Finally Time.
Jon Levy
— Natal, Brazil
Ladies and gentlemen, damas y caballeros, senhoras e senhores, welcome to the World Cup. Welcome to Brazil. Welcome to the long awaited dreaded Group of Death. The USA/Ghana match is finally here.
This match is an opportunity for revenge and retribution against the team that eliminated the Yanks from the last two World Cups, but, much more importantly, this match is an opportunity to pick up three crucial points.
And since this is the USMNT’s most important match in four years, you know The Yanks are Coming isn’t pulling punches, and you know you’re gonna get a little New Jack City. In the words of Nino Brown, “let’s kick the ballistics here.”:
World Cup openers are special, even more so when you face a team that’s bounced you from three international competitions (the US U-20’s were “Ghana-d” from the 2013 Youth World Cup 4-1). World Cup openers are also historically crucial to the United States, who have never reached the knockout stage without at least garnering a point in their opening match. They are even more crucial when they involve stopping the nightmares at source, and it’s impossible to characterize Monday night’s date with the Black Stars as anything other than an opportune encounter with a nightmare. Finally, the match is validation time for Jurgen Klinsmann, as TYAC alumnus Zack Goldman wrote for the UK Metro. Klinsmann has spent three years in charge trying to reinvent itself, with promises to find a soccer that suits the diverse, multicultural United States and while whether he has gained ground in that battle is up for debate, the Ghana match will serve as the measuring stick, historically, of whether Klinsmann has truly moved the US forward.
And the US will do it, or won’t, without the services of Landon Donovan, its greatest field player whose omission is perhaps the largest signal of Klinsmann’s fist print on this side.
With Donovan at home, the US will do it, or won’t, with Brad Davis and Chris Wondolowski, seasoned MLS vets who have never played on a stage remotely this large but who the manager rates above Landon Donovan at this point in time and who have earned Klinsmann’s trust with timely set piece deliveries and poached goals, albeit against the likes of South Korea “B” teams and Belize.
The US will do it, or won’t, with Julian Green, the German-American Bayern Munich II youth starlet recruited late and brought in for one thirty minute audition before making the team. Joining him will be more German-Americans; Timothy Chandler the only controversial one- whose cycle was dreamed of and in-favor to out-of-favor and disinterested to in-favor again and on the team.
The US will do it. Or it won’t. But after nearly four years, a familiar opponent will present itself in Natal Monday night. In Brazil, home of soccer’s soul. In a World Cup.
It’s here.
Let’s do the usuals:
Four letter word.
Series: Ghana lead 2-0. Both at World Cups. Both in ‘Bergs/Burgs. Both heartbreaking.
Nuremberg, 2006. Needing a win to escape the group, Ghana set the tone through Claudio Reyna’s knee buckle and Haminu Dramani’s blast past Kasey Keller. Clint Dempsey (offside?) would level after a splendid DaMarcus Beasley run and ball, but the joy was short-lived, silenced by a questionable penalty on Oguchi Onyewu before the half and a confident, quiet finish by Steven Appiah restored the lead. Brian McBride dove and hit a post later, but the US would not score again. Ranked as high as fifth in the FIFA rankings before the tournament, the US exited “The Group of Death” with a point and a whimper. Bruce Arena was gone shortly thereafter.
Rustenburg, 2010. Knock-out stage. The US had just finished winning their first World Cup group, besting England, Slovenia and Algeria on the backs of you-know-who (Landon Donovan). Ian Darke hadn’t officially earned the title of “voice of the USMNT for life,” but he was already that and American soccer broke You Tube, Twitter, and every other social media platform in the days leading up to the match. Ghana were without Michael Essien, perhaps the defining player of the decade in Ghana and the US had Landon Donovan in his prime.
“We should have won that game,” Landon Donovan would tell David Letterman and American in the aftermath.
Didn’t.
Again, Ghana scored first, through Kevin Prince-Boateng after Ricardo Clark’s error. Clark the scapegoat. Howard, the fine American goalkeeper, beat near post. The US fought hard and leveled, a Landon Donovan penalty after so much hard work– only to have it undone in extra time but Jay DeMerit’s misstep on a rather innocuous long ball and Carlos Bocanegra racing late to cover a steamrolling Asamoah Gyan. The US vanquished by the Black Stars again.
