About Bob Bradley

(Photo: uncredited)

I meant to post this sooner, but you know, life sometimes happens. A road trip here, a wedding there, a funeral here, and a board meeting there, and before you know it, that idea that you were anxious to write about finds itself in the junk drawer.

Yet, with the recent news that U.S. Soccer and Bob Bradley will reportedly meet to "discuss the future," I figured now would be an appropriate moment to rescue this lost little post.

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If there's one thing that the USA-Brazil friendly a fortnight ago taught us, it's that Bob Bradley is unequivocally the wrong man to lead this country back to the World Cup in four years.

This isn't to say he isn't a good manager. History's shown us that he's succeeded at nearly every stop in his coaching career. He led Princeton to two Ivy League titles. He racked up over 100 wins in MLS. Suffice to say, Bob Bradley knows how to win.

And as the national team manager, he's accomplished alot during his tenure. A Confederations Cup final, a 2007 Gold Cup championship, a top of the Group finish in the World Cup, not to mention rehabilitating a squad that bombed out of Germany in '06. You could argue that no national team manager in this country's history has done more for the program in four years than Bob Bradley has.

Unsurprisingly, none of that meant anything to Brazil that Tuesday in the Meadowlands, where the the Samba Kings overtook the Yanks and embarrassed them in front of their own crowd. It was a friendly in name only. In a more literal sense, it was a shovel to the face. The final score read 2-0*, although by my count, it could have very well been 6-0.

(*Originally posted it was 3-0. Totally misremembered that Brazil somehow managed not to score in the second half.)

And all Bob Bradley could do was helplessly watch the horror unfold. His managerial style emphasizes those typical American elements: speed, physicality, and toughness. But, in the blink of an eye, all of these aspects were rendered moot by a heady group of Brazilians. Speed means nothing when your opponent is faster. You can't be physical against players who are constantly moving. And you sure as heck can't be tough when you're ballwatching.

Now, don't get me wrong: the above attributes of the American game are important, and have greatly improved since the days of Bob Gansler and Italia '90. These are the same attributes that have seen the Americans through to six consecutive World Cups. Conversely, these are all approaches to a game that the Americans have still failed to master.

It's going to take a different mindset for the Yanks to reach the next level. Bob Bradley has coached his tracksuit off, and deserves the respect and admiration of this country. We've seen alot of great moments birth during his tenure. Moments many of us will never forget.

However, it's time to move on. It's time for US Soccer to recognize that an American manager like Bradley can only take the team so far. An entirely different methodolgy must be implemented in order to ensure that this squad doesn't stagnate or suffer from the common politics of favoritism that often crop up when a national team manager retains his job beyond the World Cup. See: Arena, Bruce. Circa 2006.

Change must be embraced. We certainly wish Bradley all the best for all he's accomplished as national team manager, but the Yanks are in desperate need of a new direction. For all the improvements Bradley made over the past four years, the technical aspect of this squad has not significantly improved. This club still struggles with possession against good countries. Rather than improving on this, the gaffer has simply coordinated his charges to become a counterattacking side. The proverbial perfume spraying on the pig, if you will.

For decades, this club has chased the ball. They play to their strengths - chasing, running, and charging ahead - with varying degrees of success. But the team is stagnating. New ideas are desperately needed. This team has to stop thinking like an American team. They need to start thinking like a global team. A team that holds possession. A team that can win balls in the box. A team that has technique to go along with its speed. A team that doesn't lean on its best player. A team that doesn't need to concede a goal to wake itself up.

These are all ideas that need to be introduced to this group. Under a new manager, this group should fail, and fail often while they work on this. They need to become stronger mentally. And this will ensure that.

Look at the games against England and Slovenia. For the better part of those combined 180 minutes, the Americans ran around the park while the Europeans played keep away. And that's been a recurring theme of the US MNT for quite some time.

This club needs to be shocked. They need to be challenged. Not to be faster. Not be tougher. But to be better on the ball. To find an open teammate rather than taking charge when faced with a deficit. There needs to be more off the ball movement. They need to stop being predictable.

They also need to stop exahusting themselves late in matches. Look at the stats from the 2009 Confederations Cup. Six of the top eighteen players in the "distance covered" stat are Americans. It's hard to seize a goal late when you're completely exhausted. It's even harder to do so when your opponent has both the lead and the bulk of the possession, which has happened quite often in US MNT matches.

And it was generally the same storyline in this year's World Cup. Landon, Dempsey, and the younger Bradley all outdistanced players who saw action in more games than they did. Forget that the Stretch Armstrong approach was adopted by the midfield. Throw out the fact that its backs were taxed higher than MC Hammer. The mantra of the Men's National team seems to be "just keep running and everything will be fine." Note to the nats: it won't be fine.

