There has been a fair amount of controversy surrounding Jurgen Klinsmann's speech following the Brazil match. Personally I think his comments were taken completely out of context by his detractors and used to blast him unfairly. What's your take on that situation? - Cory L., Raceland, LA
For those of you who missed it, this is the quote that Cory is talking about:
“We need to get an edge, be more nastier. Maybe we’re a
little bit still too naive. Maybe we don’t want to hurt people. But
that’s what we’ve got to do. You’ve got to do that at the end of the
day. So we’ve got to step on their toes more and get them more
frustrated and make a case with the referee maybe as well."
Photo Credit: sports.yahoo.com
The only issue I have with Klinsmann's statement is the line where he says we have to want to hurt people. Much like I wrote about in my Mailbag a couple weeks ago when 'Bountygate' was still all the rage, there's absolutely no room in any sport for that. Except, you know, boxing, etc. Short of that, and if you assume he didn't mean that in the literal sense, I think he's absolutely right. Too often the U.S. gets pushed around by other teams and we are never the side that dictates the tempo of the match. Nobody plays the U.S. and is intimidated by us, and that's what needs to change in Klinsmann's eyes. It doesn't have to be physically hurting people, but it does involve taking other teams out of their comfort zones. You don't want your opponents comfortable when they receive the ball, you want them to know every 50/50 ball is going to be contested, and you literally want them to feel you on them everywhere they go on the pitch. Playing physically doesn't mean you're playing to hurt someone. But it also means that you can't be worried about hurting someone or shy away from making plays because of what might happen. Jermaine 'Reckless' Jones is the epitome of this. He brings the workmanlike attitude that has been the staple of American soccer over the years, but he adds a hint of physicality and unbridled aggressiveness. Now granted, Jones takes this to the extreme, and he's a little too reckless for my taste, but he's one of the few players on the U.S. squad that really plays with an edge and that's why he's been a regular during the Klinsmann era.
Photo Credit: sports.yahoo.com
The idea of playing with an edge or a nasty side isn't unique to soccer. In baseball it means not being afraid to pitch hitters inside. In basketball, think Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics. Since Garnett's arrival in Boston back in 2007, the Celtics began playing with a new intensity on defense. They made sure you wouldn't get an uncontested lay-up, and after the whistle they'd make sure no practice shots went in the basket by jumping up and goaltending them. In hockey you have 'Enforcers' whose roll is literally to intimidate other teams stars while protecting their own. All of these scenarios involve making the opponents uncomfortable and getting in their heads.
Photo Credit: gibfootballshow.co.uk
In soccer, people are somewhat reluctant to admit that there's a darker side to 'the Beautiful Game', but if you watch any of the world's top teams (Germany, Netherlands, Brazil, and even Spain) they dictate the way the match is played, and they aren't afraid to push their opponents around a little bit. If the U.S. is going to become one of the world's elite teams, Klinsmann is right. They'll need to be a little bit more nasty.
That does it for this week. As always a special thanks to everyone who wrote in. And remember, as the great G$ Meyer says Reading is for Winners, especially when you read Smitty's Mailbag.
Got a question for the mailbag? Click on the link at the top of the
page or email us directly at smittysports.blogspot@hotmail.com.
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/06/02/2829964/jurgen-klinsmann-says-us-team.html#storylink=cpy
Johan Santana just tossed the first no-hitter in New York Mets history when he held the St. Louis Cardinals hitless on Friday night. How many times have the Mets been no-hit since the franchise joined the National League in 1962?
Last week's question:
Landon
Donovan became the first player in U.S. Men's National team history to
net a third hat trick while playing for the Stars and Stripes when he
struck for three goals against the Scots on May 26th. Who are the ten
other players to score at least three goals in a game for the United
States?
