Photos from Nashville

Here are some of my photos from Tuesday's match in Nashville along with several from friend of the PWT-blog Mario. 

Starters

Kickoff

RCU's Andy Zorovich (left) and Jan Henner (right)

FSC's sideline reporter Brian Dunseth delivering the dirt

Waiting for 2nd half kickoff

Final score

On the bus ride home, through the wet city streets

More USA v Paraguay

I put together a little vid of our bus trip, the pregame tailgate, and some game highlights.  As you can see, we had pretty sweet seats and a pretty great time, despite the result.

USA v Paraguay in Nashville

According to the announced attendance figures, the match was the biggest in Tennessee history at 29,059.  That's about 7,000 walk up tickets sold, and a lot more than I thought would come out on a cool rainy Tuesday.  Well done, soccer fans!

Record crowd cheering on the USA

As for the game itself...  We certainly had enough chances to score, but when was last time the US were the first team to score in a game?  As much as I respect Bob Bradley as a coach, our team sucks in the first half.  Maybe we can get a interim coach just to run out the starting line-ups and tactical formations, and then let Cheatin' Bob (That's what I call him.  Ask me about it sometime if you see me) finish coaching the match, since he seems to make decent adjustments and substitutions as the game goes on.

Here's a pretty good recap with plenty of pics from the Tennessean, who treated the match as a big event.  Nice!

I'll share some photos of our trip in my next post.

Guest Post: USA v Paraguay, An Armchair Analysis

PWT-Blog is happy to welcome back our guest blogger, Chris Shaffer.  I'm tired from getting home from Nashville wee hours.  So thankfully, Chris breaks down the game for us, as only he can.  I'll have further coverage of the game in the next day or two.

In tonight’s USA/Paraguay friendly, seen as a key warm-up for the USA as it prepares for this summer’s Gold Cup competition, the US succumbed 1-0 to a typically hard-nosed, defensively organized Paraguay side.

I was going to go with a blow-by-blow, minute-by-minute account of the match but, honestly, it’s just not worth the effort.

The approach, therefore, will be a Lessons-Learned tutorial. Mind you, none of these lessons will deal specifically with Paraguay.

Let’s also remember that some key players in the USA’s stunning 1-1 draw with Argentina were not involved, including GK Tim Howard.

USA: 23-Marcus Hahnemann (18-David Yelldell, 46); 21-Timmy Chandler (2-Jonathan Spector, 80),15-Jay DeMerit (3-Carlos Bocanegra, 41), 6-Tim Ream, 12-Jonathan Bornstein (16-Sacha Kljestan, 77); 8-Clint Dempsey, 7-Maurice Edu (13-Jermaine Jones, 46), 4-Michael Bradley, 10-Landon Donovan (capt.); 17-Jozy Altidore (19-Eric Lichaj, 60), 9-Juan Agudelo

 

USA 0:1 Paraguay

 Lessons Learned:

