YTG Re-View: USA 2-2 SVN

THE GOOD ...
- THE SECOND HALF: Well, cripes, where were those guys when the game kicked off? Right from the start of the second half, the US came out with energy, determination, and desperation. Well-deserved desperation, mind you - being down 2-0 to a team from a country half the population of Brooklyn will do that. But if the US could play with that kind of energy throughout the tournament, they could beat anyone.
- MANDON: In the time between the Slovenia and the Algeria game, I was planning a thought-provoking column on whether Clint Dempsey was a better player than Landon Donovan. Apparently, Landon heard about it. No disrespect to Dempsey, a player I love, but Donovan took charge of the game and willed the US to a point (and, if there was justice in the world, three points). It's Donovan's world now, and we're all just renting space.
- DONOVAN THE HEADHUNTER: I know it's dovetailing a little bit on the point above, but Donovan's goal was a tone-setter not only for the goal itself but for the manner in which it was struck. In the six-yard box, Donovan was one-on-one with the Charlie Browns' keeper, and hit a rocket up to the top of the goal. Rather than attempt to save it, the keeper basically protected his head and tried to survive the shot. Talk about making a point.
- PUSHING THE RIGHT BUTTONS: When Bob Bradley made two substitutions at the half, I wondered if he was pushing the panic button. Instead, bringing on Benny Feilhaber and Maurice Edu for Jose Torres and Robbie Findley helped the US get back on their front foot and take the game to the Charlie Browns. As much as the first half can be laid on his doorstep (see below), Bradley has to be given a lot of credit for the comeback.

THE BAD ...
- THE FIRST HALF: The second-half performance of the US was a sight to behold, but it masks to some degree the disastrous first half they played. Oguchi Onyewu's marking of the Slovenian striker who scored the first goal was lax at best, and on the breakaway second goal it appeared the back line was either praying for offside or simply missed the attacking player completely. And how you miss a guy in a shirt as ugly as Slovenia wears is beyond me.
- THE MAN IN THE YELLOW SHIRT: Yeah, there's no escaping it. The ref blew it, and not just on Edu's non-goal goal. In the second half, Bradley was off and got taken down by the last man for Slovenia, who mysteriously did not see a red card. Findley got a yellow for the temerity of playing the ball with his head - and that yellow means that Findley is out for the Algeria game. The US made a lot of problems for themselves, but they were robbed of one of the great World Cup comebacks of all time with the ref's performance. Let's hope it doesn't cost them a spot in the knockout round.
- ALARM CLOCKS: Look familiar? It was the same concern I had after the England game. Once again, the US started the game slow, tentative and - dare I say it? - flat in a World Cup finals game. For it to happen once is disturbing. For it to be a regular occurrence is simply unacceptable. The game plan against the Charlie Browns had to be to get on them early, score, and make them chase the game. There was no evidence at all the players put that into place.

... AND THE WELCOMING TO THE CLUB.
Dear America: Welcome to soccer. American sports fans have been watching this World Cup more than ever before, and now they have a real understanding of one of the "traditions" of the game - getting hosed in a massively important game by a bad call. Sure, England won the World Cup in 1966, but it's Diego Maradona's "Hand of God" goal that really is what English fans rally around. Now, American soccer fans have their own moment, a "Foul of Nothing" they can talk about for years to come. If the US advance from the group, then US fans will have some other memories to savor. But if they go out on Wednesday, US fans will have their own Maradona-like villain to blame for generations to come.

THE BIG PICTURE.
Thanks to England's 0-0 draw with Algeria, the US holds its' destiny in its' own hands. A win over Algeria (the only team in the group to lose a game) means the US will advance to the knockout rounds. A win coupled with an England win over the Charlie Browns (which you still have to think is likely even after seeing England's tepid performance against the Desert Foxes) means the US will almost certainly win the group and get the second-place team from Group D. No great shakes, as that could be Ghana (who knocked the US out of World Cup 2006 in group play), Serbia (everyone's darkhorse), or Germany (res ipsa). Even a tie keeps the US hopes of advancing alive, as they'd go forward if England lost to the Charlie Browns or tied them and scored two or less goals than the US did in the game.

THE NEXT GAME: United States v. Algeria. A win-and-you're-in game for the US, which at halftime against Slovenia seemed unlikely to get. Still, the US is in for a fight - perhaps literally - against Algeria. The Desert Foxes are a scrappy side that held a powerful England attack goal-less. If the US comes out flat - and we've get to see a US team NOT come out flat in the World Cup - they could find themselves in trouble. If the US, however, brings the energy and the chip on their shoulder that a "daylight robbery" should give them, then the US should take care of business on their own.

FEARLESS FORECAST: United States 2-1 Algeria. The US finally bring energy in the first half, get an easy goal, and win a relatively comfortable game against an Algeria team that runs out of gas after their slugfest with England.