Sports: Soccer

Washington Post soccer writer Steven Goff was online Tuesday, June 13, at noon ET to chat about this year's World Cup. Goff is live from Germany to take questions after the match between the United States and the Czech Republic.

The transcript follows.

Post Coverage: World Cup 2006

Blog: World Cup Journal

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Steven Goff: Greetings from Hamburg...

What was THAT yesterday?

Okay, bring it...

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Distraught in Arlington, Va.: Steve,

Can you give us some positive thoughts about the team since I am miserable at work today.

Steven Goff: Depends which "team" you speak of.

Les Bleus is underway and the boys from Brazil play tonite.

Enjoy!

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Arlington, Va.: When will the media finally stop hyping Landon Donovan? Every time the US team is on TV, we are punished with a 30 minute tribute to the great Landon Donovan. Compared to the thugs who currently play professional sports in this country, Landon is a model citizen. However, he and Freddy Adu are the two most over-hyped players to come out of this country. First of all, he is an ABOVE average player at best, not greatest player in U.S. history. He plays well in small games with little on the line, but disappears completely or is mistake prone in big games. That would be tolerable if the media wasn't constantly telling us how great he is. Also, he seems like a spoiled brat who can't handle criticism or the pressure of fighting for playing time. If he had to compete for a starting position on the U.S. team, I think we would see a different side of him.

Steven Goff: The "media"? Be more specific. I can't answer for all the TV stations, newspapers, Internet sites and magazines. We're not all working for "The Man" who controls all information. If you have a problem with ABC/ESPN, call 'em. I'm not going to answer for their script writing.

Having said that, Donovan's statistics and influence at such a young age cannot be disputed. Is he Ronaldinho? Of course not. As far as I know, no one has ever made that comparison or anything like it.

For what it's worth, Donovan is the most important player in American soccer today. Context, my friends.

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Arlington, Va.: Okay, so the United States lost to the Czechs. But how about giving some props to the Australians, who were down 1-0 until the 83rd minute, and scored three times before the end of the game? I think the Aussies are going to be a big surprise!

Steven Goff: I agree. With their Euro-based players and a GREAT coach, Australia has a lot of potential in this tournament.

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Richmond, Va.: Steve,

Other than the debacle of yesterday's U.S. game, are you enjoying the tournament? Seems like you've covered some good games so far.

Steven Goff: Wonderful country, wonderful tournament, wonderful stadiums.

No complaints here...

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Reston, Va.: Is it all over for the United States?

Steven Goff: Great question, lad!

No, it's not over, but it could be on Saturday night.

Will they upset Italy? Not likely, but in the World Cup, almost anything is possible. A tie keeps them alive...barely.

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Question about confidence: Why did Arena make such a big deal about the goal in the first five minutes? Yes, it's a bad start, but you've also got 85 minutes to overcome it. The only reason it should have shaken the team that much is if they didn't have any confidence to begin with.

Steven Goff: That goal set the tone --- a huge, huge moment in the match. Once the Czechs scored, they were able to settle back comfortably, absorb the U.S.'s lame attack and then dance circles around the Americans. The early goal was absolutely devastating to the U.S. efforts.

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Crystal City, Va.: Why isn't the highest paid player in the MLS, Freddie Adu, playing on the American team?

Steven Goff: First of all, he's not the highest paid player in MLS -- three or four players are ahead of him.

Second, Adu is simply not ready for this level of soccer. As poorly as the Americans played against the Czechs, a 17-year-old forward from MLS with one international appearance would not help.

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Washington, D.C.: If the Americans are eliminated in the first round, in your opinion would Arena have any future as the coach of the national team?

Steven Goff: Regardless on how this unfolds, I don't think Arena will be back. Eight years as a national soccer team coach is mind-boggling. I think he would rather take on a new challenge, whether it's in coaching, management or elsewhere. (He has joked about becoming a sports writer -- say it ain't so!)