It'll take a bold manager to steer this country away from the run, run, run approach and turn the wheel in the direction of a World Cup championship. Someone with a vision that deviates from the status quo. A manager that is ready to shake up the belief that, in order for this team to progress, it has to learn how to win differently. I don't know who that manager is. But I do know that he is not Bob Bradley.

Diary of a Losing Club 8/24

It's often said that when a team is hot, it's all about chemistry. Not goals, not defending, not goalkeeping, not managing, and not the mascot. No. It's always more than just statistics, no matter how pertinent they are. For many, it's always more than what meets the eye.

You've probably heard that cliche about chemistry before. The reason why some teams consistently win is due to their ability to get along with each other. To be on the same page. To pack themselves into two Navis and hit the club as a group. To attend each other's barbeques. To do shots of Jack before important games.*

(*You may have heard that the Boston Red Sox attempted this little stunt prior to Game 4 of the 2004 American League Championship Series. Down 0-3 in the series, the Sox threw back a few minutes before the game. Of course, we all know the end result. They never lost again for the remainder of the postseason. Bonding or brainless? You decide. But they didn't call themselves "the Idiots" for no reason.)

Now, I personally don't give a ton of weight to the whole chemistry argument. Don't get me wrong: chemistry is great. It is. So much so I took it twice in high school.* It makes sports really fun and enjoyable. I've been on a few teams that featured a bunch of really cool guys. But on a pair of those teams, we just stunk it up. We had a great time during one such season. I can't remember a better winless team - we went 0-10 - than the one I played for in sixth grade.

(*Because I failed it the first time.)

Is it important to get along with your teammates? Yeah, of course, especially in soccer, where it's clear as stripper heels that a group of eleven players are all on the same page. But chemistry alone doesn't send magical balls into the back of the net. It doesn't make up for the crater-sized holes in the midfield. And it sure as heck doesn't elevate a mediocre team to greatness.

Having said all that, allow me to make the point I intended to make like five minutes ago: the Revolution lack that chemistry to simply have fun and play fluid soccer. You can see it pretty much everywhere. At the back. In the midfield. Up top. On the bench. Even the locker room appears to be split into noticeable cliques.

If you want proof, let's look at the manner in which the goals are being produced. You can talk about Marko Perovic's fantastic form and you would be right to say that he makes this team better. There's no doubt about it. But what's worrisome is the genesis of those goals. Of the five he's scored in league play, three have come from set pieces. Another was a one-man performance against the Red Bulls back in May. In other words, most were singular efforts, completely orchestrated by an individual.

This isn't to say that Perovic isn't a team player. He is. But when push comes to shove - and let's face it, he gets shoved alot - he has no problem taking the ball on his own and hoping to find some daylight. And that's fine, sometimes.

If you want to talk about the evidence of dissarray in the midfield, look no further than the central mids: Shalrie and Pat Phelan. Shalrie is head of the class, no question. He's probably the best player on this team. But, without Jeff Larentowicz, who went bye-bye in the offseason, him and Phelan have often found themselves painfully out of sync many a time this season.

Where do we start with the defending? Kevin Alston is an extremely talented defender. The guy pushes up at will, and has a nice attacking instinct to his game. But the tradeoff is that the left flank he's supposed to patrol is often left vacant. Last year, Steve Ralston, would often slide back to Alston's office and cover for him on the opposing counterattack. It was fairly seemless, until Rally left, came back, then retired.

Then, there's everyone's favorite defender/goalkeeper pairing this side of the Mississippi: Emmanuel Osei and Matt Reis. Let's get to the bottom of it: these guys probably don't exchange snowflake sweaters at Christmas. The rumblings about Osei's communication, or lack thereof, has been hard to ignore. Then, something like Jack Jewsbury's goal happens. Chemistry? That train left the station a long time ago.

In my mind, the Revolution aren't a great team. Although Shalrie and Matt Reis remain, this team struggles to resemble the Revolution teams of the mid-2000s that dominated the East. And that's to be expected. It's not easy to overcome the losses of Larentowicz, Rally, Taylor Twellman, Jay Heaps, Clint Dempsey, Michael Parkhust, Andy Dorman, Jose Cancela, and Pat Noonan. If it were, Steve Nicol would probably stop blaming the refs for this team's predicaments.*

(*Probably, but not definitely.)

