Group of Opportunity

"Great moments are born from great opportunity."
-Herb Brooks, 1980 USA Olympic Hockey Coach.

If you haven't heard, FIFA had it's World Cup draw this past Friday afternoon. After getting snubbed for one of the top seeds in the tournament (and rightfully so) the Americans were placed in what many are calling the "group of death" for the 2006 tournament. Others believe we are in the "group of near-death," suggesting that Argentina and Group C are the most difficult to navigate.

If you asked me what the United States' chances are over the past three days, I probably had a different answer than I do this morning. I tend to be reactionary when it comes to sports news. I'm sure this is obvious to those that know me, but I really enjoy having my opinion heard by the masses. For better or worse, often times those that speak first, and loudest, are assumed to be correct. Most people, myself included, figured that we might as well start preparing for 2010 because Italy, the Czech Republic and Ghana is just too tough of an assignment. I'm starting to think we were all wrong...and it only took me three days to change my mind.

Great opportunity. That's exactly what the US Men's National Soccer Team has when it heads to Germany for the World Cup this summer.

For the clear majority of the world, soccer is literally a matter of life and death. The World Cup is the most coveted prize in all of sports. More than Olympic gold, more than the yellow jersey of the Tour de France, and certainly more than a "World" Series. More people around the globe watched the World Cup draw than will watch the Super Bowl game this February. But most of you already knew these things.

You probably also know some of our nation's history when it comes to soccer. We've never won the World Cup. Our best showing was a semi-finals appearance in the inaugural tournament back in 1930 where we were beaten 6-1 by Argentina. In 1934, we were smacked in our only match by none other than Italy, 7-1. We shocked England in 1950, then we failed to qualify for 40 years. We re-entered the world soccer scene at Italia '90, and got drubbed by (who else?) Czechoslovakia and Italy. In 1994, as hosts, we shocked Columbia and managed to hang around with eventual champions Brazil in a 1-0 second round defeat on our nation's birthday. We fell on our faces in France 1998, losing all three matches and finishing in last place among the 32-team field. Then, in 2002, we stunned one of the top ranked team's in Portugal, beat rival Mexico in the second round and outplayed a German side that was rescued time and again by it's goalkeeper, and tournament MVP, Oliver Khan.

So how difficult is our group? According to a poll on the official World Cup website, we will have the second toughest group in Germany. I would suggest that we actually have the toughest based on the current world rankings of all four teams, but either way it shouldn't matter. Head Coach Bruce Arena said this on Friday: "It is what it is."

Basically, there is no use crying over spilled milk. Just shut your mouth and cover it up with a newspaper. Crying only makes us look that much more inferior to the rest of the world. The bottom line is that we've proven we can play with anyone, so why should this time be any different? I think what the United States have is a tremendous opportunity to prove our critics wrong this coming June. If we fail to move on, it's expected. But what if we manage to steal the group? Combined with our efforts in 2002 and throughout 2006 qualifying, it could mean nothing but respect.

If you go strictly by the numbers, we're probably doomed. I believe Michael Davies of ESPN Page 2 said it best, "Check a map." These are basically home games for the Italians and Czechs. American teams are 0-7 all time in World Cup matches played in Europe and have been outscored 19-4 in those games. Overall, we've only won 11 games (11-33-6) in our nation's history on European soil and, to my knowledge, none under head coach Bruce Arena. To make matters worse, we drew a fast and physical Ghana side. They are the African team that everyone was hoping to avoid.

On the bright side, there is no doubt that each and every European nation was hoping to avoid the United States as well. We are very well conditioned. We are young and fearless. Our youth has plenty of experience. We are also well coached, having gone 13-3-4 in 2005 and 65-26-26 since Bruce Arena took over for Steve Sampson after the 1998 disaster. We won our qualifying group, CONCACAF, for the first time ever just this past summer. And let's not forget that the entire world is hoping we'll fall flat on our faces. If that isn't enough to motive our boys over there, I don't know what will be.

Let's break down our first round opponents so everyone knows exactly what we're up against.