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Washington, D.C.: In my opinion the biggest problem for the US was confidence:

On the lack of confidence exhibited by some players : "You need to play with confidence to make plays happen. When you're in a reactionary mood, you're not going to be successful. We reacted on too many plays instead of anticipating or trying to take control of plays by being more aggressive."

There were a step slow the whole game, it looked like they were playing scared. We didn't pressure the ball and when they pressured us we couldn't string together the 3 or 4 passes you need to break the pressure. By the way what did Beasley say after the game?

Steven Goff: Beasley's comments are in today's game story.

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Arlington, Va.: Steve, it seemed as though some of Bruce Arena's postgame quotes were divisive, specifically when he called out Donovan and Beasley. Beasley didn't seem to take too kindly to Arena's criticism. Is this a potential problem for a team urgently in need of a self-esteem boost?

Steven Goff: It is a very tight, unified group -- unlike the self-destructive 1998 squad.

However, a devastating loss like Monday's certainly has the potential to chip away at team morale. We'll see how it affects things later this week and Saturday.

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Arlington, Va.: Did Bobby Convey shoot Eric Wynalda's dog or something? After the game yesterday, and again this morning, he went out of his way to sneer at the very idea of him being on the team, not to mention on the field. I thought Convey was one of the (very) few bright spots, making a couple of runs and crosses. He certainly was a more positive presence than DeMarcus Beasley, who gave away the ball with a poor touch practically every time it came to him.

I thought the formation might have thrown off both Convey and Beasley. Instead of taking the ball purposely to the touch line to look for the cross, it seemed that both were trying to angle in toward the goal on their runs, where the defenders just waited for them.

Steven Goff: Wynalda is a bizarre character. Opinioned, fun to listen to, but just bizarre.

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Reston, Va.: Steve,

I found it interesting that Arena called out Beasley for his play (which was not that good), yet chose to substitute around him. I would have thought that maybe Clint Dempsey could have put a different mark on the game, or even sliding Cherundolo forward into midfield.

Love the depth of coverage from you and your comrades.

Steven Goff: Thanks for the kind words, Reston (best town in No. Va.!)

Yeah, I thought Dempsey would get a look. He's a player who has the creativity and invention to make things happen for a team badly in need of skill and energy. Cherundolo was a huge disappointment.

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Washington, D.C.: Arena gone, hmm? Who would you say are the top three candidates to replace him?

Steven Goff: Klinsmann, Bora and Steve Sampson.

(I have no idea)

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Chester, Md.: How can we develop soccer better in this country when our own leagues do not resemble the rest of the world? For example, bad MLS teams can never be relegated and good USL teams never get promoted - it leaves us with mediocrity and no rooting interest except for a few select regions of the country.

Steven Goff: Relegation and promotion is not going to happen in our lifetime under MLS's business structure. And frankly, that's the least of the U.S. player development challenges.

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Oranje Cup: A Dutch friend has pointed out that teams with Dutch coaches are doing very well at the moment (Netherlands, Trinidad and Tobago, S Korea, Ivory Coast I believe). Could this become known as the Dutch Cup?

Steven Goff: Is that you, Thomas Rongen?!?

:-)

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Kinver, U.K.: Steven,

The impression that I had from BBC about the U.S. players is that the U.S. team is made up of those who play on less than the top teams in Europe. Teams like Reading, Leeds United, Fulham, not Chelsea, Manchester United, AC Milan etc.

If the U.S. does not have this top talent, how can we win the World Cup?

Steven Goff: They're not going to win the World Cup anytime soon.

Think about it: Spain, with perhaps the best league in the world, has never won it. The Dutch, with their talent and improvisational style, have never won it. England, the great inventors of the modern game, have won it once and it happened at home under controversy. Mexico (don't laugh) with all their history, has never gotten past the quarterfinals -- and that happened only when they were the host.

U.S. soccer has a long way to go, but compare where the American players are playing now (Fulham, Reading, Man City, etc) to 10 years ago. There's a massive difference. It takes time.

