The United States youth movement is underway.
For the first time since 1998, the United States has
won a game in Europe against a team other than
Poland.
After starting unbeaten in his first 11 matches, head
coach Bob Bradley and the United States had lost
five in a row. That was until his son, Michael,
touched in an 86th minute winner, to beat
Switzerland 1-0 in Basel.
The US did it with a number of players who
weren't even in the 4th grade in 1998.
20 year old regular starter Bradley was joined in
the starting XI by Maurice Edu, 21, who earned his
first cap for the men's senior national team. Edu,
who plays for Toronto FC in Major League Soccer,
looked like a seasoned veteran in the midfield,
controlling play defensively and providing a key
outlet pass that led to the United States lone goal.
Providing the late spark for the United States were
a pair of second half substitutes that starred for the
US in this summer's Under 20 World Cup.
Freddy Adu, 18, entered in the 77th minute for New
England striker Taylor Twellman, and made an
immediate impact, nearly scoring a second goal for
the US in the closing moments.
Danny Szetela, 20, came on for Eddie Lewis in the
83rd and setup the eventual winner. Szetela
received an outlet pass from Maurice Edu, and
crossed to Clint Dempsey, who knocked the ball to
the feet of Bradley for the goal.
Both Adu and Szetela made well-publicized moves
this summer from Major League Soccer to top
flight teams in southern Europe, Adu to Portugal's
Benfica and Szetela to Racing Santander in Spain.
However, both have struggled for playing time in
their new surroundings. Adu has played just over
an hour for Benfica in the Portugese league, while
Szetela hasn't even seen the field for Santander,
who is tied for sixth in Spain's La Liga.
But both have benefited greatly from practicing
against top-level competition day-in and day-out.
The same can be said for Bradley, who plays for
Heerenveen in the Netherlands. Bradley has been
on a strong goal-scoring run of late, and has
teamed up well with Brazilian striker Afonso
Alves. Alves scored seven goals the last time out
in the Netherlands, a number of which Bradley
helped setup.
This wave of youth bodes well for a United States
team that is scheduled to start World Cup 2010
qualifying this June.
It's an even stronger sign considering the next
opportunity the United States has to win any
hardware involves a younger roster.
Each and every one of the aforementioned young
guns will likely be on the field for the United
States at this summer's Olympics in Beijing.
Olympic soccer rosters must be made up entirely of
players age 23 or under, with each team allowed
three players exempt from age restrictions.
11 players on the United States roster for their win
over Switzerland will be eligible for next summer's
Olympic Games in Beijing.
The United States returns to action on November
17th when they travel to South Africa.
And there's no doubt some of these youngsters will
be on field.
Danny Page is the founder of 101soccer.com, a
live soccer radio broadcast online and informational website. Danny has followed the game for years and particularly enjoys following various international leagues such as the MLS, English, Spanish and
Mexican soccer.