Despite how badly they've played at times, this team is talented. Alston is a pretty good fullback. Darrius Barnes is quality centerback. Perovic is a force on the attack. Ilija Stolica looks like he's ready to make some contributions. Meanwhile, Shalrie is still Shalrie, Reis is still Reis, and the young talent (Zak Boggs, Zack Schilawski, and Seth Sinovic) that has shown itself well at times this season.

That's not to say that once these guys mesh and start organizing team trips to Ruth's Chris that the problems will fix themselves. They won't. Though, it is a start. At least they'll look like a pro soccer team, and not a collection of individuals with a set of 11 different ideas.

The Revolution don't need a designated player. A single player won't change this club's fortunes. What they need is cohesion. They need a common understanding. What they need is the wisdom contained in that little cliche: chemistry.

It starts with the manager. Stevie Nicol cannot rest on the laurels of past league success and simply think that the team will automatically regain its swagger. He can't be fooled into thinking he can manage this club the same way he guided the ones that made it to MLS Cup. This is a very different team than the ones the gaffer gaffed during those golden years. Much different. The Revolution of 2010 is almost entirely different than the one that went to the MLS Championship three years ago. Thus, different ideas and different approaches must be made to motivate this group.

From there, the players themselves have to be held accountable, specifically, the leaders. Shalrie, Chris Tierney, Matt Reis, Cory Gibbs and even Pat Phelan to a lesser extent, need to do their jobs to create some dialogue on the training pitch and in the locker room. The guys from the mid-2000s used to play fantasy football amongst themselves. Obviously, that alone didn't steer them to four Eastern Conference titles. But it didn't hurt, either.

A team's successes aren't often the sole result of good team chemistry, but a lack thereof can certainly lead to a team's failures, no matter how talented they are.

Diary of a Losing Club 8/19

(Photo:Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

If you're like me, you probably have an unhealthy interest in popular culture, an obese pet, and a subscription to Soccer America's informative daily e-mails. I could probably speak on the first two at an embarrassingly great length, but this blog isn't about Snooki's recent arrest, nor about my beloved feline Boostie.

No, this post is about soccer. I mean, this isn't called "The House of Soccer" because we talk about our crushes on Justin Bieber. Or whether to align ourselves with Team Jacob or Team Edward. That's not to say these issues aren't important. They are. But, let's get real, there's really no debate. Justin Bieber is a hottie. How could you not have a crush on him?* And Jacob is waaaay hotter than Edward. Case closed.

(*Well, apparently my younger cousin, who plotted to marry Mr. Bieber, has since fallen out of love with him. Sigh. To be teeny-bopping twelve year old.)

Wow, I'm getting distracted. Back to the soccer stuff.

On Tuesday morning, my AOL inbox warmly welcomed an e-mail from Soccer America entitled, "Section 1: SA ranks MLS backlines..." Needless to say, it an e-mail was one I read with much anticipation.

According to the rankings, L.A. has the best. No real surprise there. They're followed by Columbus and RSL. Again, no surprises.

Call me biased, uninformed, or Brian, but I was actually surprised to see the Revolution ranked 14th out of 16th. Seriously? Are they that bad? Only Philly (15th) and DC (16th) were ranked worse.

Here's what Soccer America had to say:

"14. NEW ENGLAND. Preseason: 6. The smooth central partnership enjoyed by Darrius Barnes and Emmanuel Osei last season has seldom been revived, and while right back Kevin Alston is as tenacious as ever, left back has been a rotation of rookie Seth Sinovic, Chris Tierney and recently Cory Gibbs. Yet recent results are encouraging; the Revs won all their SuperLiga group games by 1-0 scores, and they’ve beaten D.C. and Houston by the same result in their last two league games. "

My first beef with this assessment is this: no stats. We know that Barnes and Osei haven't been on the same page much this season. We know that sending a centerback to do a wingback's job (Gibbs on the left) usually doesn't work. And we know that the left back spot has been a carousel of curious selections (Khano Smith? Really?).

The first half of the season was a horror show. It was goals galore for the Goats, Sounders and Salt-Lakers. At the half, the goal differential was an frightful -13. That kind of number usually gets alot of teams a head start on the November tee times.

Since then, however, the backs have actually performed quite well. Before last night's showing in Chi-town, they'd only conceded a pair of goals since they were ravaged by RSL. That's two goals in seven games, homeslice. It was all good. D-Barnes and Alston were back to their 2009 selves. And I was optimistic. I started to like this club's chances down the stretch.

Then, Wednesday night occurred, and it became crystal clear why the local lads were ranked so low. Marco Pappa, Freddie Ljunberg, and Rev-killer Calen Carr all ran over the back four like the bulls in the streets of Pamplona. And the Revs were gored.

