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USA Looking Toward The Gold Cup
U.S. Men's National Team Head Coach Bob Bradley and President Sunil Gulati spoke about the upcoming Gold Cup on Friday afternoon.
Jul 3, 2009 3:37:02 AM
SEATTLE, Wash. --The U.S. Men’s National Team has reconvened in Seattle and is preparing for the Gold Cup. The men begin CONCACAP Gold Cup play Saturday, July 4th when they face Grenada at Qwest Field (9:00 p.m. ET). U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Bob Bradley said Seattle is the perfect place for them to kick off the Gold Cup.
“It is always special to hear the national anthem and I think on the Fourth of July there’s a little bit extra there,” Bradley said. “We are excited to be opening up the Gold Cup. The fact that it’s in Seattle is great in many ways.
“As an organization they have done a tremendous job of getting themselves going on the right foot. Their team is very good, fun to watch, I think anybody who has seen any of their games, whether live at Qwest Field or on TV can see the passion their fans have for the team. You see jerseys all over the city. They deserve credit for how they went about bringing their team into the league.”
The USA is fresh off an impressive showing in the Confederations Cup. After dropping the first two matches, the U.S. men rebounded with a 3-0 win over Egypt, a 2-0 upset against Spain and a 2-3 loss to Brazil. The U.S. roster for the Gold Cup will feature different players, a measure that Bradley said is important.
“When we look at all the different factors, certainly the idea that next summer, players will be coming right from their clubs into training camp that leads into the World Cup,” Bradley said. “You have to make very difficult decisions about whether a player can go a couple years without a break or there’s a need in some cases for a player to have a little bit of a break now before he begins an important stretch.”
That being said, many of the familiar U.S. players will be off for the Gold Cup. But it gives the opportunity for new players to step in. It’s a chance for Bradley and company to check out the options. CONCACAF also announced that the USA could expand its roster to 30 players. That doesn’t mean there will be 30 players on the field, it just gives the USA more options for the later matches.
“It’s a larger roster of players to select from,” U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati said. “We’re not going to be able to dress more than 18. All of those things are the same. It may well end up being the case that, in fact, depending on how many games we play in the tournament, that Bob doesn’t play more than 23 players throughout. That’s going to be up to him.”
Gulati said the change is not just a one-time thing, it’s a provision that CONCACAF will include in all future tournaments.
“They’ve made this provision that the champion of the confederation will be able to expand their roster after the Confederations Cup, when it’s specifically so close and it will be the case in the future,” Gulati said. “And we hope that means that we’ll be able to add more players, but if it’s Mexico, or Costa Rica, or Honduras, or Jamaica, or Trinidad, the same would apply to them.”
The USA is the two-time defending champion, winning the Gold Cup in 2005 and 2007. They have won two other times in the history of the tourney, 1991 and 2002. Bradley said that although the roster is a bit different, their priorities remain the same.
“Our goal clearly is to defend our championship,” Bradley said. “We know that, at times, there are many different factors that get considered when putting a roster together. But once we are together, our focus is to go about our business and the way we play and this is an important tournament – the championship of our confederation. We are excited about defending our title.”
With the Confederation Cup ending on Sunday, the Americans didn’t have much time to regroup. For many they probably haven’t even let it all sink in yet. But regardless they made new strides for U.S. Soccer. It’s a start and something to be proud of. But when asked if he felt it was a miracle, Gulati was quick to say no.
“Do I consider it a miracle? No,” Gulati said. “It was just a great performance and players playing at a level that we’d all love to see them playing at every game. No one plays at their top level every game, not Spain, not Brazil and not the U.S. But it was a great performance, not a miracle.”
With the Confederations Cup behind them, the USA has the Gold Cup ahead of them. The first step is Grenada on Saturday. The Americans have won 34 of 43 matches in Gold Cup action, outscoring opponents 81 to 26. Mexico is the only CONCACAF team to have won three consecutive Gold Cups from 1993 to 1998. The USA begins the defense of its title on Saturday, by taking it one game at a time.
