So Close, Yet So Far

In what would have been the most monumental upset since…well…yesterday, South Africa came within three minutes of pushing powerhouse Brazil to overtime in the second semifinal of the 2009 Confederation’s Cup. But the host’s date with destiny was not to be, as Dani Alves bent a wicked free kick into the net in the 87th minute to propel the Brazilians into the finals. They’ll face the United States who pulled off the unlikeliest of upsets yesterday against world number one, Spain.
Brazil did not live up to their title as the master’s of the beautiful game, never really finding their samba-rhythm. The short peppered passes and gliding footwork were missing from the performance, as they never quite pulled away from the South Africans. Salvation came in the 87th minute from Dani Alves who fiercely curled a free kick around the wall, off of the right post and into the goal.
Credit goes to the hosts, who fared well against the South Americans. However, if they had been just a little more adventurous, they may have been able to poke through a goal.
Brazil will face the United States on Sunday in the championship match. Team USA is coming off of a huge wave of momentum after defeating Spain 2-0 yesterday. In their previous matchup, during the group stage of the tournament, Brazil downed the U.S. 3-0, with goals from Felipe Melo, Robinho and Maicon.

Looking Back: Great Upsets in US Soccer History

Now that the greatest upset in U.S. soccer history is a few hours old, it seemed appropriate to reflect on some of the U.S.’ other big soccer upsets. Enjoy.


1950 World Cup
Known as the “Miracle on Grass” the United States stunned England and the rest of the world with their 1-0 victory over the “Kings of Football” at the Estadio Independcia in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. In the 37th minute Walter Bahr crossed the ball in to Joe Gaetjens who grazed the ball just enough to put it past goalkeeper Bert Williams to put the Americans up 1-0 and make history. The United States would win the game 1-0. Neither team advanced through to the knockout stage.

1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup
The United States stunned Brazil in the semifinals of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, winning 1-0. Preki scored the game’s only goal, a powerful strike from outside the box that sailed over Tafarrel’s head. Kasey Keller was brilliant in goal, stifling the likes of Romario and Edmundo while preserving the shutout. Unfortunately, the Red, White and Blue lost to the Tricolores of Mexico in the championship match.

1994 World Cup
The U.S. took on Colombia in a group stage match of the 1994 World Cup in front of a staggering 93,000 fans at the Rose Bowl in Los Angeles. The United States did not disappoint the home crowd, upsetting Colombia 2-1. Thanks to an own goal from Andres Escobar, and a goal from Ernie Stewart put the Americans ahead and helped secure passage into the knockout round.

2002 World Cup
The United States sent the shot heard ‘round the world in the group stage of the 2002 World Cup, when they took down Portugal 3-2. John O’Brien and Brian McBride scored goals, while Jorge Costa put in an own goal for Portugal. The U.S. made it through to the knockout stage and advanced to the quarterfinals where they fell to Germany 1-0.

U.S. Stuns Spain

The United States soccer team has just pulled off an upset of epic proportions.

Forget 1950. The United States’ 2-0 stunning of Spain is undoubtedly their biggest upset of all time. Not only because they took down the world’s No. 1 team. A team that had not lost an international match in 35 tries. But because the United States shouldn’t have even made it this far in the first place. After falling to Italy and Brazil in group stage, the United States backed into the semi-finals thanks to a six goal swing with Egypt.

That didn’t matter Wednesday night at Free State, as the United States displayed the confidence of world-beaters as they bravely stood toe to toe with the world’s No. 1 team.
Starting a young squad that included Benny Feilhaber, Michael Bradley and Ricardo Clark, Bob Bradley’s side faced the likes of David Villa, Fernando Torres, Carlos Puyol, Xavi, Xabi Alonso, and the list goes on.

The match began quietly, with the United States doing well to prevent Spain from finding a rhythm to their game. Both sides put several shots wide or high of the target. The first jolt came in the 27th minute when U.S. striker Clint Dempsey fed the ball to Jozy Altidore who expertly shook off Xavi with a nifty spin and put a shot at Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas. Casillas was caught wrong-footed and only managed to palm the ball onto the post and into the back of the net. Altidore was handed a yellow card after the goal due to excessive celebration.

Despite the early wake-up call and thanks to a brilliant reflex save by Tim Howard, Spain could not answer with a goal of their own, and went into half-time trailing 1-0. Spain applied significant more pressure during the second half, but it was overshadowed by a gutsy display of defending from the United States. The Spaniards sent shot after shot at the U.S. goal, but were turned away time and again. Cesc Fabregas’ tricky passes and David Villa’s screaming long shots were no match for Oguchi Onyewu’s, Michael Bradley’s, and Jay Demerit’s shielding frames.
Despite Spain’s desperate and powerful attempts, the United States fortress would not give.

