OPINION: Ryan Outdoes Himself

US Coach Makes Critical Error of Judgement

September 28, 2007

By Andrew Hush

"I think the way the Brazilians play, in terms of creating off the dribble in the penalty box and making the goaltender make reaction-type saves, I think (Briana Scurry) is the best goalkeeper in the world in those situations."

So said Greg Ryan on the eve of the USA’s World Cup semifinal, a game that will forever be remembered as the one in which Hope Solo did not play. The goalkeeper who had started 40 of the 50 matches coached by Ryan, the goalkeeper who had been proclaimed as the ‘No. 1’ before the tournament and, after getting over uncharacteristic mistakes made in the opening game, the goalkeeper who currently owns a shutout streak that stretches to 298 minutes.

Calling up Briana Scurry was not, in itself, a daft move. The former UMass standout has as impressive a resume as there is in the world of women’s soccer and was an impressive 12-0 versus Brazil prior to today’s disaster. She is not a bad goalkeeper but she was made to look like one for a number of reasons in Hangzhou.

Abby Wambach

Forcing the ball to Abby Wambach was another poor coaching move by Greg Ryan, outside the obvious one.

The decision itself was, obviously, the biggest mistake made. Ryan pointed to Scurry’s record against Brazil as a mitigating factor for his choice but this was not a specific match-up similar to that seen in, say, the bottom of the eighth inning or on a third down and six, this was a World Cup semifinal and Ryan gave the starting nod to a player who had not seen competitive action for over a month.

Picking Scurry seriously damaged the chemistry of a team Ryan had spent two years preparing to become world champions. As we saw on the field, Ryan over-thought and out-coached himself. On the other bench, Jorge Barcellos must have been struggling to believe his luck. Playing a team his country had beaten just once in their history, his side had been given the psychological edge by their opponents.

Perhaps not surprisingly given the build-up, the USA never looked capable of matching Brazil. There were other factors but the post-mortem of the team’s biggest ever defeat must begin in goal. Allowing an own goal in her own six-yard box with no yellow shirts in the immediate vicinity was not specifically the fault of Scurry, but a goalkeeper more in tune with the players in front of her would have taken control and come to claim the ball herself.

After that, things got worse. One of the few things that Ryan had got right (see quote above) was his perception of the dangers posed by Brazil on the dribble. Sadly, Scurry failed to do the job he gave her. On each of the magnificent Marta’s two goals, the 36-year-old got hands to but could not hang on to well-hit, but saveable shots.

Away from the goalkeeping controversy, there were other major mistakes made by Ryan. Down two at halfime against a rampant Brazil side, he inexplicably withdrew a defender to play with a back three, allowing the freedom of China to the samba stars. When he finally realized his error, he sent Tina Ellertson in, only for the substitute to be ruthlessly victimized by Marta.

Up front, the issues that had afflicted the US throughout the tournament continued. Abby Wambach apart, this was not a fluid attacking team. Kristine Lilly struggled to consistently hit the heights of her illustrious career while Heather O’Reilly was a peripheral figure in a deeper-lying role. The mystifying thing was the ignorance of the alterative offensive options available.

On the bench, Ryan had Lindsay Tarpley, Aly Wagner and Natasha Kai, yet at no point did he opt to change the style of his team’s play. At no time did we see any attempt to put Brazil on the back foot by having their defenders pressurized in one-on-one situations. There was no width and no idea other than pumping the ball long to Wambach, who was willing but crowded out.

Adding to the USA’s woe was the unfortunate dismissal of Shannon Boxx on the verge of halftime but, despite Ryan’s postgame claim that the decision of Nicole Petignat changed the complexion of the match, the red card merely made a bad day worse. The game was gone and everyone, including the USA coach, knew it.

Now the fallout begins and there is much for Ryan to consider, assuming he keeps his job. He probably will and must face up to the realization that his team is not even in the world’s top two. The performance of Brazil in this World Cup has established it as a power of some repute, while Germany is what it has always been. Meanwhile, Norway remains strong while Australia and England are catching up quickly.

The next time Ryan picks a squad, he is likely to be without a number of the stalwarts he has come to rely on over the past two years. Lilly may be gone, along with Scurry, as well as Boxx, Kate Markgraf and Cat Whitehill. With an Olympic Games less than a year away, the next generation needs to arrive fast, as does the WUSA in the spring of the 2009. As the build-up to this tournament proved, friendlies are no substitute for a solid league structure.

And then there is Solo, whose immediate future must be in some doubt, especially after her emotional outburst following the game. Commenting on his decision to ditch her, Ryan said he could not concern himself with the impact it would have but now he must offer an olive branch to a young goalkeeper who is likely as confused about her own ability as anything else. After being the automatic choice for so long, the impact of relegating her to the bench ahead of the biggest game of her career could have devastating long-term consequences.

Things might not have been different had Solo got the nod to start but the fact that we will never know means there are now issues that Greg Ryan has to deal with that go beyond his main job, which is to somehow pick up this wounded side and prepare them for their next test. They’ll be back for sure, but the question now is, in what state will we next see the ladies of the USA?

Return from OPINION: Ryan Outdoes Himself to US National Teams

ADD TO YOUR SOCIAL BOOKMARKS: