06/19/06
U.S. follows unlikely script to tie Italy
By Tim Bresnahan
Contributing Writer
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Many of their countrymen might knock them for playing a "foreign sport," but the members of the U.S. National Team are American to the core. For evidence, look no further than midfielder Pablo Mastroeni, who found an analogy for Saturday’s remarkable 1-1 tie with Italy in one of Hollywood’s most beloved sports movies.
"After I got the red card, in the second half I was like the father in ’Hoosiers,’ the alcoholic father in the hospital rooting the guys on," said Mastroeni, who was ejected just before halftime. "Everything was super-emotional. I’m really proud to be a part of a group of guys who battled so hard."
[an error occurred while processing this directive]"We have the kind of players on this team who find a way to persevere and get through things," he continued. "The first game we played (a 3-0 loss to the Czechs last Monday) was one of the weakest performances we’ve had in years, and to come back with this kind of performance, (being) a man down for 45 minutes, was just remarkable, and it speaks volumes to the character of this team."
They’ll likely never make a movie about last night’s match (unless some serious creative license were to turn a tie into a win), but it certainly was as dramatic a show as you’ll ever see, full of stunning twists and turns, bone-crunching tackles, controversial calls, outrageous mistakes and moments of brilliant play at both end. And ultimately, the Americans overcame a man-disadvantage to fend off the Italian advances and get the point they needed to stay in contention for a berth in the second round.
In doing so, they displayed extraordinary courage and resolve — attributes they sorely lacked against the Czechs.
"That was as emotional as it gets," U.S. forward/midfielder Landon Donovan said. "We’re proud. That’s what Americans play like. We said we were going to come out and play, and we’re going to give a better effort. We gave it our all. We didn’t get the ideal result, and it could have turned out differently with a few better calls, but we did everything we could."
And they did it under nearly impossible circumstances. Two red cards three minutes apart turned a one-man advantage into a short-handed situation for the Americans, who had to play the final 43 minutes with nine men to Italy’s 10. An Italian goal seemed inevitable, but the United States would not yield.
Steve Cherundolo worked tirelessly all night, covering the entire right side of the field after the ejections. Center back Oguchi Onyewu delivered a massive performance, using his size and strength to outmuscle Italy’s forwards. Donovan and DaMarcus Beasley, the subjects of ample criticism after the Czech match, looked inspired, running at defenders with speed and cleverness.
Brian McBride, the victim of a nasty elbow in the face from Daniele DeRossi (who was ejected in the 28th minute), repeatedly won balls in the air when it seemed as if he had nothing left in the tank. And goalkeeper Kasey Keller, desperately trying to avoid his fourth loss in as many career World Cup starts, saved the day with a diving stop on Alessandro Del Piero late in the match.
Not only did the Americans protect their net, they even created several golden scoring chances while playing nine vs. 10, including a Beasley goal that was nullified by a correct offside call. When Arena said, "I thought we were the better team on the night," he was probably right.
Thanks to the tie, his charges are still in the tournament. They’ll need to beat Ghana on Thursday, and hope that the Italians beat the Czechs in a game that will take place simultaneously. It’s a tall order, but at least Uncle Sam’s boys have a shot.
"Sure, we wanted the win, but one point keeps us in this thing," said Keller. "We had a hiccup in the first game, and that’s going to happen in this sport, and we might just lose to Ghana. But I tell you one thing: Ghana is going to know they were in a battle."
And as the Italians can attest, the Americans are more than capable of putting up a fight.
Tim Bresnahan, who is at the World Cup, is a contributing Writer for The Daily Star. E-mail him at tim bresnahan@hotmail.com.