• If Honduran referee Jose Benigno is any indication, Hondurans have utterly failed to appreciate the great things US companies like United Fruit and our government’s financial and military support of their death squads and dictatorship have done for their people. Also, Jonathan Bornstein’s last gasp goal against Costa Rica in an otherwise meaningless final World Cup Qualifier for the US vs. Costa Rica put Honduras into the 2010 World Cup finals.
• This is the last positive thing I’ll say about Mr. Bornstein.
• Paraguay is not just defensively organized and stout, they are masters of the professional foul, yet only one Paraguayan was booked at all despite repeated fouling of US players holding the ball at midfield with their back to goal.
• Paraguay’s Directo Technico Gerardo Martinez must find a sport coat that doesn’t cause pixallation on TV.
• Kyle Martinez, doing color commentary, referred to US left back Jonathan Bornstein as, “not the best one-on-one defender.” This is a vast understatement in more ways than I care to list.
• The aforementioned may have something to do with just how much Bornstein blows at every phase of the game. He minored in giving the ball away under no pressure.
• Conversely, Timmy Chandler, a right back of Amero-Germano (sic) parentage is really, really good. He defends, he goes forward, he can cross the ball. He plays for Nurnberg. He is the real deal. Meanwhile, Bob Bradley’s out looking for David Regis on the Streets of Metz after the Born-de-bacle.
• Nike’s new “Indivisible” US Jersey will be plugged continuously from now through the Gold Cup
• Oscar Cardozo (Par) knows how to finish, especially when US central defender Tim Ream (NYRB), who played respectably, is pulled down from behind. Or maybe he just fell.1-0 to Paraguay. Tim Ream was a Billiken in College.
• Paraguay received one booking (yellow) and the US none.
• Did I mention the Honduran ref was awful?
• Estonia inexplicably drew 1-1 with Serbia today as a Serbian goal in stoppage time was not acknowledged. Look up Luddite in the dictionary and you’ll see a pic of Sepp Blatter.
• One moment Clint Dempsey seems somnambulant and the next he’s hit a knuckling 30-yarder on goal.
• The Nashville crowd was great, and was repeatedly acknowledged as such by JP Dellacamera. Evidently 1,000 more than WC qualifier!
• 37^th minute: J. Bornstein completes his 1^st pass of the game
• Jay Demerit is no Carlos Bocanegra…J. Spector is no Jay Demerit.
• Evidently there’s a product called “ProActive,” you know for acne and whatnot. I’ve never heard of it.
• BTW, props to Eric Wynalda for his ad promoting AYSO soccer, where you can, “learn soccer and have fun doing it.” And I thought you were an arrogant jerk…
• 2 halftime subs for USA: GK David (Who?) Yelldell (Duisburg) for Hahnemann, and Jermaine Jones for Mo Edu. I can’t believe Bornstein is still on the pitch.
• Did you know the new Nike USA “Indivisible” jersey is available?
• OK, Bornstein’s mark fell down and lost the ball, yet Bornstein still was beaten. Doesn’t this violate a law of physics?
• 50^th minute: Bornstein completes 2^nd pas of game.
• Dempsey/Altidore/Agudelo repeatedly fouled, yet they’re not…Thanks a lot Allen Dulles. (If you didn’t know, who owned a whole bunch of United Fruit stock)
• US player Eric Lichaj’s last name is pronounced “Lehigh.” He comes in for Altidore, not Bornstein. He actually plays sometimes for Leeds Utd., but is on loan from Aston Villa, where Michael Bradley sits. Bradley is having a solid game in the holding mf spot. Why can’t this guy get a start for Villa?
• Best US chance of the game comes in the 69^th minute when Agudelo crosses from the right side and Landon Donovan, unmarked, can only hit side netting as the ball bounces through the Paraguay box.
• Clint Dempsey now looks like he’s taken a worse beating than at a Fulham away match to Stoke.
• Lots of subs now. Sasha Klejstan on for US. Every time he touches the ball the game seems to go into slow motion.
• Aside from Agudelo and Timmy Chandler, the squad lacks pace and plays too slowly. Of course when Paraguay has 9 field players behind the ball after the 18’ mark and fouls at will with no consequences, Barcelona might have problems.
• Last 10 minutes: US has some offensive breaks, but they’re all 3-on-6
• Final: 1-0 Paraguay.
• This ProActive stuff must be really effective.
• Credit to the USSF for playing a tough schedule of Amistosos (“friendlies” not in MSWord dictionary), instead of padding its FIFA ranking with games vs. Macedonia and Austria.

Nashville Notes

A few last things before I get on the RCU bus up to Nashville:

As of this morning, 22,000 tickets have been sold.  I would expect a few thousand walk-ups and a possible crowd of 25,000.  Despite the frustration I have with the USA's support at home, that's not bad for a cool, wet Tuesday night game.

USA v Paraguay Pregame Press Conference

If you are not heading up I65, the game will be shown on FSC with a full pre-game and post game show.  Coverage begins at 6:30 PM.

There area also some other pretty good matches on TV today.
1:30 PM, Germany v Australia, ESPN2
2 PM, England v Ghana, FSC
4 PM, Columbia v Chile, FSC

There's plenty of speculation that the Yanks goalscorer on Saturday Juan Agudelo will get his first start for the USMNT.  But if it weren't for his call up, he'd be in Guatemala with the US U-20s as they attempt to qualify for the U20 World Cup.  This USA U20 is chock full of seasoned professionals and is probably the most experienced U20 group the US has ever put on the field.  If you have access to ESPN3.com, you can also watch the U-20s play Suriname at 7 PM, but if I were you, I'd watch the replay after the US v Paraguay match finishes.

USA U20s Preparation for World Cup Qualifying

RCU Offers 2 For 1 Deal, Nashville USMNT Friendly Update, Georgia Revolution

RCU Season Tickets 2 for 1

As I mentioned last week, Rocket City United is offering a great 2 for 1 deal on their season tickets.  For $50 you get tickets to each home game, tickets to each NPSL Championship Weekend game, and free food and drink at every home game.  The first 50 to take advantage of the deal will also get a free parking pass.  Act fast because the deal only lasts through March 14th.  Click here for more information.

BTW, here's a nice little article form the Madison Weekly about RCU's recent press conference.


Nashville USMNT Friendly Sale

As reported by Steve Goff in the Washington Post, the US friendly against Paraguay later this month in Nashville has sold over 13,000 tickets so far.   As Goff points out, the opponent doesn't carry the weight of the some of the other world soccer powers, and I think that anything other than a sell out of the lower bowl of LP Field would be a disappointment. 


More Georgia Revolution Info

One of the two new clubs in the NPSL Southeast has sprung to life.  The Georgia Revolution's creation has certainly not had the fanfare of the Knoxville Force or the rebranding of the Atlanta FC to the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves.  But the team has an innovative club model which will use the NPSL as a "senior team" for their youth soccer association.  I'm really interested to see how it turns out.  Looks like they will be holding tryouts at their Rockdale Youth Soccerplex in the next few weeks.