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Soccer: USA Go For Gold Cup Glory Against Mexico

  • Al Dannity's Author profile. Al Dannity

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Two of the greatest rivals in world Soccer collide in the 2011 Gold Cup Final on Saturday night. Al Dannity breaks down a game where more than just a trophy is at stake.

Comeback kings
It hasn’t always been pretty for the USA in the 2011 Gold Cup. A group stage defeat to Panama left them with work to do and they certainly weren’t happy to see their conquerors again in the semi finals. Unimpressive as they have been up to this point, the United States finally showed the flair and grit required to win at this level. The inspiration came from a most unlikely source.

Remember Freddy Adu? The one-time wunderkind of USA Soccer has struggled to cope with the hype. Adu spent the last season playing for Çaykur Rizespor in Turkey. Despite languishing out of sight of Soccer betting fans, Adu returned to the public consciousness to launch a wonder-pass to Landon Donovan. Not to be outdone, Donovan delivered an inch-perfect ball for Clint Dempsey to slot home and secure a 1-0 win for the USA.

[youtube]http://youtu.be/tw5Z6-reYN0[/youtube]

With Donovan having under-performed so far in this tournament, the return to form of the USA’s most famous player couldn’t have come at a better time. There’s still one job left to do and plenty of reasons to step up.

More than just a title
When the USA last lifted the Gold Cup in 2007, it booked their place in the 2009 Confederations Cup. Their experience at that competition set up a successful performance at the 2010 World Cup. Victory on Saturday night would book a spot at the 2013 Confederations Cup in Brazil. Getting game time at the top level a year ahead of the next World Cup will be vital towards preparations for the 2014 tournament.

This problem has been compounded by the way the draw for the qualifiers is being restructured, removing the brutally tough final round and replacing it with a group format. This will leave the USA without competitive games against their biggest rivals and in need of extra matches against quality outfits.

The verdict
El Tri possess one of the most dangerous talents in the world in the form of Javier Hernandez aka Chicarito. Outside of that Manchester United star however I don’t like how Mexico match up to the USA. Bob Bradley has demonstrated the depth of his squad by changing up the selections to suit opponents. Likewise he has mixed formations between his conventional 4-2-2-2 approach and a tricky 4-2-3-1. I expect Bradley to deploy the latter on Saturday, stifling the supply line to Chicarito and causing problems for Mexico’s defense. That should give the USA the edge and with it, the 2011 Gold Cup title.