The 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup (GC) showcased the advances made by the smaller Caribbean nation members of CONCACAF and yet maintained the hierarchy of the likes of Mexico, USA, Jamaica, Costa Rica, and Canada as the region’s top national teams.
In the final, the talent gap between the champion Mexicans and the runner-up USA seemed nearly bridged, as the likes of Christian Pulisic and company showed by creating, if missing, many more scoring opportunities than Mexico in the match. It is impossible to win games if your key players miss point-blank scores from inside the box. Mexico 1, USA 0, was a fair indication of that fact.
What is still sorely missing in US Soccer is an overall system that strives for a consistently improved quality—a playing philosophy that actually gets carried through, a coaching staff that can tell when a group of players is performing well and does not need to be replaced in the 61, 64, and 83 minutes of a GC final, an administrative staff that actually believes change is needed and must be implemented, and a bit more assertiveness from those same administrators when putting their two cents worth in vetting who the tourney referees will be.
One glaring fact of the CONCACAF Gold Cup final match should suffice to show just how one-sided the officiating was in favor of the Mexicans. In the early going, US midfielder Weston McKinnie grabbed a ball which was to be played by the Mexicans, as the ref had called a foul. McKinnie held it so that his teammates could get into position and so that Mexico could not play the ball quickly. This is unsportsmanlike and can earn a yellow card. The ref simply cautioned the USA player. He also ensured no other USA player was allowed to act in that manner for the rest of the match.
Yet, throughout the rest of the Gold Cup match, whenever the US was awarded a foul, or had a throw in, or earned corner, and a Mexican was anywhere near the ball, the Mexican kicked the ball away from the spot of the infraction, throw in, or corner, or picked the ball up and rainbowed the sphere back to their rivals, yards away, or simply kicked the ball into the stands. No caution ensued—one single time.
This allowed tactic morphed from the 74th minute on. Right after Dos Santos scored for Mexico. From that moment on, for the 19:34 minute duration of the match, stoppage time included, each time a Mexican was fouled, or had a throw in, or a goal kick, or corner kick, or a substitution (which Mexico needed to make at the 81, 86, and 89 minute marks) an entire minute was wasted. Look at the video, I kid you not. More than half of that 19:34 was used up with inaction, without a single concern emanating from the ref.
[Let’s not mention the Mexican captain, Andres Guardado’s grab by the neck of a USA player, which is an immediate red card in 99.99% of all cases. Right?]
But, the idea that three added minutes sufficed as stoppage time for such a foul-and-argument laden second half is laughable, but if Guatemalan ref, Mario Escobar, did not intend to have the remainder of the match played then it made no difference that an added six minutes would have been about right.
After the debacle that left the USA out of Russia’s WC 2018, it was thought a new regime would come in and revamp the USSF. But, as we all sadly know, the archaic manner of electing our national soccer leaders is also extremely biased in favor of those already in power. So, we were treated to another king who could not tell he was naked. Unfortunately, even with the best of intentions, if one allows an ailment to linger it will not heal it will fester and kill the host.
I believe that if we really, really try, we can find a 23-man USNMT roster, led by an innovative and experienced coach (who need not be a US citizen), who, if he is supported by a middling-to-competent administration, can help bring back our soccer program to where we are consistently in the World Cup, winning the Gold Cup, invited to the Copa America, and routinely ranked among the world’s top 25 teams.
The USA played pretty well in this Gold Cup, well enough to be crowned champions, but to do so they should have put the final away in the first twenty minutes, and that failure is as much due to the misfires of its key players on the pitch, as of the coaching staff, and the administrative staff, and the soccer loving public which allows the USSF to continue festering.
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