Except with Rain…
The Weather: High 70’s at kick and rainy. Natal is sunny ninety-percent of the year, according to the Brazilian tourism website. And you almost always see 95 percent sunshine in winter months (June). So of course- the US gets RAIN. The good news, a lower Fabian Johnson Misery Index, say around 3, unless he hates rain.
One other thought on the weather- maybe just the TYAC “American football and the SEC” background here– but a wet field can neutralize a speed advantage. Ghana are faster than the US (they are faster than just about everyone) and in a match where the US may lack width down the flanks- anything to slow the Black Stars down and help the US cover is worth noting.
What will we see out of Ghana?
There’s a damn good reason that Ghana’s been the most successful African team in the past two World Cups, and that’s down to patience and organization. It’s never been the Asamoah Gyan’s or André Ayew’s of this team that’ve separated the Black Stars from their less successful neighbors on the grandest stage. After all, who the hell is Asamoah Gyan in the face of guys like Didier Drogba or Samuel Eto’o anyway?
But those gifted African stars of the game didn’t have Ghana’s personnel or their system behind them, and it’s that organized system paired with responsible defending that’s made Ghana special. The Sully Muntari’s, Michael Essien’s and John Mensah’s (and now Jonathan Mensah’s) of the team are the reason they’re the most universally respected, if not the most feared, team in Africa. It hurts me to admit this, but Ghana is to Africa what Uruguay is to South America. Yes, each team has very important flair players and goal scorers that everyone wants to focus on (don’t worry, the Super Ayew Bros. will emerge from an 8-bit green pipe later in this piece), but it’s the steadfast defending and responsible distribution of the back seven or eight field players that allows the frequent positive results and occasional brilliance up front to happen. This very Italian approach to the game isn’t exactly the norm in South America or Africa.
But it’s not actually an Italian influence that’s imbued Ghana with this style over the course of recent history, rather a Serbian one. Ghana’s coach during their first trip to the World Cup in 2006? Serbian Ratomir Dujković (not just an NBA three-point specialist anymore, right?). Ghana’s coach for their second trip to the World Cup in 2010? Serbian Milovan Rajevac. Ghana’s manager for this World Cup? Ghanaian James Kwesi “Akwasi” Appiah. But don’t get all excited and declare the curse broken just yet. Appiah was Rajevac’s assistant for a long time, and while he aspires to a more attacking style, the team still prioritizes the organization aspect that’s been drilled for so long. That’s how you play an experimental lineup in a friendly match against the Netherlands and still only lose one-nil. That’s also how Ghana can open up a can on any opponent that loses possession and isn’t immediately able to track back with all their might. Bob Bradley’s Egypt team found that out a couple months before South Korea learned their lesson, but at much greater cost.
Kwesi Appiah addresses the media in Miami Monday evening.
Don’t think that approach is part and parcel what makes Ghana tremendous, especially when they garner the ball in the midfield zones and can break? That’s fine.
Here’s what Kwesi Appiah told TYAC when we asked him how his team was so ruthless in transition following their friendly last week against South Korea, where they took the only two distribution mistakes Korea made in the first half and cashed them both in for goals:
“We don’t emphasize the first ball. It’s the second ball. If one team is attacking, you need to know what way their attacks tend to go. Our players will feign pressure on the first ball sometimes, because they know where the second ball is going to go. It’s that ball where we seek to disrupt. And because we do things that way, our attacking players know that they can cheat forward, because once we get the ball, we’re all moving to goal.”
Feign pressure on the first ball to rush the second. Create havoc and “go”. This can cause a lot of learning moments.
In the Group of Death, Jurgen Klinsmann can ill afford to have too many learning moments against this dangerous Ghana side.
For their part, Ghana are respecting the US too. After the Korea match, Appiah said what you’d expect a coach to say, that “The United States are a very good team, especially if you look at the way they won their last three games. They’re a very good side. It’s not going to be easy, and it never is when you play the U.S. Tactically, they are a bit different now, but the fundamentals, that they are difficult to break down, has not changed.”
Save the DeMerit slip, Ghana haven’t really broken down the Americans in 210 World Cup minutes. Every goal was based on a moment of defensive or transitional failure. Still, the Black Stars whopping +15 goal differential in African qualifiers, including the manner in which they thrashed a well-organized Egypt under Bob Bradley, should leave you fearful of Ghana’s ability to score goals in build-up play.
