Gold Cup Final.  Months have passed and changes needed to be made, first change coming with the termination of Bob Bradley as coach.  Now Jurgen Klinsmann has taken over as coach, former player and coach of Germany and their first match came to day against Mexico, their main rival on this side of the world.

The US is missing main players who have been around in the past and Mexico’s full squad is also not out there playing in today’s game.  Much remains to be seen if Jurgen Klinsmann can in fact build this team up, one day becoming a major player in national soccer around the world.

As for today’s game, the first half was relatively uneventful and the US team doesn’t seem to have an identity as of yet.  They play and run around not sure of themselves or what is asked of them from the new coach, who has stated that he doesn’t really believe in one particular approach.  The first half was not played with much passion, at the same time though, the Mexican team squeezed in one goal out of nowhere by a player who was being guarded by the son of former head coach Michael Bradley.

Throughout this game, it is important to keep in mind that this is a friendly game between the two teams, much left to be determined in how both teams will look in the future.  Both coaches are trying out different players to see what they have and who will contribute in the future.

The 2^nd half showed us much of the same on the American side that can’t hold on to the ball. They finished with no shots on goal in the first half and Mexico continued to dominate in the onset of the 2^nd half.  In the 55^th minute, Dos Santos was brought in as a substitute and the action picked up for a while after that change was made.

The first sub on the American side came in the 59^th minute when we saw an 18 year old player by the name of Agudelo, he then proceeded to bring a little bit of excitement with a 40 yard run towards goal.  Maybe this will be a youth movement for the American team trying to cultivate talent with an eye to the future. Tim Howard at the age of 32 still remains the guy at goal for the American side; he has not been tested much aside for that early goal in the first half.

In the 73^rd minute, the youth movement made an impact with a goal by Robbie Rodgers.  A beautiful sequence starting with Agudelo, then a brilliant play by another young sub named Brek Shea, finished off by Rodgers who scored on an empty net.

The intensity picked up tremendously after the equalizer by the American team who seemed to have settled down.  Torres and Donovan are playing like the best players on the field along with Agudelo and Brek Shea.

In the 86^th minute, Robbie Rodgers got behind the defenders of the Mexican team in a play in which the Mexican defender should have been red carded- but was spared by the referee after he pulled down the faster American player…A wonderful opportunity for the Americans after the penalty, but no results after hitting the ball into the wall.

The game came to an end 1-1 and although this was a friendly, the 2^nd half should be encouraging to the new coach and fans of American soccer.  There are young players to build with along with their best player Donovan.  A good introduction to American fans for the new coach.

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After such a great tournament in which we witnessed such brilliant play and dramatic conclusions, I find myself thinking about the future of Women’s soccer; specifically, soccer in the U.S.  If we want to be honest about what we saw, we must admit that the American players choked.  Most people have a hard time using that word to describe our female athletes, especially after what was accomplished against Brazil- but history doesn’t exclude any athlete, no matter who it is, from the scrutiny or criticism other athletes face in every other sport.

For Soccer to elevate to the heights which we see in other countries, it is imperative that we continue to want to see this sport succeed and invest the money and time necessary.  Sadly though, I don’t see that happening anytime soon in America outside of the national team.

As mentioned before, Americans love to win and seem to disregard the sports in which they don’t do as well as other countries; we can afford to do that mainly because of the many options we have at our disposal when it comes to sports.   We have had the advantage in women’s soccer up until this point but still managed to lose.  I wrote in a previous article that the world is catching up- it’s not a bad thing unless you’re an American sports fan I guess and don’t like competitive games.  We shouldn’t be surprised though if you place sports in the same world as everyday life.  The world is progressively coming closer in terms of exchange and interdependence; the world of soccer or sports in general is no different, the sad part is Americans aren’t realizing this until it is too late.

The American arrogance involved in sports is of course misguided, but the world’s vision on improving themselves in the sports arena is becoming more apparent and focused.  U.S soccer in terms of the women, will continue to improve on the national level and gain popularity throughout the world because of the financial backing involved and because of the talent on the field; but so will the rest of the countries which they will have to compete with- something they must accept and deal with.

You may be wondering how a team who hasn’t beaten the U.S team in 25 games managed to do what they did this weekend; my answer to that is, the same way every miracle happens in the sports world-a little bit of luck mixed with incredible skill and preparation.  I enjoyed watching this game simply because I love watching great skill and because I love to see how different countries interact with one another in the realm of sports.  The way a team represents its country tells you a lot about the country itself over a long stretch, not within one game or two.

And of course, how can you not be happy for a team like Japan after the long road to get to this point.  This is being described as the coming out party for great soccer, (of course an American idea) but that is far from the truth.  This type of soccer is as easy as breathing for the rest of the world.  Maybe they mean for Women’s soccer and not Soccer as a whole; that’s a better way to put it I guess.  That still seems like a shot to the rest of the world.  In a sense saying, it’s about time they catch up to us not realizing again that we don’t always win.  Not surprising because America is all about dominance, real or not, as long as the perception is there.

Japan needed this more than the U.S did and it’s interesting how sports always seem to reflect a sense of good will and timely victories; only in sports is everything possible.

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