Its all reminded me of why this club was so awful earlier this season: the backline. Cory Gibbs is serviceable in the center, but he should be performing better than a player of his pedigree. Put him on the wing, and he tends to peace out for hours on end.

There's no debate that Kevin Alston is an All-Star defender. There are pictures and video to prove it. He's heady, speedy, and at times whimsically creative. But am I the only one who watches him and wonders if he'd be better in the midfield?

Darrius Barnes was hurt for much of the first half, so all he could really do is appear in those videos on the Gillette Stadium big screen teasing the crowd that they need to cheer louder. He's probably the only defender that hasn't been embarrassed all season.

Meanwhile, can someone orchestrate a mediation between Osei and Matt Reis? This is Osei's second season, and yet, him and Reis communicate about as well as Kate and Jon. It should be an easy problem to fix.

Then, of course, there's Chris Tierney, who probably isn't in the speediest wingback in the league. He's grown into a classic utilityman, playing everywhere but striker and keeper it seems. And, of course, there's Seth Sinovic, who seemed to channel Jay Heaps early on before his form started to resemble Manny Motajo and he was sent to the bench by Stevie Nicol.

What can the Revs do? Here's a thought: switch Pat Phelan to centerback. Hey, it's not as crazy than Khano at left back. Larentowicz 2.0 played pretty well in that capacity against LA last month. Of course, that leaves a huge hole in the middle. Here's another thought: slot Jason Griffiths into Phelan's spot.

Despite their recent form, the Revolution backline, as a whole, is still shakier than one of those vibrating leather chairs you pay like two bucks to sit in at the mall. Well, at least the malls I go to. Maybe it's a southeastern New England thing.

If Stevie Nicol still thinks his club has a shot a the postseason, then the defending has to improved, like, immediately. And if tinkering is what it takes, then so be it. The backs, whether it's Phelan in the center, Osei on the right, and/or Alston on the left, have to play better as a unit. Otherwise, we may not see another Chicagoland showdown come late-October.

SuperLiga to the rescue

(Photo: Chris Aduama)

Steve Nicol probably isn't the biggest fan SuperLiga. You can sense it in his post-match pressers.* There are probably a bajillion different things he'd rather have his team doing on a Wednesday night. Volunteering at the animal shelter. Bowling for charity. Throwing Silly Bandz parties. Pretty much anything that does not involve his team getting subjected to vicious slide tackles and ninety minutes in the thick August humidity without league points at stake.

(*That's not to say that Nicol isn't happy that his team's currently on a bit of an unbeaten streak. I'm sure he's beyond pleased about it. But you could tell that after Marko Perovic and Kevin Alston each picked up injuries during last night's game, Nicol wasn't exactly bonkers about this tournament.)

But as much as the gaffer may not give a googly-moogly about these extra-MLS matchups, the tournament has obviously benfitted his team tremendously over the past month.

You could say that the Revs rebirth started before SuperLiga. In fact, you could say it began on July 10th, when they shocked the Galaxy 2-0. Granted, Landon Donovan and Omar Gonzalez both missed the match, but the heart of the matter is that the Revs beat the best team in league in convincing fashion.

After the match, Darrius Barnes talked about carrying the momentum into SuperLiga and really making a run in the tourney. Winning was important, no matter what the forum. The team's victories up until that point could be counted on one hand. A win, nevermind a series of wins, would mean the world to this group of hard luck lads.

So that's what they did. They followed up that victory with a 1-0 win against Pumas, a game which featured one of the sloppiest first halfs played by the Revs this season. Yet, somehow, Zack Schilawski managed to get a hold of a goal in the 18th minute, and Revs got themselves together in the second frame to hold off a charging Pumas for the remainder.

And their ferocious form continued against the Fire. They grinded out another 1-0 victory thanks to Marko Perovic's late-match blast and solid defending from the Tierney-Barnes-Osei-Alston back four. It wasn't pretty. Thankfully, style points weren't factored.

Days later, the Revs picked up their third straight 1-0 result against the alliteratively-named Monarcas Morelia, this time with Sinovic at left back, and Shalrie and Sainey on the bench to preserve their status (both received yellows in the Pumas match) for the semifinal. You may remember that Steve Ralston was supposed to play his final match that night, but due to some unforseen circumstances*, never appeared on the pitch to help his team out. Nevertheless, Steve Nicol pulled a rabbit out of his hat and a spot in the semifinal was secured.