Answer:
Here's a list of all of the hat tricks in U.S. Men's National Team History. The ten players in addition to Donovan are listed in bold. Players with an asterisk scored four goals in a game:
11/08/25 - Archie Stark* vs Canada
Photo Credit: pwt-blog.blogspot.com
07/17/30 - Bert Patenaude vs Paraguay - 1930 World Cup
Photo Credit: bleacherreport.com
05/24/34 - Aldo "Buff" Donelli* vs Mexico - World Cup Qualifier
Photo Credit: bleacherreport.com
10/20/68 - Peter Millar vs Haiti - World Cup Qualifier
Photo Credit: nasljerseys.com
11/02/68 - Peter Millar vs Bermuda - World Cup Qualifier
12/05/93 - Joe-Max Moore* vs El Salvador
Photo Credit: phillysoccerpage.net
01/27/02 - Brian McBride vs El Salvador
Photo Credit: kickette.com
07/19/03 - Landon Donovan* vs Cuba
10/13/04 - Eddie Johnson vs Panama - World Cup Qualifier
01/29/06 - Taylor Twellman vs Norway
03/25/07 - Landon Donovan vs Ecuador
01/24/09 - Sacha Kljestan vs Sweden
04/01/09 - Jozy Altidore vs Trinidad & Tobago - World Cup Qualifier
The Spurs and Thunder are meeting in the
postseason for the first time since the Thunder franchise moved from
Seattle. How many players on the current San Antonio and Oklahoma City
rosters appeared in the deciding game the last time these two met in the
playoffs?
Answer:
The answer is four, and all four players started Game 6 of the 2005 Western Conference Semifinals for the Spurs. The first three are obvious as the trio of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker are still leading the way for San Antonio, but don't forget Nazr Mohammed, the former starting center for San Antonio, who now serves as a backup for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Photo Credit: ebay.com
This week's question:
Landon Donovan became the first player in U.S. Men's National team history to net a third hat trick while playing for the Stars and Stripes when he struck for three goals against the Scots this weekend. Who are the ten other players to score at least three goals in a game for the United States?
In case you missed it last night, the U.S. Men's National Team put together arguably their most impressive win in recent memory as they thrashed a decent Scottish side 5-1 behind a hat trick from Landon Donovan. The U.S. got after the Scots early, and despite letting them back into the game with an own goal they never crumbled and cruised to a comfortable victory. Here's ten observations I have from last night's match:
1) For someone who is questioning his desire to continue to play soccer at a high level, Landon Donovan showed he still has plenty left in the tank. Captain America scored three times, his first hat trick for the U.S. since he scored a triple against Ecuador in a 2007 friendly, hit the post once, and assisted on Jermaine Jones' header to cap off just a ridiculous night. As I commented to my buddy last night, I cannot wait to see Donovan and Clint Dempsey on the pitch at the same time.
2) Speaking of Dempsey, the U.S. managed to score 5 goals without Deuce and without Jozy Altidore. That is a great sign for a team that for a while last year couldn't seem to buy a goal. Now you figure once Altidore gets back that he'll take Terrence Boyd's spot up top, but who's the odd man out when Dempsey returns? Maurice Edu? Jones? Jose Torres? It's a tough call, but that's a good problem for Coach Klinsmann to have.
3) Jermaine Jones (1 goal, 2 assists) needs a nickname because obviously he's here to stay. I'm thinking something like Wreckless Jones since he's almost always good for a card-worthy foul or two. Or Germany Jones since he was born in Frankfurt, and Germany and Jermaine kind of sound the same. Either way, another solid performance for the Schalke 04 midfielder.
4) Playing in Italy has done wonders for Michael Bradley's game. Is there anyone out there who still thinks that he only had a spot on the team because his dad was the coach? And his goal was absolutely ridiculous. If you haven't seen it yet, you need to watch:
5) I really like what Jose Torres brings to the table. His combination of footwork and his passing ability are reminiscent of the days when we had Claudio Reyna running the show. Between him and Bradley, the U.S. really seemed to dominate possession last night which is something we don't normally see. Now it just remains to be seen where Torres fits into things once Dempsey and Altidore return to the lineup. Still, you'd be hard pressed to say that Torres doesn't at least figure to be in the rotation.
6) Geoff Cameron is horribly unlucky. In his last two games for the U.S., Cameron has been red carded and scored an own goal. Still, it was good to see him bounce back from the miscue against Scotland and turn in a decent shift. It will be interesting to see who partners up with Bocanegra (Cameron, Onyewu, Goodson, Parkhurst) when the games start counting.
7) Fabian Johnson may be the solution at left back for the United States. Although he wasn't really tested last night by the Scottish attack, his ability to run the wing is something Jurgen Klinsmann likes and he's one of the few players in the U.S. pool that actually look comfortable on that side of the field.
8) Joe Corona made his U.S. Senior National Team debut in the second half coming on as a substitute for Torres. Personally I would've liked to see Wondo get into the game, but I can't really argue with the decision to get the 21 year old some minutes. It's important to remember that these matches are both to get the players used to playing together and for Klinsmann to evaluate what he's got, and in that regard, it's important for him to get players like Boyd and Corona (virtual unknowns) playing time so he can see if they're ready for big time competition.