To do so, they’ve typically played a 4-4-2 under Kwesi Appiah, the better to showcase the skills of Asamoah Gyan, who has flourished with a strike partner– usually, Majeed Waris, but possibly, after an injury Waris suffered last Monday against South Korea, Jordan Ayew. Ayew, who was a fringe player prior to squad selection, responded the way you’d expect him to with a match vs. the United States looming– by scoring a hat trick. Of course.
Key without Waris?
Interestingly, with Kevin Prince-Boateng back from a four year “Donovan-attical” and again playing with Ghana, Appiah opted to play closer to a 4-3-3 for the first 45 minutes against South Korea, with KPB advanced next to Waris and then Ayew and Gyan “tip of the spear”. Once the lead was 2-0, however, Ghana, who statistically are the best team in the World Cup field at protecting a lead, fell back to 4-4-2 and then what looked more functionally like the 4-5-1 variant utilized by Appiah’s predecessor, with Gyan the lone top men until Mubarek replaced him (and reprised that role) with Jordan Ayew tucked behind both for the game’s final 20 minutes.
Nonetheless, Ghana will try to break you down through the middle, where the aging Muntari and Essien still patrol and distribute), and by rushing you when they force turnovers in break. As the outstanding TSG preview breaks down in deeper detail- Ghana are marvelous and ruthless in transition. The central rule, above all, is to utilize Gyan as both battering ram and receiver, capable of quickly dishing to runners who come fast and hard after turnovers. With Boateng slotted behind Gyan, as he was vs. Korea, the Ghanians simply add an extra man capable of keeping possession in forward places.
Boateng, for all his prodigous talent, looked a step behind the pace and disjointed with his teammates, particularly trying to distribute to Andre Ayew on the wide right flank, where a pair of early turnovers against South Korea sent Son Hueng-Min, Korea’s lightning fast wide player who is a luxury the US don’t have, off to the races for great chances.
Defensively, Ghana are two-thirds Hobbesian: nasty and brutish– but they aren’t “short.” It starts with the unflappable Essien, who anchors the center with the underrated Mohammed Rabiu, a terror Monday when Han Kook Young or anyone in the Korean center attempted to go through the middle, sitting behind him. Rabiu, 24, plies his trade in Russia and is one of the newer faces for Ghana, but Appiah characterized his play as “instrumental defensively” during Ghana’s qualification.
The backline is less frightening- if you can get there. The centerbacks are Jonathan Mensah and John Boye.
US fans will know Mensah, who committed the reckless takedown of Clint Dempsey in 2010 and who Dempsey worked over relatively well throughout that match. He’s surrendered three other penalties in a Black Stars shirt since, often because he’s trapped in indecision over when, or if, to engage a runner from the channels. Mensah is smart with his positioning, but the US shouldn’t be overwhelmed by him.
John Boye is the other center back– one who looked poor against Korea in the first half in Miami, and a player who lacks Mensah’s defensive quality. The Ghana fullbacks are Harrison Afful, another player who can be caught out of position and despite having the pace to recover takes poor angles from time to time in his challenges, and Juventus’ Kwadwo Asamoah, who is Ghana’s most world class player and who is playing a position, left back, that he doesn’t play in Italy.
Risky to play your best player at a position he’s not comfortable?
Asamoah is talented enough to handle the charge– and the thinking, on Appiah’s part, is probably that he’ll help Ghana with attacking diversity from width when he gets forward. There’s some merit to that thinking. Plus, in a press conference where Appiah also stated Ghana’s goal was “to win the World Cup,” the manager praised Asamoah’s ability to play anywhere on the field:
“Kwadwo’s a fantastic player. Any position he does well. I did put him at the left back with specific instructions, he’s very very tactical.”
BUT… it’s one thing to say it and even to do it against a Korean side that is one of the World Cup’s weakest. It’s another to do it at a World Cup against a US midfield that has smart players like Michael Bradley, ever versatile Jermaine Jones and Graham Zusi. And the truth of the matter is that Asamoah looked uncomfortable at left back in spells in both warm-up matches. In one horrifying sequence for Black Stars fans, he was blown by by Ki Sueng Yung on the dribble, then attempted to recover when the ball moved to the endline, only to overrun it and shank his clearance. The net result? A save by Dauda that kept the game 2-0 early in the second half, but produced a corner where again Dauda had to bail him out.
I think it’s a mistake to play Asamoah out there. Let’s see if the US can catch him in an uncomfortable moment.
Finally, there’s the matter of the goalkeeper, because they absolutely matter in World Cups.
