Bobby, have you heard anything about the fact that Bruce Arena didn't shake the hand of the Ghanaian coach after the match? Sports talk shows are reporting this, and if it is true, it's classless. It's one thing to lose. It's another thing entirely to lose without dignity. I sure hope it isn't true.
I heard that he didn't do it on the field immediately after the game. Apparently he had a few gestures for Merk and left; but he did shake his hand off the field.
As for playing Ching -- why not put another guy in there who would run through the wall. He should've played McBride, Ching and EJ up front all day long. Don't know what it would've done, but you have to wonder if anyone had a scouting report on Ching.
Bobby, I can't believe Arena thinks that Hedjuk would have made a difference! I, for one, was happy with Cherondolo's performance and effort. Ok, he's not the best option going forward, but Hedjuk runs around too much like a chicken with his head cut off. To be fair, I haven't seen Ching play that often, but he couldn't have done any worse than Johnson, or Donovan for that matter.
after the early exit for the u.s team what if any bright spots do you find for the americans. I felt clint dempsey played well as did the back line. any chance of him hitting the european leagues??
Arena can probably only suggest that Donovan "consider" playing in Europe, but come on. All positions in soccer are heavily influenced by the pace of the game. Attacking midfield especially. How can you expect to break down the best defenders in the world unless you play against the best defenders in the world on a regular basis? Its a complete no-brainer
I'll tell you who they really missed. Taylor Twellman. He's the best pure goal scorer ever produced by the USA and leaving him off the roster was a bone-headed decision. It looked like Arena had no confidence in his strikers. That's why he insisted on playing McBride upfront by himself.
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