In a well-argued column on USSoccerPlayers.Com, Ken Pendleton looks at the United States’ performance in the 4-2 defeat to Brazil on Sunday and argues that not much has really improved for the national side in the past decade.

[A}re the Americans really that much better than the generation that came through twelve or so years ago Tim Howard has not yet reached the same heights as (Brad) Friedel, or Kasey Keller. Are Oguchi Onyewu and Bocanegra better than Alexi Lalas and Eddie Pope Would Claudio Reyna, Earnie Stewart, Cobi Jones, Ramos and Harkes take a backseat to Landon Donovan, Benny Feilhaber, DaMarcus Beasley and Bradley And one suspects that, post Brian McBride, coach Bradley would love to be able to call up someone who could score goals as consistently as Eric Wynalda.

He argues that while the U.S has a much better structure to draw from and a deeper pool of players avaliable there is a real lack of flair and individual creativity. It is a fair criticism although perhaps Pendleton overstates the lack of progress. The current U.S team is much better than a dozen years ago on several levels (compare again the midfield of 12 years ago with the current one. Is Beasley v Harkes really a close call) and the past year has seen a significant improvement on the displays at the World Cup in Germany in terms of a more positive and aggressive approach to the game.

But there is something missing in the current squad and it is that sparkle of creativity, someone capable of the unpredictable and the occassionally brilliant. Well-organised, solid and efficient only get you so far as Sunday’s game showed.

One of the players from the past Pendleton mentions, Wynalda, now works as a television commentator on ESPN and during the Brazil match he was asked would the U.S ever produce a player with the exciting skills of Ronaldinho or Kaka Wynalda blamed the coaching system in the U.S and said they produced “robots” whereas the Brazilians ensured that individuality survived the maturing process.

Which raises some questions. Firstly, is Wynalda right If so, why do U.S coaches prefer the robotic to the creative Is it a result of a sporting culture heavily influenced by the ‘game plans’ and rigid routines of other sports Is it an over reliance on textbooks at youth level Is it to do with the U.S’s strange lack of self-confidence in soccer (More of which another time).

And, to be positive, can the new generation of players coming through from the national youth sides — Freddy Adu and Jozy Altidore in particular — give some fresh zest and style to Bob Bradley’s side

Simon Evans, Miami

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