Dauda, who plays for Orlando Pirates in South Africa, may be one of the worst in the field. Against both Holland and Korea, he took poor angles on multiple occasions and left his line when it wasn’t necessary on others. He’s athletic, but not frighteningly so, and his clearances and free kicks often appear aimless- if they stay in bounds- two such kicks against Korea stayed in his half, entered the stands and resulted in Korea throw-ins from dangerous positions. Dauda may make Ghana’s stated goal: “to win the World Cup”, merely mathematically possible.
On a wet evening in Natal, his handles and choices may cost the Black Stars dearly.
It’s possible, of course, that Appiah could buck his preferences over the last couple of years and go with Adam Kwarasey, who had a pleasant season in Norway and is a bit cleaner in his distributions than Dauda- but even if this is the case, the US are still facing one of the less-skilled keepers in the field, and will likely do so on a soaking wet field.
Eyes and hearts fixed on Jermaine Monday night.
What to watch for from the Yanks:
As you might have heard during the USMNT/Nigeria broadcast, or from friends, or on a podcast, people are VERY excited by the way the Yanks played in the last match of the Send-Off Series. And there’s good reason for this. Jurgen played two defensive midfielders with a bit of passing nous behind Michael Bradley, who hung back further than Clint Dempsey does while in that position, and the team created chances while ceding very little to Nigeria for most of the match. DaMarcus Beasley and Fabian Johnson looked like the rightful starting full backs, and “winger” Clint Dempsey embraced a free role, trotting all over the field and creating offense wherever he roamed. Throw in a Jozy Altidore brace and people are whispering that we’re gonna get out of our insane World Cup group. I dig the whole-team confidence boost going into match number one, and I dig the optimism amongst the fanbase. I’m feeling positive too, but I’m going to rain on this parade just a little bit.
Let’s not play the “African team equals African team” game with Nigeria and Ghana, not for a second. Nigeria wasn’t just dominated by the US, they were also sliced open alarmingly by Scotland. Scotland doesn’t slice anybody open. Not in this century.
My point: this Nigeria team, that was going to be decent at best in the World Cup, is hitting its worst run of form in the run up to the tournament. And while that’s helped provide a nice boost for a Yanks squad that was already on the cusp of rediscovering its best form, it’s not exactly real life when you look at the teams ahead for the US.
The bright side of this, of course, is that separate personnel from systems and Ghana and Nigeria are similar. So the US has an idea, systematically, what to expect. As Colin Udoh of ESPN told TYAC:
“Actually, the teams are not so different. In fact, you’d be hard pressed to find a more similar team to Ghana than Nigeria,” Udoh wrote.
This makes how the Americans choose to approach Ghana (in terms of how high they sit) pretty important. This is the game in the Group of Death where the US can win possession. How?
Clint Dempsey was great against Ghana in 2010. Can he do it again?
The Yanks will try to possess the ball like they did against Nigeria, but Ghana’s midfielders will be much more likely to joust for possession up the field than the Super Eagles’ seemingly uninterested lot. The American defensive midfielders will look to once again shield a back four that seems to be in the process of galvanizing, but Ghana’s attacking players (with due respect to Udoh’s claims about whose forwards are better) will provide a sterner test than Victor Moses with no/little support.
And where Deuce Dempsey and his gang seemed to leisurely stroll into the attacking third against Nigeria with numbers, time, and space, the US will have to move the ball quicker and with even more precision to create good scoring chances in Natal against the Black Stars. See the Appiah quote about the second ball pressure above.
For this last concern, allow me to recommend Graham Zusi’s sharp mind and cultured feet in the stead of Ale-Alejandro Bedoya’s raw speed that’s not going to blow any of the Ghanaian players away.
If the US drop a bit deeper, they’ll likely short-circuit what Ghana want to do through the center. But they’ll have to be responsible in distributions, because the turnovers (and flooded attacks thereafter) will happen in their own half. If the US come out higher, they might force Ghana to go over the top- but the onus will be the backline of Besler and Cameron, the former who had shaky moments in the Send-Off Series, to not make the DeMerit mistake. And higher up means less back if the US turn it over. So there are dangers each way.
Regardless, expect the US (with Zusi, not Bedoya), to play the lineup you saw in Jacksonville. This is partly because Ghana to an extent lack the prowess from wider areas to exploit the 4-3-1-2 in build-up play and partly because the formation allows Jermaine Jones to be the versatile, “not tied down by the individual limitations of the pure 6” player he is. Jones wants to roam some, and so long as he’s doing this by referencing his teammates positions and the available space, that’s a good thing. And it is one that could displace the somewhat formulaic notion of second-ball pressure we see from Ghana defensively.