Kathryn L. Knapp, Goal.com
For more on the U.S. Men's National Team and the CONCACAF Gold Cup, go to Goal.com's U.S. page.
“It is always special to hear the national anthem and I think on the Fourth of July there’s a little bit extra there,” Bradley said. “We are excited to be opening up the Gold Cup. The fact that it’s in Seattle is great in many ways.
“As an organization they have done a tremendous job of getting themselves going on the right foot. Their team is very good, fun to watch, I think anybody who has seen any of their games, whether live at Qwest Field or on TV can see the passion their fans have for the team. You see jerseys all over the city. They deserve credit for how they went about bringing their team into the league.”
The USA is fresh off an impressive showing in the Confederations Cup. After dropping the first two matches, the U.S. men rebounded with a 3-0 win over Egypt, a 2-0 upset against Spain and a 2-3 loss to Brazil. The U.S. roster for the Gold Cup will feature different players, a measure that Bradley said is important.
“When we look at all the different factors, certainly the idea that next summer, players will be coming right from their clubs into training camp that leads into the World Cup,” Bradley said. “You have to make very difficult decisions about whether a player can go a couple years without a break or there’s a need in some cases for a player to have a little bit of a break now before he begins an important stretch.”
That being said, many of the familiar U.S. players will be off for the Gold Cup. But it gives the opportunity for new players to step in. It’s a chance for Bradley and company to check out the options. CONCACAF also announced that the USA could expand its roster to 30 players. That doesn’t mean there will be 30 players on the field, it just gives the USA more options for the later matches.
“It’s a larger roster of players to select from,” U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati said. “We’re not going to be able to dress more than 18. All of those things are the same. It may well end up being the case that, in fact, depending on how many games we play in the tournament, that Bob doesn’t play more than 23 players throughout. That’s going to be up to him.”
Gulati said the change is not just a one-time thing, it’s a provision that CONCACAF will include in all future tournaments.
“They’ve made this provision that the champion of the confederation will be able to expand their roster after the Confederations Cup, when it’s specifically so close and it will be the case in the future,” Gulati said. “And we hope that means that we’ll be able to add more players, but if it’s Mexico, or Costa Rica, or Honduras, or Jamaica, or Trinidad, the same would apply to them.”
The USA is the two-time defending champion, winning the Gold Cup in 2005 and 2007. They have won two other times in the history of the tourney, 1991 and 2002. Bradley said that although the roster is a bit different, their priorities remain the same.
“Our goal clearly is to defend our championship,” Bradley said. “We know that, at times, there are many different factors that get considered when putting a roster together. But once we are together, our focus is to go about our business and the way we play and this is an important tournament – the championship of our confederation. We are excited about defending our title.”
With the Confederation Cup ending on Sunday, the Americans didn’t have much time to regroup. For many they probably haven’t even let it all sink in yet. But regardless they made new strides for U.S. Soccer. It’s a start and something to be proud of. But when asked if he felt it was a miracle, Gulati was quick to say no.
“Do I consider it a miracle? No,” Gulati said. “It was just a great performance and players playing at a level that we’d all love to see them playing at every game. No one plays at their top level every game, not Spain, not Brazil and not the U.S. But it was a great performance, not a miracle.”
With the Confederations Cup behind them, the USA has the Gold Cup ahead of them. The first step is Grenada on Saturday. The Americans have won 34 of 43 matches in Gold Cup action, outscoring opponents 81 to 26. Mexico is the only CONCACAF team to have won three consecutive Gold Cups from 1993 to 1998. The USA begins the defense of its title on Saturday, by taking it one game at a time.
Kathryn L. Knapp, Goal.com
For more on the U.S. Men's National Team and the CONCACAF Gold Cup, go to Goal.com's U.S. page.
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