(*According to a few people I talked to familiar with the situation, the appearance was scrubbed after some insurance issues -Rally had an offer in hand to coach in H-Town - surfaced. Not to lay the blame on anyone/any entity, but these are the times when a little forethought could have gone a long way. The fact that an MLS legend couldn't even stop onto the pitch for a final hurrah due to legalities is a farce of the highest order. Having said that - Steve Ralston Testimonial, anyone?)

It was all going so well. A few players probably wished that these were league games. Conveniently, a league game presented itself in Philly over the weekend, where the local lads resumed their league form by promptly conceding the first goal of the game, courtesy of Sebastien Le Toux. It looked like the old Revs were back until Perovic's dead ball brilliance emerged in with twenty minutes to go.

Last night, the first half featured a disheveled effort. To add to their woes, Puebla savagely assaulted Nyassi, Joseph, and Mansally, curiously without reprimand. Instead of retaliating, Mansally had the match of his season, as he found space often and regularly threatened in the second half, with his 56th minute goal giving the home crowd hope of another SuperLiga final.

That hope, of course, was rudely interrupted two minutes later when Puebla equalized despite a disputed handball seen by everyone but the referee. The score stayed one-all before penalties were employed to determine the winner.

The Revs converted their penalties and Reis made a heady save on a low shot from Edgar Lugo, and all of sudden, it was back to the Super Liga Final.

A month ago, this team had just had their collective tails handed to them by Real Salt Lake. It's one thing to lose one or two-nil. Five-nil is comprehensive humiliation. It's a Dustin Diamond homemade video. It's the kind of stuff that makes you wish you could ask for a do-over.

But, the Revs didn't plan on getting a time machine to fix it. Instead, they looked ahead and defeated a sleeping giant, then paraded their newfound confidence in a tournament they won only two years ago. Instead of playing tentatively, they've picked their heads up and battled through some fierce competition.

Look, let's not kid ourselves: the playoff ship left port a long time ago. This is a team that sports a 4-9-3 record and currently hovers perilously close to the Eastern Conference cellar. The likelihood that it will somehow find maximum points from now until November and magically maneuver itself into the postseason is My Little Pony stuff.

That being said, there are a slew of games that still remain. How this team performs down the stretch will tell us how hungry they are to forget the failures of the season's first half. How ready they are to show us it a complete aberration. It will tell us what this team, despite the injuries, hard luck, and the multi-goal massacres, is really made of going into next season.

There's no doubt SuperLiga has recharged this club. Yeah, they're not league games, but the tournament has proven to be something far, far more important. It's become an oasis. A place where the losses don't sting as much. Figuratively, of course. A place where the long-lost chemistry has finally been located. An opportunity to breed confidence, a trait that this club had sorely lacked during the spring and early summer.

Steve Nicol may not like SuperLiga. But without it, it's fair to say that his club could have been in far worse shape without it.

What's the 411 (on Betu)?

(Photo: robertolinck.com)

There seems to be alot of questions regarding the newly-signed Roberto "Betu" Linck. Personally, know I definitely had some. So, naturally, I did what any curious mind would probably do: ask someone who knows.*

(*Am I the only one who thought that bringing back Squire Fridell - you know, that middle-aged, white-haired guy - for the Toyota ads was genius? Although his hair has grayed significantly since the early-90s, is there anyone who could impart the kind of goodwill that Toyota needs in the wake of its recall disaster?)

I contacted Irvine Valley College men's soccer coach Martin McGrogan, who knows a thing or two about the man they call Betu. You'll probably pick up on the fact that McGrogan is pretty effusive in his praise for his former charge.

On Linck's strengths:
"The most striking attributes of his game was his technical ability. He could beat opponents so easily, he often would more than once."

On his role on the field:
"He would often start as withdrawn forward, at the young age of barely 18. He had a tendency to sometimes overdo it. On other occasions we would play him wide and try to isolate him one on one with the outside back. In either position, it was obvious he had outstanding potential."

On why he played in 2006 and 2008, but had to skip the 2007 season:
"Although originally from Brazil, Betu came to us from Utah. Either way, he had to pay International fees and for all his other expenses. Finances meant he was unable to play (for us) the following year (2007).

Apparently, Betu's quite comforable in either a 4-4-2 or a 3-5-2:
"IVC often play 4-4-2 with the understanding that on any given match day, we may have to adjust to 3-5-2. I am confident he will be delighted to play in any role the coaching staff ask of him."

Coach McGrogan also went on to say that, "technically (Betu's) very good, but (he's) probably better on the right."

So there you have it. I suspect Stevie Nicol will likely utilize him as a late-match sub, putting him on the right to spell Sainey Nyassi, or a inserting him as a withdrawn forward/attacking mid in a 4-3-1-2 formation when playing with a deficit.