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Chesapeake Beach, Md.: Were the Czech's really 'that much better' than us or do you think the US team was just playing in sort of a drunken stupor? Could the much commented on 'wives and families' policy of Arena be to blame?

Steven Goff: The Czechs were vastly superior. The only thing that could have changed the match was Reyna's shot that hit the post. If that goes in, it probably becomes a pretty interesting game.

How could the wives and family policy have possibly affected the outcome of that game?? That's a big stretch.

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Herndon, Va.: Steven,

Is it mandatory that goalkeepers complain about the ball in every world cup? I seem to remember the exact same complaints about the ball in 2002 and 1998. ESPN even gave Tony Meola 5 minutes to come on air and complain about the ball. He compared it to kicking a gym class dodge ball. What do you think? This ball seems to play about the same as any other to me.

Steven Goff: See Bruce Arena's comments in The Post a few days ago.

The ball affects every team equally. GKs need to stop whining.

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Washington, D.C.: One of the things I noted in watching yesterday's game, as well as several others this weekend, is that the European facilities all have full-sized fields, compared to American stadiums where the field is usually considerably narrower. Obviously the difference is due to our stadiums being built primarily for football and theirs for soccer. But I'm curious, is there any sort of adjustment required for the US players when they head over there to play after playing so many of their qualifiers and exhibitions on the smaller North American field? (Yes, I know a fair number of the players compete for European pro teams, but they don't normally play as a national team on that size field.)

Steven Goff: Good question.

The national team always plays on an international regulation field -- it's the law of FIFA. The only adjustment, I guess, would be for MLS players who sometimes play on narrower fields in league play. But even MLS fields are getting better.

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Oakton, Va.: Steve,

How are the fans handling the fact they can now buy "real" beer instead of just Bud?

Steven Goff: The real bier can be purchased outside the stadiums, the junk beer inside the stadiums. So as you can imagine, the festivities in and around the cities and outside the ballparks are very entertaining.

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Arlington, Va.: Steven,

Throughout yesterday's match, the ESPN2 play-by-play guys talked about how Beasley was put on the wrong side of the pitch given that he's left-footed.

Why didn't Arena take the blame for this after the loss? Why did he put Beasley in such a position in the first place?

Steven Goff: Beasley can play both sides. In fact, he usually plays on the right for PSV Eindhoven. The purpose of putting him over there Monday was to combat the Czechs' powerful left wing presence and make space for Convey, who plays on the left flank only.

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Where are the big guys?: Steven:

Among the many problems the U.S. team faced yesterday was the fact that they were so much smaller than the Czechs, even excluding the two big strikers. The average American player was tiny compared to the average Czech. We clearly need to get bigger athletes onto the national team. I once had a chance to interview Bruce Arena on the radio and mentioned that one great thing about soccer is that it provides an opportunity for the smaller athlete. His answer made it clear he didn't necessarily agree and I can see why. We appear to be at a real physical disadvantage at the international level. Your thoughts?

Steven Goff: In many cases Monday, it was men against boys.

The Czechs are unusually big, but your point is well taken.

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Fairfax, Va.: Goff - love your stuff. The forwards seem obvious for the match up w/ Italy (McBride and Johnson). Donovan, Reyna, O'Brien, and Convey are likely to start in the MF. Pope, Gooch, Lewis are probable in the back. Who is the final starter?

Steven Goff: Thanks for your kind words.

I'd be shocked if Beasley and/or Mastroeni starts against Italy. Johnson seems to have earned a spot. Keller, Reyna, Donovan, Onyewu and probably McBride and Convey are safe. Pope's X-rays were negative and he's expected to practice Wednesday so I'm sure he'll start again. Beyond that, it's anyone's guess.

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Washington, D.C.: How is the international media reacting to the U.S. game? Are they taking a "we told you so" attitude?

Steven Goff: No. In fact, the German and British reporters I spoke to were quite shocked at the result.

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Washington, D.C.: Hi Steven,

First off, thank you and all your colleagues for some great WC coverage, if only I could say the same of ABC/ESPN...

