YTG Re-View: USA 1-0 Algeria

THE GOOD ...
- RESILIENCE: More than anything, this game (and, quite honestly, the entire World Cup campaign) was a testament to a never-say-die attitude from the US team. They faced any number of obstacles, both created by themselves (see 0-2 Slovenia at half) and imposed upon them (see Coulibaly, Kouman). But they continually dug in, stayed in the game, and ultimately got rewarded for it.
- UNSUNG HEROES: Landon Donovan will rightly get all the glory for netting the game-winning and group-winning goal. But Jozy Altidore had one of his best 90 minutes, demonstrating speed and a deft touch. While Donovan definitely "wrote the future" with his goal, we may also have seen a glimpse of the future with Altidore. Also checking in with a great performance was Jonathan Bornstein, called into duty with Bob Bradley's brave decision to bench Oguchi Onyewu. After a less-than-stellar qualifying campaign, Bornstein acquitted himself very well helping to keep the Algerian attack at bay.
- JUSTICE: Sure, soccer is a game for drama queens and prone to hyperbole. But Donovan's stoppage-time winner really gave us what was the right result. Not only did the US advance and get the glory of winning the group, but by finishing first they get put into a four-team group with Ghana, Uruguay, and South Korea instead of Germany, Argentina, and Mexico. Sure, every game is tough, but I think if you shot Bradley full of truth serum he'd be pretty happy with his draw. Although, how could would a USA-Mexico quarterfinal match be ...

THE BAD ...
- THE WIDTH OF THE CROSSBAR: That's how close the US was from having yet another calamitous start to a World Cup finals game. Good grief, guys, how hard is it to get through the first 15 minutes of a game without killing the people cheering for you?
- THE FOLKS WITH THE WHISTLES: At least this time it was defensible. Once again, the US has a legitimate goal taken off the board. This time, it was early in the game, when Clint Dempsey had a strike erased for an offside call when replay showed he was even with the defender. It was a close call, to be sure, and that stuff happens. But, boy, it seems like it happened a lot to the US in group play.
- THE SKIN OF THEIR TEETH: As the story unfolded, Donovan scored and the US team get to be the heroes of the country. But don't forget, they were about 150 seconds away from being eliminated from the World Cup at the group stage. It's not that far off from their performance in the Confederations Cup last year, when they needed to hammer Egypt and get help to advance to knockout competition. Yes, it's a great result, but it was razor-close in getting there.

... AND THE REASON WE WATCH THIS GAME IN THE FIRST PLACE.
I said after the Slovenia game that if you weren't a soccer fan after that game, there was something wrong with you. After this game, if you aren't a soccer fan, you're just plain dead. This game had everything - massive emotional swings, villainous decisions going against the heroes, near-misses, and the final, dramatic ending. And it couldn't be better for the growth of the game in the United States. Thanks to ESPN's relentless promotion, and the US performance, the group stage games drew massive television ratings and delivered. Now, we'll have at least another week of soccer stealing the national spotlight in the US.

THE BIG PICTURE
At the start of the competition, we expected England and the US to advance. England and the US advanced. Should we look at this result as merely the expected coming to pass? Of course not, and it was the way the result occurred. For US fans,

THE NEXT GAME: United States v. Ghana. As if the Yanks needed motivation for a World Cup knockout round game, it was the Black Stars that ended their 2006 World Cup in the groups with a controversial penalty kick call. Ghana sets up very similarly to Algeria, lacking a true single goal-scoring machine but possessing a lot of quickness and danger throughout the squad. Yes, they haven't scored from open play, but it doesn't mean they won't be a very dangerous opponent.

FEARLESS FORECAST: Most observers would say that the US has achieved their reasonable objective at this year's World Cup by making it out of the group. That means the US will be able to play without fear, as they're already playing with house money. They can come out loose and aggressive against a Ghana team that sets up in a very similar manner to Algeria. Look for almost the same lineup, with the exception of Edson Buddle or Robbie Findley starting up front instead of Herculez Gomez, and for the US to convert on some of the chances missed against the Desert Foxes. US 2-0 Ghana, equaling the American's best performance at a World Cup.