USA in Golden semis

So, the USA C team got by Panama 2-1 to advance in the Gold Cup in an uneven match that continued to demonstrate the lack of quality featured on this team. A few observations:

Davy Arnaud -- Don't get me wrong. He's still firmly on the bubble for 2010, but Arnaud showed real grit and determination and that should be worth at least another couple of looks. He would be a good training camp guy, pushing the starters and subs to really give 100 percent in practice. He's done a nice job against some admittedly inferior opponents, but it is the hustle I like. He reminds me of Ante Razov (although Ante was better at cleaning up the garbage in front of goal).

Kenny Cooper -- He might be playing himself back into the doghouse, again. He was pretty ineffective when he came in as a sub for Arnaud. Although it was strange that Bradley chose to sub Arnaud and leave the twin towers of Cooper and Brian Ching up top. They are essentially the same type of player -- back to goal, post-up forwards who need to hold the ball and lay it off or play it in the air. Still he didn't seem to combine well with anyone else either. The PK call was legit, but I wouldn't say he "won it" exactly. He scored from the spot. But what was with the jog up from the midfield before he took it?

Robbie Rogers -- He had his worst game in the tournament (which still wasn't terrible). Rogers seems at times to struggle against physical fullbacks, and needs to add some strength if he hopes to stay on his feet for 2010.

Stuart Holden -- Holden continues to be the Patriot of the Pitch© for Team USA in the Gold Cup. No goals against Panama but two near misses and a host of chances created for others. Holden could solidify a spot for 2010 with a solid performance against Honduras and, if we advance, in the final (against Mexico or Costa Rica).

Jimmy Conrad -- O.T.M.F. (one tough motherf@#%&!).

Unlike other sites who say that they "talk" about MLS and then use MLS as a whipping boy for all that's wrong with American soccer. I think this tournament is demonstrating how far MLS has taken us in the 13 years of its existence. While not all the MLS players on this team deserve to be capped for the U.S., most have shown the toughness and a degree of quality that supersedes the old days when the U.S. relied on amateurs and semi-pros for depth. MLS has provided a place where our national team stars, reserves and also-rans can get the PT they need to develop.

I would still rather have Danny Szetela playing in DC everyday than never getting a sniff of PT for Spanish club Santander. Despite what the Anglophiles and Euro-snobs would have you believe, practice in Europe isn't better than playing in MLS. Just ask guys like Bobby Convey and Eddie Johnson whose inactivity (and admittedly with Convey injuries) have seem them slip off the national team radar. Is MLS making us world beaters? Of course not. But no one (who is honest with themselves) can deny that it has made us more competitive, especially in CONCACAF.

As further evidence of MLS's impact on the national team depth, Jon Busch has been called in as a backup for Troy Perkins for the semifinal against Honduras and Luis Robles has been released back to his second division German club to reportedly "prepare for the season." But maybe it also had something to do with his dreadful performance against Haiti.