Anyway, I read about The Bruce's press conference, esp. his bashing of Beasley and Landon and his desire to rework the formation. I may be committing heresy here, but I think the problem lays with Captain America. The main advantages that the United States has over others in the group is youth, speed and endurance. By continually holding the ball and slowing the game down, Reyna is forcing his teammates to match technique against much more gifted players. Now, I know that Arena is not considering taking out Claudio, but could you see him in a more defensive midfield role, perhaps in place of Mastroenni, leaving a more offensive player (Landon, Dempsey, DMB) in the central mid position?

Steven Goff: I haven't seen it myself, of course, but I've heard bad things about the ABC/ESPN coverage. A lot of baffling personnel decisions there.

Reyna is the least of the U.S. problems. There were several players who were a lot worse.

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WC music for, Maine: Any idea what music we hear at the end of each game? Not sure if it's being broadcast in the stadium or if ESPN/ABC is adding it in. After the first game, I thought maybe it was a German anthem, but it's actually the same music every game. It's very familiar and I can't put my finger on it. Help - anyone?

Steven Goff: FIFA provides their own official music in the stadiums. Some of it is quite catchy. Some of it is quite awful.

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Herndon, Va.: Steven,

Are there any positives that the United States can take from their game against the Czech's?

Steven Goff: Positives? Positives?? 3-0, and you want positives?

Well, okay.

Reyna played with a lot of heart, Convey took some initiative, Onyewu was generally good in the air, Johnson provided a lift in the second half. That's about it.

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Washington, D.C.: Why isn't soccer talent developed in the United States at the same clip as in Europe? We have the population, we have the money and we have millions of kids playing the game. Yet, as was underscored in yesterday's loss, we lack true international quality. What is wrong?

Steven Goff: It takes decades to build a world-class soccer program. The United States has made notable strides the last 15 years.

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Naked torsos: What is the custom with exchanging jerseys after a game? Is it expected of all, is it personal preference of the players? I don't know what the "rules" are, and it seems random in some cases but like a clear obligation is being fulfilled in other cases.

Steven Goff: It's up to the players whether to exchange jerseys. The custom took off in the early '70s and has become an unofficial tradition worldwide. If you want to know more, I wrote a long story about this topic about two years ago. I'm sure a Google search or washingtonpost.com search will help you.

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Alexandria, Va: Just wanted to point out that while the US did not play up to its full potential, the Czech team certainly seems like the team to beat in the World Cup. Their passing, tackling and three goals were beautifully executed. Based on how they played Saturday, I think that they certainly would have given England (whose only point came from the opposing team) a run for their money.

Steven Goff: The Czechs looked great and were so fun to watch. They could go a long way in this tournament. Those injuries to Baros and Koller, however, could have a significant impact.

Arsenal fans must be loving the fact that Rosicky is coming to north London this season.

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Washington, D.C.: Bennie Olson off the bench on Saturday to net two and lead us to a shocking 3-2 upset of Italy!!! Honestly, I think we can still do it, and there's nothing wrong with Donovan's message: Believe!

In the meantime, what's Brazil going to look like today? I'd love to see some early magic from Ronaldinho, Robinho, Kaka, etc., but I fear the may come out a little flat against a physical Croatian side. Any thoughts on Brazil's opening?

Steven Goff: Everyone here in Germany, it seems, is excited to see the Brazilians' debut. Could be quite a show!

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Philadelphia, Pa.: I want to buy a U.S. team jersey, but I'm interested in the long term. Whose name should I get on it if I want to be able to wear it in 2010?

Steven Goff: How about Dempsey, Howard, Rolfe or, dare I say it, Eskandarian and Adu?!

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Arlington, Va.: The other thing that works against us developing a top national team program is the fact that the competition for top athletes is so great. Basketball, gridiron football, and other sports to an extent attract the best athletes. In other countries soccer is king so the best athletes gravitate there.

Steven Goff: Yup.

