Blame Bradley for U.S.'s depth problem

The sun even shines on a dog’s ass occasionally. And that explains how the dreadful Conor Casey could score two goals in the win over Honduras. Against Costa RIca, his miss in the 10th minute was absolutely criminal and might explain why Landon Donovan “didn’t see him” wide open at the far post in the 37th.

With the news that “Gooch” (Oguchi Onyewu) will be out at least three months with a torn tendon in his knee, you have to second guess the decision to play the first team. Add to that the fact that Charlie Davies was badly injured on Tuesday in a car accident in northern Virginia and one can see the enormous lack of depth on the U.S. team. Of course, Davies could have been in that accident anywhere, but the argument that neither he nor Gooch should have been in D.C. in the first place has to be addressed. Winning CONCACAF means nothing in terms of seeding in the World Cup, so why do you risk injuries and red cards (which do carry over into the WC) in a meaningless match?

The loss of Davies’ pace was evident in the match, but once again I think Jozy Altidore performed well in the starting role despite going goal-less. His lack of production was more a result of being unlucky and of pressing too much. It was obvious that he desperately wanted to score to for his friend Charlie (the #9 on his T-shirt under his jersey, revealed after Jonathan Bornstein’s goal made that clear). But Bradley still needs to find a consistent partner for Jozy up front, which demonstrates the poor job he’s done in developing depth on this team.

The fact that we have finished qualifying and one injury can have such an enormous impact speaks volumes. Bradley has about eight months to find a suitable replacement for Davies. It’s not Casey. And Clint Dempsey isn’t a consistent enough scorer to move into that spot. Ching? Cooper? Arnaud? (Wow, that’s a pretty sad list) What about resurrecting Freddy Adu? It might have to be Donovan, but I hate to move him out of the role of orchestrator. Perhaps the U.S. can play a 4-5-1, but they need to make sure that the wings and attacking mid (LD) get involved in the attack.

Davies seriously injured in car crash

Charlie Davies was seriously injured in a single-car accident today. After surgery, he was in serious but stable condition. Another passenger was killed. Here's the latest from ussoccer.com.

U.S. packs its bags for 2010!

The U.S. qualified for their sixth straight World Cup on Saturday with a 3-2 win over Honduras in San Pedro Sula in an uneven, but scrappy, performance. A brace from unlikely hero Conor Casey and a superbly struck free kick from qualification MVP Landon Donovan was enough to hold off the Hondurans.

“It was a culmination of a long learning process," Donovan said post-game. "And we played mature, experienced, a hard fought 90 minutes, and I was very proud of us.”

Honduras, who missed a chance to equalize from the penalty spot in the 87th minute, now need a win against El Salvador and a Costa Rican draw or loss against the U.S. on the final matchday to avoid a fourth-place finish and the playoff with the fifth-place South American team (currently Uruguay, although they trail Argentina by a single point).

The U.S. will have a chance for a meaningless first-place finish in CONCACAF qualification with a win over Costa Rica at home on October 14.

“It is important to win the group," said coach Bob Bradley. "We take a great amount of pride in trying to be the best team in CONCACAF. With this win today, we’re in position going into the Costa Rica game to finish first in the group, and that’s the goal.”

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just as long as you don't play anyone of consequence and get them injured.

Since many of you didn't get to see this historic win, here are some highlights courtesy of usssocerdotcom: