Now That We Are In

Right. So. The World Cup. A tournament played and cheered for with the utmost fervor throughout the globe. A championship to end all championships. Will 2010 be the year that the United States of America comes into its own and takes a place amongst the legends of champions past? In a word...no.

Now, I have been one of the most skeptical fans out there. I still remain unimpressed by our offense, primarily our lack of a scoring threat that puts fear into the hearts of our competition; however, I see signs of life. We have some young players starting to step up and gain the experience necessary to be successful on the next level. We have a team starting to come together as a singular unit. We have a sense of pride amongst the team and its fans leading to expectations of consistent, solid play. We appear to have a bit of passion.

After famously (amongst our three readers) declaring the fighting American squad would not score more than 3 goals in the World Cup, I must make an amendment that will hold through until the first boot hits the pitch in South Africa. I am increasing the goal output by 33% to 4 goals. Yes, you heard me right, a full 33% increase. I see the Yanks squeezing out an extra goal, and with a lucky bounce, could hit 5. Believe it or not, this could possibly be enough to survive the group rounds with our defense...but we'll have to wait to see the draw.

All in all, I am encouraged. It seems as though the team is growing together, and heading in the right direction. This bodes well going into battle the worlds top teams. At the same time, I keep my expectations in check. We are not a powerhouse. We are not going to win the World Cup. Give us a few more decades of success and change some of the grassroots football efforts, and we might get there.

Just not in 2010.