2007 Copa America - USA worst team in tournament

Colombia 1-0 USA
The US men slumped their way out of Copa America tonight with a disappointing 1-0 defeat at the hands of Colombia. The lose gives the side 0 points from their matches with a goal difference of negative 6, thus making us the worst team in the Copa.

As far as tonight's game, sloppy would be kind. The Nats did not sustain pressure at any point nor could they put together more then two or three passes at a time. The good news is they didn't suck as much at finishing chances but the bad news is that has more to do with the lack of such chances then some sudden increase in the team's ability at the end.

The other thing that just glared was how lacking in pressure we were. So many times when Colombia got in front of goal, the team swarmed, making it difficult to clear, but when the US was in the area, there might have been one or maybe two other people around, and they didn't really get involved with the play. If players don't have options, they are going to get picked.

So the red, white and blue dump out of one of the great tournaments. It is a shame, but the greater shame is that it is not a shock. When Bob Bradley released his roster for the tournament, it was obvious that we were heading for a slaughter. There are many reasons why the best were not brought (and some of them have merit), but I have to wonder why we accepted the invitation if we were not even going to try?

One of the biggest problems the US national team face is getting top-quality matches with anyone but Mexico. Other then the World Cup, prior to the Copa, the men have only played three national powers, excluding Mexico, since 2004 (Netherlands Feb '04, England May '05 and Germany March '06). In the Copa, we had a chance to play three big games, including one against Argentina, but the best reward could have come if we had showed something in those matches. If we could have done something down south, our program would have earned some much-needed respect, which would make it easier to convince teams to play us.

Instead, we look like a wet, paper doll. Yes, we can say that we would have done better with our best there, but that is just an excuse. Results are what people remember and in the eyes of the world's soccer community, we look pathetic. If we are not going to bring our best (or at least a roster that stands any sort of a chance) then we should not accept invitations to future Copa Americas. It is much too wonderful of a tournament to disrespect in such a way.

Group A

Team	Pts	GP	W	L	D	GF	GA	GD
Venezula	5	3	1	0	2	4	2	+2
Peru	4	3	1	1	1	5	4	+1
Uruguay	2	3	1	1	1	1	3	-2
Bolivia	2	3	0	1	2	4	5	-1

Group B

Team	Pts	GP	W	L	D	GF	GA	GD
Mexico	7	3	2	0	1	4	1	+3
Brazil	6	3	2	1	0	4	2	+2
Chile	4	3	1	1	1	3	5	-2
Ecuador	0	3	0	0	3	3	6	-3

Group C

Team	Pts	GP	W	L	D	GF	GA	GD
Paraguay	6	2	2	0	0	8	1	+7
Argentina	6	2	2	0	0	8	3	+5
Colombia	3	3	1	2	0	3	9	-6
USA	0	3	0	3	0	2	8	-6