Arena: German game a mistake

"We've worked real hard to build our team to where it is today, and to not prepare properly to play a game of that magnitude is a mistake, and I accept the full responsibility for that," US coach Bruce Arena said. "If I felt that it wasn't the right time for us to play that game, I should have been a little bit strong in saying this is not the right time to play."

That is what Bruce Arena said today about last night's game.

To Arena's defense, he did not know that so many players would be injured, nor did he know that this would suddenly become a do or die outing for the Germans.

If Germany had done better against Italy, I think they would have held off on calling so many of their starters, but what is done is done.

Now the Bruce must regroup his team and make sure this does not kill any confidence they were building.

Arena also discussed the latest injury to US captain Claudio Reyna.

"I think Claudio is fairly fit right now," Arena said. "Getting over the broken ankle was big. His ankle now is sound, so that's a positive. I think the shoulder separation is a temporary setback."

If Reyna is not healthy for the cup, the US will have a hard time maintaining some sort of control of the midfield. They did better then I thought they would last night, but even that sort of performance will not be enough against their group mates.