Game One
June 12 - 11:00 AM CT
Czech Republic
The Bad News: Currently ranked #2 in the world, they are actually my favorite for the top spot in Group E. They scored more goals in European qualifying than any other nation. In Euro 2004, they lost in the semi-finals to eventual champion Greece despite playing what was widely considered the most attractive soccer of the entire tournament. Bruce Arena voted midfielder Pavel Nedved one of the top three players in the world a few years ago.

The Good News: Their top goal scorer, Jan Koller, suffered a serious knee injury and he may or may not be back in time for this match. For the most part, this team is getting old. Nedved came out of retirement to help his countrymen qualify this past summer when they needed to win a playoff against Norway in order to enter this tournament. Many have said that the Czech first division is right on par with MLS, so their home grown talent isn't considered top-class. In the 2000 Olympics, the USA's U-21 team drew with the Czechs 2-2, and many of those players will be participating in this match for both teams.

Game Two
June 17 - 2:00 PM CT
Italy
The Bad News: Name recognition alone; after all, these are the three time champions. Known as the Azzurri, the Italians are defined by their superior defending. Through Euro 2004 qualifying they allowed just 4 goals in 8 matches. They are considered one of the top teams in the world despite their current 12th place ranking by FIFA. Italy has only failed to qualify for the finals one time, back in 1958 at Sweden. They finished 7-1-2 in European qualifying after overhauling the line-up with young, eager players that are ready to make their mark.

The Good News: They are ranked just 12th, we are ranked 8th. They were the last of the top 8 nations to secure a seed, finishing just one point ahead of the United States based on FIFA's ridiculous formula. They have occasionally fallen on hard times over the past 20 years since last winning the Cup in 1982. They lost to Brazil on US soil in the 1994 Cup on penalties, and more recently exited the 2002 Cup in the second round to co-host South Korea. Traditionally, they do not play their best soccer in the opening round-robin portion of the tournament and are susceptible to upset ties and defeats. They like to get a 1-0 lead early and then use their superior defensive skills to hang on in matches. If we can get up on them early, it could frustrate them and allow us to sneak away with a very valuable point, but I couldn't fathom getting three here.

Game Three
June 22 - 9:00 AM CT
Ghana
The Bad News: They are considered the Brazil of Africa for good reason; they're fast, physical, and well disciplined. Nicknamed the Black Stars, they have won four African Cup of Nations titles and two U-17 World Championships. Their captain, Michael Essien, is one of the top players for the best club team in the world (Chelsea of the English Premier League.) Many of the top footballers in African history hail from Ghana. As I already mentioned, they are the one African team everyone in the tournament was hoping to avoid. Lucky us.

The Good News: This is their first appearance on the world's biggest stage and hopefully that inexperience will haunt them. Ghana's coach, Ratomir Djukovic, made no mention of the United States in his opening statement after the draw. Clearly he doesn't respect us as much as the Czechs or the Italians. This is also our final match of the first round so we'll have plenty of time to get a look at what they are capable of and put together a pre-match strategy.

Here is what the World Cup draw looks like for 2006, with current FIFA World Rankings in parenthesis:

Group A
Germany (16)
Ecuador (37)
Poland (23)
Costa Rica (21)

Group B
England (9)
Sweden (14)
Paraguay (30)
Trinidad & Tobago (51)

Group C
Argentina (4)
Netherlands (3)
Serbia & Montenegro (47)
Ivory Coast (41)

Group D
Mexico (7)
Iran (19)
Portugal (10)
Angola (62)

Group E
Italy (12)
Czech Republic (2)
United States (8)
Ghana (50)

Group F
Brazil (1)
Croatia (20)
Japan (15)
Australia (49)

Group G
France (5)
Togo (56)
Switzerland (36)
South Korea (29)

Group H
Spain (6)
Ukraine (40)
Saudi Arabia (32)
Tunisia (28)

I'll hold back on making predictions until we get closer to Germany. At this point, nobody knows for sure what players will be on any of the squads and who will be in top form come June. For now, I'll answer just two questions for you.

Did the United States get the most difficult draw for 2006? It could have been worse, but yes, I think we certainly have the toughest road to the second round.

Is it out of the question for us to advance? I honestly don't think it is.

Finally, I would like to thank Fergie for putting me in my place and getting me to write about the sport I care most about, "The Beautiful Game." Thankfully, it didn't take the Nordic Track of Doom this time.