Ach! Leroy come on now. (Not saying I disagree that the USA are on the right path to being a contender at World Cups but when you mention WC dates it just brings to mind the USSF or even the English FA making silly statements about winning the WC in this or that year). Hiddink is not just a good manager because of his work with Australia.
http://www.concacaf.com/article/coach-of-the-year CONCACAF AWARDS 2013: Coach of the Year: Jurgen Klinsmann (US) Klinsmann achieved a momentous double with the United States in 2013, winning the CONCACAF Gold Cup title with a perfect 6-0-0 record and qualifying for Brazil 2014 with a first-place finish in the CONCACAF Hexagonal. Under the German’s skilled guidance, the U.S. also set single-year team records for wins (16) and consecutive victories (12). Goal of the Year: <iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/gxaj8gsSOao" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> Rest of the awards: http://www.concacaf.com/article/peralta-morgan-named-2013-concacaf-players-of-the-year
I didn't say win it in this or that year. I said real contenders by 2022. I remember the USSF Project 2010 program. While the goal of winning in 2010 was silly, it did set the stage for real growth. I know what Hiddink did with other teams. My point is that we're further along than where those teams were at that the stage that he helped them. We don't need a coach to get things started.
I see what you're saying, and I think Klins will end up doing well (after this World Cup) but I don't think the US is that good and are actually very comparable to the Russian team Guus took over. But, after I posted that suggestion, a few hours later, this report came out: <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Guus Hiddink has held informal conversations with the KNVB about replacing Louis van Gaal in the summer.</p>— Dutch Football (@football_oranje) <a href="https://twitter.com/football_oranje/statuses/411554693148467201">December 13, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Well we beat Portugal the last time we played them in the world cup, and just beat Germany recently in DC, so I'm not too worried. Ghana? I can't even locate that on a map so that should be an easy win.
You do know the circumstances around that 2002 meeting are different this time right? You do know that wasn't the German 1st/A team right? I take it you're being silly otherwise I'd ask you to look for the results of the last two USA-Ghana matches and then see if being able to locate the country on a map is relevant to the match outcome. Alrighty then.
Oh wow. That's not good that the report has come out even before the Dutch kick off in Brazil. I'm sure most of the players already know Van Gaal won't be leading them in Euro 2016 and Russia 2018 but I figure that's something the Federation would want to keep quiet until after the WC.
It's already been made public that van Gaal will be leaving after the World Cup, so it doesn't really matter. Ah well, I have very little hope for the next few years anyway. Only RVP and Robben are still world class and they're getting on a bit. The rest are fading (Sneijder, van der Vaart). I don't really see players of the same level coming through, except Strootman.
Hopefully he'll be able to recover in time. If not, that's terrible news for Colombia. With him, they had the deadliest finisher on the planet and were actually possible contenders. They'll still be able to escape the group round I believe, but Falcao was their key to wins in the knockout stage.
http://edition.cnn.com/2014/01/21/sport/football/football-world-cup-venue-threat/ No Stadium, No Match (CNN):
Honestly no big deal for Colombia. They are loaded at Striker and you can only play 2 or 3 at a time anyway. They are thinner on Defense and Mid.
Well I expect every country that has as many inhabitants as the US has and has the money to invest in sports to be able to succeed in a sport they want to. So if the US is determined to actually invest in soccer, and if it becomes a popular sport i expect them to be a major player on the WCs. However I do not see that happening in the near future.
I filled out my bracket for the cup. I have Argentina beating Brazil in the final and Germany taking third place over Uraguay. I also have US making a great run to the quarterfinals before eventually losing to Messi and company. I am pumped, it should be a great tournament. IMOP this is the best sporting event in the world.
It's been happening for quite a while. The MLS just shelled out millions on players in Europe actually still in their primes. The league is growing in teams, fans, and (most importantly) money. US Soccer has been investing heavily in the national teams for years. Yes, there's still miles to go in terms of becoming a consistent top-10 team. But it's not due to a lack of funding or interest any longer and hasn't been since the 1990's. The Seattle Sounders would rank 2nd in the Eredivisie in attendance, just ahead of Feyenoord.
Huge deal for Colombia if he doesn't play in the WC. One of the most exciting players in the world. Just because they have decent replacements doesn't mean they won't miss him.
There is no way that USA will be a real contender by 2022. To contend for the World Cup, you need to have your core players in their prime, 26-30 years of age, which means that most of them would already be well known talents in 2014. And right now, I simply don't see a single player in US comparable to Europe's best talents.
