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Sanli scores winner in debut, leading Turkey to 2-1 victory over U.S.
U.S. men Turkey is dominant in downing U.S. in Confederations Cup opener.By Robert Wagman
(Thursday, June 19, 2003) -- In a surprisingly loosely played match, the United States produced a half dozen could chances, but were generally outplayed in a 2-1 loss to Turkey to open Group D play in the Confederations Cup this afternoon. Playing before a mostly Turkish crowd of 16,944 at Geoffroy Guichard Stadium in Saint Etienne, a somewhat patchwork U.S. team scored first, but could not capitalize on other opportunities while having had a great deal of trouble with the pace of the Turkish forwards who made frequent runs through the middle. "Over 90 minutes, they positioned themselves better and won a number of second balls," U.S. coach Bruce Arena said. "They were more of the dominant team for 90 minutes and they deserved to win. We did not play well today. We need to regroup and get ready for Brazil (on Saturday)." Arena started a somewhat strange lineup. DaMarcus Beasley was listed as a forward, but he played his usual right midfield spot, so -- as they did in several matches in the 2002 World Cup -- the U.S. essentially played a 4-5-1 with Jovan Kirovski the lone forward. As he has been in the last several matches, left midfielder Eddie Lewis was consistently the best U.S. player with much of the offense moving through him in the first half. As it often does against top flight competition -- and the squad Turkey put on the field tonight, while not its best 11, were still plenty good -- the U.S. had problems in the central midfield. Bobby Convey is better at pushing the ball forward rather than directing play and, as a result, Kirovski did not get much good service. A big American problem this afternoon was in the center of defense. The outside defenders, generally speaking, played well enough, but the central defenders had a great deal of trouble with the speedy Turkish forwards and received little help from the midfield. U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard learned tonight that at this level indecision can be a killer. He played respectably, but a moment of hesitation contributed to the winning goal. Even though the U.S. was outplayed for long stretches of the match, it were still very much in the match at the end. Late substitutes Taylor Twellman and Clint Mathis helped the U.S. adopt a better offensive shape over the last 10 minutes or so and, if Turkish defender Bulent Korkmaz had not headed away Mathis' point-blank shot off the goal line, the Americans likely would have managed a draw. "Our lack of continuity on the field in all positions was a factor in the game," Arena said, "We had a bunch of players that had sub-par performances, and you can't get away with that." U.S. player ratings Starters Goalkeeper Tim Howard - 5.5: Needed a sparkling performance, but had an up-and-down match Made a few good saves, but did not come up big when he had to. Defender Greg Vanney - 5.5: Was probably the most solid of the U.S. defenders. Had to repeatedly come into the middle and made several key clearances. Defender Gregg Berhalter - 5: Did some things well, but others much less well. He too had problems controlling Turkish players making runs onto the ball. Defender Dan Califf - 4.5: Did not handle the pace well and was often pulled out of position. His ability to play at this level must be questioned. Defender Frankie Hejduk - 5.5: Had trouble holding the ball and, late in the match, his passes left much to be desired. But his speed was a salvation for the U.S. most of the night and he ranged deep into the middle to cover for absent teammates. Midfielder Chris Armas - 5: A uneven performance. Did well at times, but other times was outpaced and did little to control attackers running through the middle. Midfielder Landon Donovan - 5.5: Wonderful cross on Beasley's goal, a few good runs, but more poor touches and lost balls. Midfielder Eddie Lewis - 6: Until he tired was the biggest U.S. threat and also played strong defense controlling the left side. Midfielder Bobby Convey - 5.5: Certainly gave a 100 percent effort, but was not effective in the center of midfield against an experienced Turkish defense. Forward Jovan Kirovski - 5.5: Came close a couple of times and was the main offensive threat for much of the first half. Did not get the level of service he needs to be effective. Forward DaMarcus Beasley - 5.5: Put away the header for a wonderful goal and ran himself into the ground. Still, he could not break down an extremely competent defense despite his speed. Showed again, at this level, he is still very much a work in progress. Reserves Forward Clint Mathis (59th minute for Kirovski) - 5: A few good touches and a nice shot on goal, but did not provide the spark the U.S. needed. Midfielder Earnie Stewart (72nd minute for Lewis) - 5.5: Provided some solid midfield work, was able to hold the ball and helped create chances. A decent short appearance. Forward Taylor Twellman (79th minute for Berhalter) - 5.0: Really had little impact after he was inserted as an additional forward. Robert Wagman is a SoccerTimes senior correspondent and can be e-mailed at bob@soccertimes.com. |