Clint Dempsey sealed the miracle in the 74th minute. Landon Donovan poked a cross into the box that Sergio Ramos collected, albeit with an extremely poor touch. Dempsey was there to slide it past an out of position Casillas to put the final touch on the unbelievable victory.
The last 25 minutes were merely a countdown to the final whistle, with Spain making a few desperate pushes, and the U.S. content to play kick ball. However Michael Bradley of the United States was shown a red card after a studs-up tackle, which means he will miss the final match.

Unless South Africa can pull off an even more miraculous upset, the United States appears headed for a championship match showdown with Brazil, who they lost 3-0 to during pool play.
However, if the United States plays with the confidence, heart, and intensity that they displayed today, there is no telling how the match will turn out.

Off-Season Report: Manchester United

When Manchester United does something, they do it big, and this year’s transfer season is no exception. They made headlines before the final game of the season with rumours that several big names, mainly Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez weren’t content at Old Trafford. Tevez’ situation has yet to be resolved, although he has ruled out a move to Liverpool, and Manchester City seems to be the likeliest candidate. Ronaldo’s record-breaking transfer to Real Madrid was splashed across headlines for days, drawing both awe and disgust from pundits and critics. The 80 million pound transfer is the richest in history, and takes away a key, albeit controversial player from Old Trafford.

Now that the two strikers are out gone, or nearly gone, United has been focused on finding a striker for Rooney to work with. United had its eye on Samuel Eto’o but he appears headed to Manchester City as well.

It’s name has also been in the mix for England and Portsmouth defender Glen Johnson and Wigan’s Antonio Valencia.

They’re also competing for Bayern Munich’s Frank Ribery and Karim Benzima of Lyon.

Off-Season Report: Liverpool

Liverpool have officially continued their annual “This is our year” campaign at Anfield, employing many of the same transfer strategies that hey have displayed in seasons past. They recently locked down superstar Fernando Torres with an improved contract that keeps him at Anfield until June 2013, and Reds captain Steven Gerrard has been vocal about Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez’ need to sign other players of Torres’ stature. There have been some rumours that Real Madrid are targeting midfielder Xabi Alonso, and whisperings that Javier Mascherano is headed for Barca, but neither of those rumours have come to fruition.

With lacking funds, Benitez will only go after one or two name players to bolster the already solid squad.

So, it appears as if the Reds will go after only a few new players. One of the top names on the list is Glen Johnson. The 24-year-old England national is being courted by Chelsea, Manchester City, and the Reds.

Benitez’s thinking is that Liverpool doesn’t need any major overhaul to improve Liverpool’s chances at a title. They’re trying to retain all of their key players and add on one or two contributors.

Off-Season Report: Chelsea

A quick at look at Chelsea in the news this off-season.

Ancellotti in Charge: Carlo Ancellotti, the former AC Milan boss is now in charge at Stamford Bridge. He has some key decisions to make in terms of what direction he wants to take Chelsea in. He tried to bring some of the Rossoneri with him to the Bridge, including Kaka, who signed with Real Madrid, and Clarence Sedorf.

However, he may be able to woo 19-year-old Brazil international Pato from A.C. Milan. The Rossoneri striker is currently in talks with Ancellotti, whom Pato credits with jumpstarting his Italian career.

"He is an extraordinary man. It's thanks to Ancellotti that I have been able to emerge at AC Milan and in Italian football. Before I decide my future, I want to talk to him," Pato told Gazzetto del Sporto.

Ancellotti’s next target is Atletico Madrid striker Sergio Aguero. Gary Jacob and James Ducker of The Times reported that Chelsea made a 45 million pound bid for the Argentine striker.

“The 21-year-old has cut a reputation as one of the most skilful second strikers around and could potentially be an excellent foil for Didier Drogba. He scored 17 goals last season to boot.”



Another huge factor is the fate of Didier Drogba. Drogba floundered under Scolari, but was re-energized under interim manager Guss Hiddink. It appeared that his contract would be renewed at the end of the season, however, his antics after the Blues’ UEFA Champions League semi-final loss to Barcelona had fans and critics calling for Drogba to be released. However, Drogba recently affirmed his commitment to Chelsea, and it appears the feeling is mutual in the Chelsea boardroom.