Copa America

My friend brought this up...where would Jamie Vardy be if he were American? He was playing in a lower-tier league and working in a factory after he was 20. The U.S. doesn't really have anywhere for mid-level players to get serious games. Most soccer players quit playing any sort of competitive games at 22 or whenever they graduate college. I doubt we'd find many late bloomers, and it certainly won't help us find a Messi, but I do think the overall talent would be better if guys in their early 20s had serious games instead of playing in a beer league.

 

I don't think you understand the soccer scene in this country. Plenty of options for those with talent.

As for Gee's argument, it's similar to arguing the Knicks should win the NBA title when a Cinderella team makes the Sweet 16.

 

I do think the lack of opportunities on the college level are a big deal, though.
In the U.S., the general path of development for athletes in most team sports is youth-high school-college-pro. Even in baseball, where talented players can skip the college level, there's enough programs that it's a viable option.
In soccer, there's more than 200 Division I men's programs but most of them are smaller, low-profile schools. The Pac-12 is a six-team league that includes San Diego State. The ACC and Big Ten have a lot of teams, but not every member plays. The Big 12 and SEC don't even sponsor it at a varsity level.
In a lot of states, the high school teams also take a backseat to the club teams. I know in my state, high school soccer is really just a way for the better players to stay in shape between seasons.
What that leads to is a talent drain among 13-17-year-olds, when they should really be developing into top-flight players. They play at the youth level, but if they're a great athlete they're going to be steered toward another sport they might have a future in, or at least a chance to earn a scholarship in. That, at present, is not soccer.

 

Losing to Argentina and Colombia, No 1 and 3 in the world, is hardly shameful. They won two other tough games. By almost all accounts, this was a successful tournament. I'd love to see a change from Klinsmann, but I'm not holding my breath. And I'm not sure what the alternative would be.

 

Correction. Three tough games. So, in summary, they beat two teams ranked higher than them and lost to two of the best teams in the world. Embarrassing.

 

It's not embarrassing at all, although the Argentina game was. But it speaks to a program in stasis. The USMNT are who we thought they were, a middling mid-level international soccer power. That's one hell of a long term improvement, really it is. But further improvement appears to be a much more difficult proposition.

 

Youth soccer today has far better programs and coaching than when Clint Dempsey was growing up. We'll get better, but the evolution of American soccer isn't going to take hold in one generation. A fluke run to the World Cup semis isn't out of the question, but we're at least another generation from any kind of real contention.

 

Correct on both counts.

 

I never want to see Graham Zusi and his man-bun again.

 

I never want to see Beckerman and his natty dreads either.