But that is changing. Look at Oguchi Onyewu, who looks like he should be playing American football.

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Herndon, Va.: Steve,

Do you have a team in the Washington Post World Cup fantasy game? If so, how is your team doing?

I'm in negative digits since I picked the U.S. defense (doh!!!).

Steven Goff: I'm with Wilbon on this one.

Fantasy leagues should be banned!

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New York, N.Y.: Cherundolo was a huge disappointment? Hey, he was our our only defender who didn't actually get BEATEN FOR A GOAL. Unlike, say, Onyewu, who was beaten ALL THREE TIMES. Yes, Lewis might have pushed up slightly more effectively. But he and Convey left their side wide open for the run that led to Koller's goal. So I have to disagree with you.

Steven Goff: Cherundolo failed to cross the ball, passed poorly and seemed incredibly tentative.

Pope was beaten on the first goal. Onyewu's misguided clearing header led to the second goal, but that was an absolute bomb by Rosicky.

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Burke, Va.: Hey Steve,

The Ghana/Italy first half (all I saw) was a wild and wolly affair - wide open. The Ghana keeper seemed a bit reckless to me, coming off his line on almost every ball nearby. But I must say the Ghanians played with passion and determination - something sorely lacking by the US MNT. I mentioned to my wife while the US MNT walked out of the tunnel with the little kiddies by their sides how nervous and pensive they looked. Never did shake that look. I guess I am surprised by that giving the experience of a lot of the players. Isn't that something the coaches should have tried to counter?

Steven Goff: I'm not going to answer the question, but wanted to post your insightful comments. Well said...

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Washington, D.C.: Assuming Arena leaves the national team as you say, and assuming he doesn't get an offer in the Premiership, where do you think he winds up? Would he have a shot at a lower English division position? Would that interest him? If he comes back to MLS, would he consider someone other than DC United?

Thanks for the great coverage.

Steven Goff: An American coach with no experience coaching in the English leagues is going to have a hard time getting an offer there. Same goes for Germany. MLS is an option, if Arena wants to do that again. Some other things could come up.

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College Park, Md.: This one has to be chalked up to Arena's arrogance. The strengths of this squad is the depth and the confidence to push and run at teams with incredible pace. Both were lost at tip off with Arena's fatally predictable and uncoordinated tactics and defensive holes against a world class midfield...then of course there was using three of the fastest players in the tournament out of comfort with Landon in a spot were runs come one in every blue moon, Beasley lost in space on the right (narrowing the field by cutting left every chance he gets) and Eddie Johnson a few seats down from Bruce himself. Apparently he drank the Kool-Aid from 2002, too bad the Czechs did their homework and knew his own players better than he did.

Steven Goff: Some thoughts to share...

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Spotsylvania, Va.: Since you've covered several Cups before (I think), how would you rate this one against the others, particularly Germany as opposed to France?

Steven Goff: So far, so good. I loved being in France in '98 and, despite the geographical challenges, Korea/Japan was exciting.

By the time of the final on July 9, however, this tournament will probably be the best in terms of quality of play, passion, stadiums, energy, etc.

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Fairfax, Va.: "But he and Convey left their side wide open for the run that led to Koller's goal."

To be fair to both, that was purely on Keller. He was pushing up the team and then cleared the ball directly to the Czechs. No chance for either US player to get back.

Steven Goff: I assume you are quoting from a reader's posting.

Yes, Arena put much of the blame on Keller and Keller acknowledged that he might've made a poor decision.

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London, U.K.: Funny quote from the BBC coverage of the France-Switzerland game:

"If you like passing, you'll like this game. If you don't like passing that doesn't really go anywhere, you might get a bit bored with this game." Former England boss Graham Taylor on BBC Five Live

Steven Goff: Good stuff!

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Washington, D.C.: Has Arena taken the program as far as he can? Don't we now need a European coach who will reward aggressive play and punish poor finishing and lack of creativity?

Steven Goff: Perhaps.

Unlike after the 1998 Cup, there is no obvious American candidate to take over.