9) The U.S. has now won five straight matches, the most they've won consecutively since 2008 when they won six in a row. The difference is that those wins came against the likes of Barbados (2), Guatemala, Cuba (2) and Trinidad & Tobago. This stretch includes wins over Slovenia, Italy and Scotland.
10) The U.S. has still yet to concede a goal scored directly by an opponent this year as Geoff Cameron is the only player to put a ball into the U.S. net in the last four matches. With all of the questions surrounding the U.S. back line, this is really a pretty impressive feat. That said, I'd still like to see the defense play a little bit better. It's my feeling that it's not so much great play from the defense that's caused this run, but solid goalkeeping and missed opportunities from the opposition. That said, if we continue to score 5 goals a game, it probably won't matter how well we defend.
The U.S. will look to make it six wins in a row on Wednesday when they host Brazil at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland. Kickoff is set for 8 pm Eastern time and the game will be televised on ESPN2.
The 2012 MLS Season has been nothing short of a disaster for Toronto FC. The Reds have failed to earn a single point through 9 matches getting outscored 21-7 over that span. Yet despite their struggles, Toronto's going to be playing in the Champions League for a fourth straight season after they defeated the Vancouver Whitecaps in the 2012 Canadian Championship Final. After drawing 1-1 in the first leg of the Championship Round, 21 year old Bermudian Reggie Lambe broke a scoreless tied in the 83rd minute of the second leg to send Toronto through to the Champions League. Toronto becomes the 21st team, and fifth squad from MLS, to earn a berth in the upcoming Tournament with only the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Club Championship - which will produce the final three tournament berths - yet to be decided. Toronto is looking to build on a strong showing in the 2011-12 Champions League where they reached the semifinals before falling to Santos Laguna (Mexico).
Here's a quick look at the 21 teams who have qualified for the 2012-13 Champions League that will begin play on July 31st.
Tigres de la UANL - Mexico - 2011 Apertura Champion
Santos Laguna - Mexico - 2012 Clausura Champion, 2011 Apertura Runner-Up
Guadalajara - Mexico - Non-finalist w/ Best Regular Season Record in 2011 Apertura
Monterrey - Mexico - 2012 Clausura Runner-Up
Los Angeles Galaxy - USA - 2011 MLS Cup Champion, 2011 MLS Supporters' Shield Champion
Seattle Sounders FC - USA - 2011 MLS Supporters' Shield Runner-Up, 2011 U.S. Open Cup Champion
Houston Dynamo - USA - 2011 MLS Cup Runner-Up
Real Salt Lake - USA - 2011 MLS Supporters' Shield Third Place
Toronto FC - Canada - 2012 Canadian Championship Champion
Isidro Metapán - El Salvador - 2011 Apertura Champion
Águila - El Salvador - 2012 Clausura Champion
FAS - El Salvador - Non-Champion w/ Best Aggregate Record in 2011-12 Season
Alajuelense - Costa Rica - 2011 Invierno Champion
Herediano - Costa Rica - 2012 Verano Champion
Olimpia - Honduras - 2011 Apertura Champion, 2012 Clausura Champion
Marathón - Honduras - Non-Champion w/ Best Aggregate Record in 2011-12 Season
Carles Puyol is looking at maybe having surgery on his knee, and will
most likely not be fit for the Euro 2012 tourney. I know he's just one
guy, but he's pretty well the anchor of that back 4 for Spain. How big
of a loss would it be to not have him when Spain tries to defend their
Euro title? - Cory L., Raceland, LA
Photo Credit: guardian.co.uk
Tough break for Carles "don't call me Carlos or Charles" Puyol. Any time you lose one of your starters, particularly one of your team leaders, it's a blow. Fortunately for Spain, they're incredibly deep in the back. Even without Puyol they can trot out an imposing back line consisting of Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Gerard Piqué (Barcelona), Raúl Albiol (Real Madrid) and Álvaro Arbeloa (Real Madrid). Puyol is 34 now and the reality is that Spain was going to need a plan to move forward without him in the near future anyways. Now they're just going to have to do it a little bit sooner than expected. The bigger concern in my mind for Spain is that they will be without their leading scorer from their World Cup run as David Villa continues to recover from his broken leg suffered with Barcelona. Spain will have to get production from somewhere else on the field or teams like the Netherlands or Germany will be able to upset the defending champs.
