Soccer Us Soccer

The 2006 World Cup is remembered as a tournament where key players fell well short of expectations. It should also be remembered for the play of Clint Dempsey and Jimmy Conrad, the two MLS players who arguably were the only members of that U.S. national team who could be proud of their performances in Germany.

Why is that relevant today? Because both Dempsey and Conrad likely cemented their roles on Bruce Arena's World Cup roster with their play at the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Neither was a national team fixture before that tournament, but in helping the Americans to their third title, they established themselves as legitimate World Cup options. The U.S. team that takes the Qwest Stadium field tonight against Grenada in their Gold Cup opener will be composed of players with similar status -- on the outside looking in as the next World Cup approaches. History suggests that two or three of those athletes will play their way onto Bob Bradley's team for next summer.

When the U.S. Soccer Federation announced the roster for the upcoming CONCACAF Gold Cup in the midst of the U.S.'s surprising run to the Confederations Cup final, the general consensus was that the lineup was thoroughly a "B" team. After all, the supposed "A" team had done enough work in upsetting then-FIFA No. 1 Spain, and giving newly minted top dog Brazil a run for its money, before losing 3-2 last week.

On Wednesday, CONCACAF said it would allow the U.S. to add seven players to the already 23-man roster for the Gold Cup due to playing in back-to-back competitions barely separated by a week and, more importantly, over 10,000 miles. Thursday the USSF announced those seven players -- all members of the Confederations Cup roster -- upgrading the roster to a solid "B+."

Major League Soccer's marketers, often guilty of a bit of hyperbole, can't be accused of it this time over their 'Summer of Soccer' campaign. Between World Cup qualifying, the recently-completed Confederations Cup, CONCACAF Gold Cup, Superliga, the start of the CONCACAF Champions League and visits by the likes of Barcelona, AC Milan, Chelsea and more, we're in danger of saturation.

The schedule serves to throw a bit of cold water on the argument that the sport isn't growing in this country, as does the U.S. national team's performance over the past week in South Africa. Before looking ahead, it's worth looking back at what we learned from the Yanks' roller coaster ride.

The ecstasy on the faces of the Brazilian players celebrating the go-ahead goal near the corner flag and the tears rolling down that of their captain, Lucio, at the final whistle, demonstrated just how much today's Confederations Cup final meant to the world's most famous soccer team.

That measure of commitment, combined with a lot of talent and the flagging energy of a U.S. side struggling to stay with a superior opponent for the second straight game, was enough to overhaul a two-goal deficit and lift the Brazilians to a 3-2 triumph and the tournament title.

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Wednesday night in chilly Bloemfontein, South Africa, the U.S. national team lodged one of its greatest victories in its history, beating FIFA No. 1 Spain 2-0 in the Confederations Cup semifinals. The win snapped Spain's 35-match unbeaten run, denying them a chance to set a new record at 36.

This win almost made me pull out the thesaurus for the proper word to describe it. Stunning? Yes. Unbelievable? Pretty close. Deserved? You bet.

Imagine if that famous 1980 Olympic hockey game between the American collegians and the Soviet Big Red Machine had been played in Red Square instead of Lake Placid. Those were the kind of odds facing Bob Gansler and his young U.S. national team on June 14, 1990, when they kicked off against Italy in a World Cup match at Rome's Stadio Olimpico.

The American side defined "moral victory" that day, holding the tournament favorites to one goal and nearly scoring through Peter Vermes in the second half. "The difference between our team in the first game [a 5-1 loss to Czechoslovakia] and the second was psychological,'' Gansler said at the time.

Nineteen years later, Gansler told FanHouse that the psychological again will play the defining role as the U.S. faces similarly long odds against a Spanish juggernaut in the Confederations Cup semifinals Wednesday.

After what must be the most unlikely turn of events in American soccer history, the beleaguered national team with the supposedly incompetent coach and heartless, out-of-form players has survived to play another day. A surprisingly comprehensive 3-0 defeat of African champions Egypt in Rustenburg, combined with Brazil's 3-0 win over reeling Italy, has qualified the U.S. for the Confederations Cup semifinals.

Spain, the European champion juggernaut on the 35-game unbeaten streak, awaits on Wednesday. But let concern over that Herculean task wait until Monday. For the first time since the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup final, Bob Bradley and the U.S. national team rose to the occasion and, on this day, certainly deserve passage.

When the draw for the 2009 Confederations Cup took place a couple months ago, American soccer fans circled the date June 18. Why? One word: Brazil. It's just not every day you get to play against the team most consider the best team in the world.

The U.S., which looked good for a half vs. Italy on Monday (and terrible for the other), probably needs to take at least a point against Kaka, Robinho & Co. Thursday in Pretoria, otherwise the final group stage on Sunday vs. Egypt will probably be rendered moot.

Action kicks off at 9:55 AM ET on ESPN2. We'll be live blogging shortly before then.

At a time when Americans have become somewhat of an endangered species in the England's Premier League, a bit of good news came down Wednesday when it was announced goal keeper Marcus Hahnemann was signed by newly promoted club Wolverhampton.

Hahnemann, who had spells at Fulham and Reading, was released by the Royals last month after a long stint at the club, helping them reach the top flight for the first time in their history due to budgetary concerns.

ESPN studio host Rece Davis probably said it best. Monday at the Confederations Cup, we found the next (or first if you will) American soccer star.

The problem, Giuseppe Rossi played in the blue of Italy, not the U.S. white Monday in the Confederations Cup Group B opener for both teams. The New Jersey born attacker came on as a second half substitute and promptly scored a pair of cracking goals to give the Azzurri a 3-1 win in Pretoria, South Africa. The U.S. remains winless in seven all-time matches against Italy.