On This Day in 2010, US Team Shows Promise in Penultimate World Cup Tune-Up Against Turkey
With less than two weeks before their 2010 World Cup opener against England, the United States Men's National Team faced mounting pressure after a disappointing 4-2 loss to the Czech Republic on May 26. The defeat, which exposed defensive vulnerabilities that concerned both fans and coaching staff, came at a critical moment as coach Bob Bradley prepared to make his final roster decisions.
The team had entered its pre-World Cup training camp with several key players nursing injuries. Captain Carlos Bocanegra had recently undergone hernia surgery on May 5 in Munich, while defenders Jay DeMerit (abdominal strain) and Chad Marshall (hamstring strain) had been limited in early practices. By Saturday's final training session before the Czech match, all 30 players on the preliminary roster participated in full training for the first time.
The loss to the Czechs, who failed to qualify for the World Cup, highlighted defensive problems that needed immediate attention. Defenders Oguchi Onyewu, Heath Pearce, Clarence Goodson, and Steve Cherundolo struggled throughout the match, allowing four goals despite Maurice Edu and Herculez Gomez scoring their first international goals. Following the defeat, Bradley cut seven players, announcing his final 23-man World Cup roster to face Turkey in the team's send-off match at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
The matchup against Turkey on May 29 represented the final on-field effort for the Americans before departing for South Africa. More than 50,000 tickets were sold for the Saturday afternoon contest at Lincoln Financial Field. Bradley made it clear this match would feature a distinctly more competitive lineup than the experimental squad he fielded against the Czech Republic.
"We'll have a team that, I think, will be close to our regular team," Bradley said before Friday's training session. "As we get closer to the England game, we always have to make decisions about what our best team will be for that game, so we'll use a tough matchup with Turkey to help us in that regard."
Before an overwhelmingly pro-American crowd of 55,407 at Lincoln Financial Field, the United States came from behind to defeat Turkey 2-1. The performance showed both promise and areas still needing improvement before the World Cup. The Turks struck first in the 27th minute. After U.S. right back Jonathan Spector was dispossessed upfield, Arda Turan capitalized on a counterattack, slotting the ball past goalkeeper Tim Howard from near the top of the penalty area after receiving a long through ball from Colin Kazim-Richards. Howard spent several moments in the first half visibly frustrated, barking at his defensive line.
"That's just the way Tim is," explained U.S. defender Jay DeMerit. "Timmy just likes to yell and get the guys going. And to be honest, there was a couple of times there when we needed it."
Trailing 1-0 at halftime, Bradley made four pivotal substitutions to start the second half, removing defenders Spector and Goodson and midfielders Benny Feilhaber and Ricardo Clark, while inserting defenders Onyewu and Cherundolo and midfielders Robbie Findley and Jose Torres.
"Whenever you start a game, things need to be sorted out on the field," Bradley explained. "Oftentimes, there's a period of time where you just need to play through things, and then the game starts to open up and you can take advantage."
The adjustments paid immediate dividends. In the 58th minute, the Americans leveled the score on a brilliantly executed sequence. DeMerit sent a long ball to Findley, who made a precise pass to Landon Donovan sprinting down the right side. Donovan rounded goalkeeper Volkan Demirel, drawing him off his line, before crossing to Jozy Altidore, who slammed the ball into the open net from 5 yards for his ninth goal in 25 international appearances.
"Findley coming on with his pace was forcing the defense to drop back, so me and Landon were able to get into those pockets," explained Clint Dempsey. "And also bringing Jose into the game, he was able to get on the ball, and I thought he looked very confident and helped keep possession for us and caused them to tire a little bit."
In the 75th minute, the Americans completed their comeback. The winning goal began with Cherundolo's throw-in deep in Turkish territory. Donovan received the ball, turned toward the middle of the field, and passed ahead to Dempsey. Fighting off defender Sabri Sarioglu, Dempsey muscled the ball past Turkey's oncoming keeper from about 10 yards.
"I knew it was going to be a 50-50 challenge with the defender," Dempsey said. "I tried to kind of absorb the hit so I was able to get good balance. I didn't want to go in too hard because I didn't want to kick the ball away from me or have the goalie pick it up, so I tried to absorb the hit and get a good bounce."
After the match, the American players lingered on the field, waving to adoring red-white-and-blue-clad fans. They hoped to make a similar victory lap when games counted the following month. Following the victory, Bradley acknowledged his team wasn't "sharp enough" in the game's first 45 minutes but then understood how to push the tempo "in an intelligent way."
"I think we accomplished everything that we would have wanted here," Bradley said. "The type of game we were in today pushed them very hard."
The Americans departed the next day for South Africa, where they would face Australia in their final friendly on June 5, one week before their World Cup opener against England on June 12. That final tune-up was another confidence booster as the U.S. defeated Australia 3-1 in Roodepoort, South Africa.
Edson Buddle, who hadn't been in the national team picture just months earlier, scored in the fourth and 31st minutes for his first two international goals. Herculez Gomez added another goal in second-half injury time. Despite the victory, defensive concerns persisted. Tim Cahill scored for Australia in the 19th minute, and the American backline sometimes appeared shaky.
"We're definitely moving in the right direction," said Cherundolo, who had taken over from Spector at right back. "We still have a few things to work out."
Coach Bradley acknowledged the need for improvement in "the coordination of the defense" as the team prepared for their highly anticipated World Cup opener against England. Nevertheless, the American players' consecutive victories against Turkey and Australia filled them with confidence as they approached the tournament.
"We don't fear them," Donovan said of England. "We feel they're a team we can compete with."
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