Canada did something no other team in the tournament had done shutting down the explosive Summer Green who had entered the CONCACAF Championship Finals with 12 goals through the tournament's first four games. It wasn't enough though as Green still contributed a nifty assist to Amber Munerlyn in the 21st minute for the only goal of the match. Munerlyn became the 10th different U.S. player to score in the tournament and Jane Campbell and the USA defense took care of the rest posting a fifth straight shutout. The U.S. outscored their opponents 26-0 over the 5 games and won the tournament for the first time since 2008. Next up, a trip to Azerbaijan for the U-17 Women's World Cup in September. This will be third running of the U-17 Women's World Cup, with the U.S. still seeking their first championship. North Korea defeated the U.S. 2-1 in the finals in 2008 while South Korea won the tournament in 2010 when the U.S. failed to qualify.
Canada and Mexico also qualified for the World Cup with their performance in the CONCACAF Championships. Mexico defeated Panama 6-0 in the 3rd Place Game behind 4 goals from Luz Duarte.
Summer Green scored 3 more goals and the U.S. cruised to a 7-0 win over Panama clinching a berth in the 2012 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup set to be held this fall in Azerbaijan. Green now has 12 goals in the tournament, breaking the CONCACAF U-17 Women's Championship record of nine goals set by Lindsey Horan (USA) back in 2010. Green's 12 goals are also the most scored by a U.S. player in a single tournament at any level and she's also the only player in U.S. National Team history to net three hat tricks in a tournament. The U.S. also got goals from Toni Payne, Morgan Andrews, Darian Jenkins and Emily Bruder as they now prepare to take on Canada in the Championship Game on Saturday. Canada defeated the U.S. in penalties during the semifinals of the 2010 tournament knocking the U.S. out of U-17 World Cup contention. Canada went on to win the 2010 CONCACAF U-17 Women's Championship defeating Mexico by a score of 1-0 in the Final.
Five different players scored for the U.S. as they cruised to a 5-0 win over Trinidad & Tobago clinching a berth in the U-17 CONCACAF Women's Championship Semifinals. The U.S. got off to a bit of a slow start, but Emily Bruder finally got them on the board in the 20th minute. Trinidad & Tobago kept it close though even putting a long range shot off the crossbar and went into halftime down just 1-0. The score would stay that way until midway through the second half when the Americans finally gave themselves a little breathing room behind back to back goals from Andi Sullivan (on an assist from keeper Jane Campbell) and Sarah Robinson. Summer Green would add her tournament leading sixth goal late in the match while Joanna Boyles rounded out the scoring with a goal in stoppage time. Green also finished with two assists.
The U.S. now gets ready to take on Mexico in the final match of Group B play tomorrow. Mexico, like the U.S., also won its first two matches in the tournament defeating Trinidad & Tobago 2-0 and the Bahamas 6-0. The winner of the U.S. - Mexico match will avoid playing Canada in the semifinals as the Canadians have already clinched first place in Group A following a 6-0 win over Panama and a 4-0 win over Jamaica. Panama and Jamaica will battle it out for second place today with host nation Guatemala already having been eliminated.
Here's a look at the tournament's leading scorer's through 2 matches:
Summer Green - USA - 6
Summer Clark - Canada - 4
Margaret Purce - USA - 3
Nichelle Prince - Canada - 2
Jessica Morales - Mexico - 2
Karla Riley - Panama - 2
Kayla Gray - Jamaica - 2
Laurie Batista - Panama - 2
Andi Sullivan - USA - 2
Mariana Cadena - Mexico - 2
Marta Cox - Panama - 2
Summer came early in Guatemala this year as Summer Green, just a day after her 17th birthday, scored 5 goals in the U.S.'s 10-0 rout of the Bahamas in their opening game of Group B play at the 2012 CONCACAF U-17 Women’s Championships. Green became the third American women to score 5 goals in an international match this year joining Senior National Teamers Amy Rodriguez and Sydney Leroux who both accomplished the feat during Olympic Qualifying. Margaret Purce added a hat trick while Andi Sullivan and Toni Payne also scored for the U.S. The score could've been a lot worse as the U.S. outshot the Bahamas 52-1 striking the post several times and forcing Bahamian keeper Cori Strachan into making 17 saves.
The U.S. now gets ready to take on Trinidad & Tobago on Saturday and they conclude Group Play against Mexico on Monday.
