Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Fueling the national team?

Okay, I know league and international team aren't necessarily one in the same. You can have a strong national team but a crappy league, it's possible.

But does the Joe Public-New England score mean the US national team should worry for their match against Trinidad & Tobago on Sept. 10?

I mean, come on, how many of you predicted a lopsided rout in the Joe Public-Revolution match? And if you did, surely you would have figured that it would have been the hosts who would have put away the four goals.

I suppose this result reflects a couple of things. New England has had a busy, busy, busy schedule. By winning SuperLiga and reaching the final four of the US Open Cup, the Revs have played many games this summer. It's natural to expect a dip in form, and the Revs have won just one of five league games since returning to league action after more than a month off.

Also, Joe Public was probably motivated for the match. For Joe Public, the opportunity to participate in the Champions League and carry the Trinidadian flag in the tourney was not something they likely overlooked.

So will this possibly energize the Soca Warriors ahead of next week's game in Chicago? Perhaps. If Trinidad enters the match with the right mentality, they could certainly be a more-than-dangerous foe. I don't know, though. If I'm betting on the game, I'm taking the US and the points... not that any Vegas casino would have the game up for wager or anything...

Still, given what Joe Public did to the Revs, perhaps we shouldn't be surprised if Trinidad goes in and does some damage.

8 comments:

starinyourfire said...

USA has to expect a tough match, they shouldn't be careless against any team in the region, T&T should be a tough opponent when they play at home. i would imagine they would play on a counter attack on the road and push forward at home.

it is shocking that New England were blanked at home, since it hardly happens at all.

Joseph D'Hippolito said...

l.b., here's why I disagree. The most obvious fact is that national teams are organized far differently than club sides. New England's poor form can be directly related to playing too many games in a short period of time. That can't be said of either the U.S. or T&T national teams.

Also, the salary cap prevents MLS teams from lengthening their benches for such tournaments. The USL's Montreal Impact signed four players in the last month to prepare for the Champions' League.

But the biggest factor is in the different way the two federations are run. U.S. Soccer is the most efficiently operated and least corrupt federation in CONCACAF (given the general corruption in CONCACAF, that might not be saying much). T&T's federation (as is CONCACAF) is the personal plaything of Jack-ass Warner, and is run as such. Have the players in the 2006 World Cup been paid yet? I bet none of them get called in for the qualifier because they had the temerity to stand up to Captain Jack.

Anonymous said...

regardless, it would be sweet to see the usmnt out of the world cup. this might just be the year.

Dan Haug said...

^^^
Sweet for who?

Anonymous said...

So Joseph D'Hippolito, how do you know that US Soccer Fed. is the least corrupt? I am not against or with you, I am just wondering how did you come up the conclusion you did? Are you just generalizing?

Anonymous said...

It is a widely known fact that Jack Warner is a corrupt individual. Just ask where T&T's allocation of World Cup Tickets went....

DrewVT6 said...

AC-

Joe Public is head and shoulders above any other team in T&T's domestic league. We have 12 other teams stocked with players that could all play for Joe Public, plus how many more foreign based players than T&T has?

Unknown said...

No, it means the US should be concerned next time they play Guyana!

And Drew - Joe Public are barely in the top half of the table in T&T.