A Lucky Start for USA in World Cup 2010

England's goal keeper, Robert Green, showed off his best butterfingers Saturday to gift the U.S. with its first point of World Cup 2010. Green botched a simple ground shot from USA's Clint Dempsey in the 40th minute of the match, practically giving the U.S. its only score.

"One of the softest goals you'll ever see at this level of football," said play-by-play man Martin Tyler of ABC. Dempsey himself, grinning sheepishly after the match stated, "It's one of those you always see people scoring and say, 'Hey, how come that never happens to me?' ... But, hey, they all count the same when they go in."

After giving up a goal to England in the fourth minute, it looked like the match would quickly become a formality. However, the U.S. steeled their reserve and put in a respectable performance, especially on the defensive end. Oguchi Onyewu and Jay DeMerit all but eliminated England forward Wayne Rooney from the match. The star striker's "first touch came in the 17th minute, and he didn't get a touch inside the U.S. penalty area until the 70th minute," noted ESPN's Jeff Carlisle. Given Rooney's importance to the England team, it was clear that Bob Bradley and the U.S. team had studied the superstar's tendencies.

Although the U.S. put in a solid performance filled with a self-confidence and mental toughness absent from previous teams, the habit of allowing early goals remains a major concern. In the last round of World Cup-qualifying, the U.S. gave up the first goal six times in 10 matches. Four of those times, the Americans permitted a goal within the first 20 minutes.

On Saturday, in their first offensive attack, England's Captain, Stephan Gerrard, was able to capitalize on a major defensive gaffe to take the early lead. However, England then relaxed and showed their typical level of hubris and laziness, and allowed the U.S. to take control of much of the rest of match despite a multiplicity of turnovers and errors on the offensive end.

After crushing nearly everyone in the World Cup qualifying matches, expectations that England would make a strong bid for the Cup, and put to rest nearly 20 years of poor performances, were very high. However, on Saturday, this England team looked much like the last five-incredibly talented, but incredibly underwhelming.

Sources:

World Cup 2010: The international press reaction to England v USA, The Guardian
Jeff Carlisle, What we learned from England-USA, ESPN.com
Steve Schrader, Don't look a gift horse in the goalmouth, Detroit Free Press
Jerome Taylor, Robert Green takes World Cup gaffe jibes in his swing, Belfast Telegraph