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Clearwater, Fl.: I'm a huge Keller fan, but I'm wondering if he could have done more. I'm a little disappointed in his play, but still have a lot of faith in him.

Steven Goff: He had no chance on the first goal, no chance on the second goal and not much chance on the third.

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Normal, Ill.: How bad will this result affect people's opinions of U.S. soccer in Europe? Will it erase any credit earned by the 2002 quarterfinal run?

Steven Goff: It's a bad thing, at the moment.

Let's see how things unfold on Saturday.

If the Americans lose all three games, their international credibility will certainly take a hit.

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washingtonpost.com: World Cup 2006 Coverage

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Washington, D.C.: Didn't see the Arena press conference, but your report on it led me to believe that Bruce might have been sarcastic in taking blame for the loss, considering all the other things he cited as the problem. Is that true? Because if it is, he is so far in De-Nial that we might as well be playing in Egypt 2006. He was clearly out-coached by Bruckner in every aspect of the game, from tactics to game preparation. My question: How much do you think the listless Stateside friendlies and a closed door (almost CIA/NSA in its secrecy) scrimmage against Angola had in getting this team so NOT ready to play? Mexico played a killer friendly in hostile territory against a good team. My hunch is we needed to play a Romania (who beat the Czechs) in Bucharest or a Slovakia (who made it to the playoff) in Bratislava to get up to speed.

Steven Goff: Certainly a legitimate argument.

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Port Republic, Md.: Steve - I think that Landon is the U.S.'s most influential player is precisely the big problem. He may be a nice guy and a model citizen, but if this was any other average-to-decent soccer country, he would be just another player who flopped in a top-level league, and not once, but twice.

When will the fascination with Adu end? He is not exactly ripping it up in the MLS, and you do not have to look very far to find examples of teenage sensations being successful at the highest levels, i.e. Messi, Fabregas, Rooney a few years back.

Steven Goff: So what do you suggest? Force Donovan against his will to play in Europe? He had a very quiet and disappointing performance against the Czechs; let's see how he reacts Saturday. Regardless, there's no one in American soccer at the moment who can do the things he does. Thus, he needs to be on the field.

As for Adu, he is a fascination because of his age, his personality and his potential. Nike, MLS and some in the media took it from there.

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Washington, D.C.: Steve,

I would love to see an African team make it past the first round. What are their chances?

Steven Goff: Ivory Coast is very entertaining and very good. Problem is, they are in a very difficult group.

I can't imagine Togo, Angola, Ghana or Tunisia advancing, but who knows...

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Baltimore, Md.: I'm sure no one on the US MNT is looking beyond Italy, but I'm curious about next year's Confederations Cup. I believe we will be there as the top CONCACAF team, correct? Where is it being played?

Steven Goff: Confederations Cup? Next year? Yawn.

I can't look past next week.

Check FIFA.com for details.

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Silver Spring, Md.: One of the most surprising things to me about yesterday's debacle was the US team's tentativeness, not to say timidity, on offense. Virtually every pass was so slow and telegraphed that after the first Czech goal, we played right into the Czech's game plan.

In every sport with a flowing style of play -- soccer, hockey, basketball -- success depends on team chemistry, on knowing what your teammates are going to do and where they'll be before it happens. In a team that is so talented and supposedly so tight, how much of the responsibility for the complete lack of chemistry yesterday rests on Bruce Arena's refusal to name the starting squad until the day of the match?

Steven Goff: Arena did not wait until the day of the game to name his starting lineup. He just didn't tell anyone in the public and media until the day of the game.

The players say they typically find out two or three days in advance.

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Nowhere near a TV, Va. : How are LeBleus looking? I noticed it's 0-0 at halftime...

Steven Goff: I've been taking quick glances at the TV. Looked like a possible handball in the box on the Swiss.

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Steven Goff: I've run out of time.

Apologies for not answering all your questions.

Feel free to reach me anytime at goffs@washpost.com

Enjoy the Cup!

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