USA’s Clint Dempsey (R) celebrates after scoring against Ecuador during their Copa America Centenario football tournament quarterfinal match, in Seattle, Washington, United States, on June 16, 2016. / AFP / OMAR TORRES/AFP/Getty Images)
Kyle Bonn
FOR THE FIRST TIME UNDER JURGEN KLINSMANN, US FANS ARE GENUINELY HAVING FUN
Winning cures all ailments, but one specific scourge has blighted USMNT viewers since the beginning of the Jurgen Klinsmann reign. It’s an ugly disease, one that saps fans of their dignity, one that strips them of their humanity in a cruel and barbaric manner. It causes fans to worry, scream, and seethe in uncontrollable rage.
But this unnamed plague has a cure, and here in the Copa America Centenario, Jurgen Klinsmann and the USMNT have found the cure, distributing it throughout the nation with every passing performance.
That antidote is fun.
For the first time under the Jurgen Klinsmann reign, not only have the United States found a sustained success it has craved for the last six years, but also a sense of pure, unfiltered enjoyment for those who take part. Yes, winning is the biggest contributor to that. But for the first time in Klinsmann’s tenure, he’s found a lineup that’s worked, stuck with it, and trusted his players to come through. This allows fans to focus on enjoying the performance of the players rather than worrying whether they’ve been put in the best position to succeed.
The sense of true fun is generated by a knowledge that the players have been given genuine trust from their manager. That trust is enormous, something we haven’t seen often from the German. The last time fans felt this was against Portugal in the World Cup, one of the best performances for the US under Klinsmann coming into this Copa America, and that didn’t last long. Even then, Michael Bradley was deployed in his more advanced role, a position many believe hampered the US captain’s ability to fully contribute to the team.
Now, Bradley is moved back to his deeper, engine-like duty, where he and Jones have the freedom to advance forward in specs, but are also able to feed off each other off the ball. Players like Clint Dempsey, Alejandro Bedoya, and Geoff Cameron – all who have been favorite targets of the Klinsmann Lineup Randomizer 3000 – have settled into defined roles and are excelling at them. The only players currently being deployed truly out of position are Bobby Wood and Fabian Johnson, and not only are both moves understandable based on necessity, but both have played surprisingly well in their new spheres of responsibility.
With the team clicking as a single unit, able to perform with a sense of consistency born out of managerial trust, the USMNT not only defeated Ecuador – the 13th-ranked country according to FIFA, 18 spots higher than the United States – but they deserved the victory. The team out-played Ecuador in every facet of the game, and even down the stretch when Gustavo Quinteros and Walter Ayovi’s side poured on the pressure, the result felt just. No longer was the United States absorbing pressure for 90 minutes against a better team, clinging to a lead or hoping for a goal against the run of play. This time around, the US dictated the pace, controlled the flow, created and finished chances.
Argentina or Venezuela (probably Argentina) are up next, and the US’s run in the Copa America could very well come to a close. Klinsmann will be forced to tinker again due to suspensions. But with the manager trusting his squad to play its part, fans finally can feel a sense of trust in the manager to play his. The sample size is still small, but given the uneasiness surrounding the team coming into the summer, the enormous growth shown in this tournament has completely rewritten the script as the 2018 World Cup grows nearer and CONCACAF qualification ramps up.
No matter what happens in the Copa America semifinals, US fans are freed of their shackles. It’s a liberating feeling trusting the manager will do his part, and thus the fans can enjoy watching the players do theirs.
Kyle Bonn has written frequently for The Yanks Are Coming. His work has been featured on a variety of websites, including NBC Sports. Follow him on Twitter @the_bonnfire.