Blame Bradley!

Look, I didn't want to be right about Bob Bradley. I was hoping that he'd prove me wrong and that I would be forced to delete my blog in shame as Herculez Gomez was carried off the field in triumph in their stunning upset of Brazil in the final. But, alas, it wasn't meant to be, as Ghana took advantage of a flat-footed, overmatched Ricardo Clark and a weak tired backline to defeat our Yanks.

Of course I can't pin this all on Bradley because ... oh wait, yes I can! His selections for each match were absolutely inexplicable. Sure, he "got" us through the first round but that feat is much more a reflection of England playing poorly and Slovenia and Algeria being flawed teams. His starter selections in all four matches were inexplicable. Ricardo Clark was responsible for the only goal England scored, so he gets the start in the knockout round? Maurice Edu scored the winning (if not counted) goal against Slovenia and he rides the bench.

In every game the U.S. had to recover from the starting line-up and Bradley had to try to reshuffle and reorganize. He was successful (somewhat) against Slovenia and Algeria. He wasn't against Ghana, when it was do or die. The substitution of Clark after only 30 minutes told me everything I needed to know. As he left the field, Bradley didn't deride his lack of defense or his clumsy ball handling, he embraced him and told him he was sorry. Well, I'm sorry too. I'm sorry that you chose camaraderie over common sense. Edu should have been starting in his place.

Everytime Edu entered the game the pace changed and we looked improved through the midfield. Bradley looked more composed on the ball and the defense on our thin backline was relieved. And let's talk about that backline. Why did you take Oneywu if you were going to ultimately decide he wasn't ready for the competition? Why not bring him into the Ghana game as a sub? Oh wait, I already know the answer because you had to waste a sub to rescue Clark from drowning and then had to remove not-so-Herculez Gomez. Seriously, how can a I guy that had barely a sniff of the national team be the go-to striker in the most important game of our World Cup? Don't talk to me about Charlie Davies. Talk to me about Brian Ching. All the experience you left at home with him. Talk to me about Edson Buddle. Wasn't he "in form" as well?

We're all left with a lot of questions. And yet I'm proud of our boys. Dempsey and Donovan and Howard and the rest of them. They woke up a nation and demanded attention. Did they change the sporting landscape? No. But for a minute soccer was not second-class in this country. Soccer was King of America.

Ultimately, the blame must fall to Bradley. Because his inability to develop the talent, to choose the talent or to construct a line-up that features that talent was what led to our defeat. And if you are a coach that can't develop. select and optimize talent, then you aren't really a coach at all.