Beyond, Ghana’s players have a cultural desire to play inside. This means the US might get 3 v. 2 battles, with sharp distributions, from width and cutting inside. The cultural part comes from the fields they grow up playing on– they are narrow and short– and the old habits are tough to break. They tend to drift central. This isn’t really an over-exaggeration. It’s what Manchester United scout Tom Vernon calls “a very real phenomenon.” So the US can exploit this by sending late runners through the channels, or by working the ball quickly to Clint Dempsey when Ghana crowds certain zones.
But the most important player for the US in this match…
Michael’s tournament.
US Player to Watch: Michael Bradley
American central midfielder Michael Bradley, or MB 90, as we so affectionately call him here at The Yanks Are Coming, is probably the most important player to this team’s whole World Cup campaign, and he’s certainly the player to watch in this match. Whether he plays attacking midfield or starts in his more familiar dead-center role, Michael Bradley is the key to the USMNT out-possessing and out-chancing Ghana. Yes, I know one of those things naturally feeds into the other. Klinsmann knows it too. He lives it, breathes it, and he manifests it onto the pitch in the form of his predecessor’s son. That storyline’s gonna play really well in the movie.
Want to play a not-so-fun game that will rob you of any enjoyment while watching USA/Ghana match? Count the number of times each US player possesses the ball. It could just be for one touch, or it could be for a mazy run through the defense. Either way, count it as one possession.
If Michael Bradley doesn’t have more possessions than any other American player we’re in serious trouble. And don’t even make the argument that if he’s playing attacking midfield this theory won’t hold. If he’s so far up the pitch that the main burden of distribution falls on another player then we’re still likely in serious trouble.
But I don’t think we’ll be in serious trouble, I think we’ll play the game through MB 90, who will in turn boss the match with his perfect mix of responsible and forward-thinking passes. Oh and don’t count him out for a howitzer from outside the box, he’s in-form, and he’s due for one of those trademark strikes.
Ghanaian Player to Watch: André Ayew
I know I referenced the Super Ayew Bros. earlier in the preview, so you might have had a feeling either Jordan or André was going to pop up in this section. The only real question: who’s Mario and who’s Luigi? Well despite Jordan’s (Luigi’s) hat trick against South Korea just a few days ago, big brother André is still Mario, the more super of the brothers, and the more likely to throw a massive plumber’s wrench into the Yanks’ World Cup plans.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMUhQEXCYSw
André made plays from deep within Ghana’s midfield in 2010; he was the guy who hit the lob pass to Asamoah Gyan in extra time that produced the game winning goal. Now, in a slightly different system, André Ayew has a vastly different role under Kwesi Appiah. He’s a true wing forward, as he often is at his club Marseille. You know Jurgen Klinsmann’s jealous; he’d trade half the American player pool for a true wing forward.
We mentioned how Ghana can lack the prowess from width. This is backed up by how they’ve produced goals this cycle, and we tried to show how, at least defensively, it is cultural. Ayew can buck the trend.
Let’s hope we see André tracking back to receive the ball a lot in Natal, because if he’s allowed to receive the ball up the field in space he can make a lot of things happen. That could mean linking up with more central figures like Asamoah Gyan, Kevin-Prince Boateng, or even his brother Jordan (Luigi) who also plays for Marseille. Perhaps even worse, it could mean pulling a dummy move on the fullback, cutting in on Timmy and our center halves, and really asking the relatively new American back line to prove itself. Nightmarish stuff really. Let’s bypass this guy and warp to world “Ronaldo,” then we’ll have our requisite test of the defense.
Prediction: USA 3 – 2 Ghana
Surprise! It’s the USA/Ghana match no one expects! Wild swings in momentum, scintillating attacking play, and heart-stopping moments on every set piece. Coaches can scheme for efficiency and responsibility for months on end, but styles make fights, and sometimes an improbable shootout proves inevitable. Watch for a world-class goal from Dempsey, and a whole tournament’s worth of unforgettable moments packed into one match. Welcome to the World Cup.
Enjoy the match, and Go USA!
Jon Levy is Co-Founder of the Yanks Are Coming. He can be reached at jon.f.levy@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter at @TYAC_Jon. Neil W. Blackmon also contributed to this preview. Follow him on Twitter at @nwb_usmnt.