Tuesday night’s result in the semifinals of the Copa America Centenario was far from what U.S. soccer fans were hoping for.
The USMNT were summarily dominated by Argentina, falling by a 4-0 scoreline. After so much hope and promise leading up to the game, it was another less than stellar result against one of international soccer’s titans. Afterwards, the hot take machine across social media and the internet in general was in overdrive mode.
Argentina 4, USA 0: Who or What Deserves the Brunt of the Blame?
Questions abounded as to why the US was so comprehensively outclassed. Was it a shoddy tactical game plan on the part of head coach Jurgen Klinsmann? Were his lineup choices in the wake of multiple omissions due to suspensions to blame? Did the players fail to bring their A-game when it mattered most? Or does there still continue to be a significantly wide talent gap between US players and those of teams such as Argentina?
The honest answer is that it’s a little bit of everything. You could put together a circle graph encompassing all of the above mentioned points and each one would comprise their own percentage. Of course, that graph would vary greatly in look depending on who you asked to design it.
The Jurgen Klinsmann Conundrum
There has been a rather volatile fluctuation in the sentiment towards Klinsmann during this tournament. After the US’ 2-0 defeat to Colombia in the tournament opener, that sentiment was overwhelmingly negative. It was then that most fans would lay at least half the blame of U.S. soccer’s problems at his feet.
Then the Yanks went on a three-game winning streak. That included a comprehensive 4-0 win over CONCACAF foe Costa Rica and two gritty one-goal victories over Paraguay and Ecuador respectively. It was what saw them through to the semis. And suddenly Klinsmann appeared to be on much more solid footing with the fanbase.
But after a game in which the US failed to register a single shot of any kind, it was back to the drawing board for fans and pundits alike. And the graph everyone was crafting in their head tended to have a great deal of the blame going Klinsmann’s way. After all, how could the team look this unprepared in perhaps the biggest game in their careers?
What About the Culpability of the Players Themselves?
Regardless of what you think about Klinsmann, the fact is that the on-field execution against Argentina was atrocious at times. There’s only so much the head coach can control. It wasn’t Klinsmann that was making errant passes, turning the ball over in crucial spots on the field, not to mention committing silly fouls close to goal. By now, we all know what Lionel Messi did in punishing a foul near the box with a flash of set piece salaciousness.
In the lead up to this game, Klinsmann talked about how hungry this team was to shock the world. But from the opening whistle, all we saw was a side that seemed mentally flummoxed. You could make the argument that all four Argentinian goals were the result of frustrating lapses in concentration from certain players. That’s not a recipe for an upset.
A Talent Gap That Speaks To A Bigger Issue Within U.S. Soccer
Beyond Klinsmann’s coaching and players not coming through in the clutch, there is perhaps a bigger issue at hand here. One could not help but notice that the speed of the game at an elite level simply seemed to come more naturally to Argentina. From an eye test standpoint, there still remains a gap in talent between the top US players and those of traditional soccer powers.
If this continues to be the case, what is the cause? The game is so much more established in the United States than it has ever been. Major League Soccer is entering its third decade of existence. There are a multitude of American players on the rosters of clubs in the English Premier League and the Bundesliga among other major European leagues. Yet the USMNT continues to fall short in big international games.
Enter Jason Whitlock. A respected if not controversial (at times) sports columnist, Whitlock is probably the last person U.S. soccer fans would expect to weigh in on the situation. But his take on Wednesday’s edition of “Speak For Yourself,” a new daily talk show with him and radio host Colin Cowherd, has some validity.
"We're not catching up with the rest of the World as long as Soccer's a sport for the upper class." – @WhitlockJasonhttps://t.co/6O2nZXcoOK
— Speak (@SpeakOnFS1) June 22, 2016
Analyzing Jason Whitlock’s Hot Take on U.S. Soccer
Now it must be said that Whitlock is far from an expert on the game. Don’t expect a Matt Doyle-style weekly treatise on tactics from him. He probably wouldn’t be able to name very many players on the rosters of MLS teams. But his commentary on race, class and how those things translate to sports is about as competent and refreshing as you’re going to get.
For this reason, it may make sense to pay attention to the above comments. The point could still be made that U.S. Soccer continues to struggle attracting players from all socio-economic backgrounds. Or at the very least, the game in the States may still be viewed as a suburban pastime.
Innuendo aside, the soccer mom remains an oft-cited stereotype of the sport in the US. Though it may not have much to do with actual player development, the fact is many top US players emanate from middle to upper middle class environments. This tends to differ in other parts of the world, where soccer is many kids’ path to an escape out of abject poverty.
Soccer, Poverty and the Case of Michael Laudrup
When I first heard Whitlock’s comments, the first thing that came to mind was a passage from “Inverting the Pyramid” by famed soccer writer Jonathan Wilson. Though the book is primarily focused on the game’s history from a tactical standpoint, there’s a section in the final chapter that applies to the topic at hand. It has to do with legendary Danish center forward Michael Laudrup.
Laudrup had a lengthy career that spanned from 1981-1998 and included a six-year stint with FC Barcelona. During that time, his coach was none other than Johan Cruyff. The Dutch soccer sensation was highly complimentary of how gifted a player Laudrup was. But he said there was an inner drive lacking that prevented Laudrup from becoming an all-time great.
“Had Michael been born in a poor ghetto in Brazil or Argentina with the ball being his only way out of poverty he would today be recognized as the biggest genius of the game ever,” Cruyff said of Laudrup.
That same sentiment, in a less magnanimous sense, could be applied to quite a few players in the USMNT talent pool.
U.S. Soccer’s Own Rags to Riches Stories
This isn’t to say that U.S. soccer is completely bereft of players who’ve overcome tough environments early in their life. Clint Dempsey had humble beginnings in Nacogdoches, TX before his ascendance as one of the best strikers in U.S. history. Gyasi Zardes grew up in a tough neighborhood in Hawthorne, CA. Jozy Altidore is the son of Haitian immigrants who settled in New Jersey.
So in certain respects, Whitlock’s comments can be interpreted as a generalization. And it’s not just the aforementioned figures. There are myriad examples of American soccer players, especially nowadays, who don’t fit the mold Whitlock’s crafting. Many have carved out successful careers despite coming from a poor socio-economic background.
But that’s not to say there’s much work to be done. Kids from the inner cities still tend to choose basketball and, despite concussion concerns, football over soccer. The pay-to-play model that still permeates the youth game continues to hinder participation for kids from low-income families. MLS academy systems have a chance to fill the void but have only been around for less than a decade.
Discovering potential game-changing talents from all walks of life remains a work in progress. And it’s just one piece of the puzzle in moving U.S. soccer forward towards becoming an elite world power. Whitlock’s far from a soccer savant. But his take on the state of the game, though a bit of an oversimplification, has some semblance of being prescient.
