Canales Daily: Onyewu Has Determining Factor

By Andrea Canales

In May of 2007 I was watching a U.S. Men's National Team training session. Although the California sun was warm and restful, the largest player on the field was anything but relaxed. Oguchi Onyewu stalked the field with a gritty, focused intent. Not for him the jokes and jibes of practice - he was concentrating on one mission.

"We do not lose!" Onyewu roared at his teammates.

I looked around to remind myself that yes, this was just a training scrimmage, nothing which at first notice would provoke such a passionate exhortation.

The score between Onyewu's group and the other U.S. players they faced, designated as opponents by the yellow mesh vests they had pulled on over their national team training jerseys, was tied.

U.S. coach Bob Bradley checked his watch. "Next goal wins," he announced.

That galvanized Onyewu into action. He cleared an incoming ball, organized his defense to move forward into the attack, put a header on frame that was well saved. A favorable bounce on a long pass and a good move the other way led to a goal for the yellow team, however, and the game ended.

Onyewu's team had lost, and despite the minor nature of a training game with nothing at stake, he did not take it lightly. He glowered off the field, marching without comment out of the training facility, on his face a mix of slightly wounded pride, consternation and something else - determination.

I'd seen that before, back in the 2006 World Cup. After the U.S. team had dropped their opening game against the Czech Republic, in a press conference the next day in Hamburg, Germany, Onyewu had that same look on his face as he patiently, yet defiantly, answered a host of reporter questions that had many variations on "Why do you suck?".

The theme Onyewu kept returning to in his answers was simple, that a good team can have a bad game and that he believed the U.S. team would do better.

Indeed, in their next World Cup match versus Italy, the U.S. team was much improved, battling the eventual champions to a draw.

That same competitive resiliency has marked Onyewu's career. When he failed to break through in France with Metz, he buckled down and proved himself in his opportunity with Standard Liege. When his loan to Newcastle didn't go as well as he had hoped, he again stepped back to his life at Standard, assessed where he needed to improve, and then took that step forward against tough international competition in the Confederations Cup.

It's a potent combination for eventual success - to set high standards ("We do not lose!") and then, brooding over whenever those standards are not met, actually come up with a better plan to reach the achievement that was missed earlier.

That's what served Onyewu so well in the matches versus Italy, Egypt, Spain and Brazil. Even in the games where his team lost, he kept learning and kept stewing, waiting for his chance to try again in the next match and make good on what he now knew to do differently.

Frankly, I expect Onyewu to suffer setbacks at AC Milan. It's a jump from the level he's been playing, for one thing. There are also adjustments to new leagues and teammates that always take time.

Yet Onyewu possesses a flexibility and proven talent to adapt and improve under difficult circumstances. The big defender has tapped into a key element to progress, and now as soon as a door to something desired closes, he looks around for window, and is just as prepared to bash down a wall if need be.

That, more than his towering size and athletic prowess, is what should see him through his next adventure.

Andrea Canales is Chief Editor of Goal.com North America

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