Brazil broke American hearts on Sunday in South Africa by coming back from two goals down to beat the U.S. 3–2 to win their second straight Confederations Cup.
It seemed like the U.S. would pull off another miracle after jumping out to a two-goal first half lead but Brazil showed the world their will to win, along with their typical flair and finesse.
As Spain did against the U.S. in the semifinal on Wednesday, Brazil controlled the game and generated far more scoring opportunities. But the U.S. executed their master plan to perfection in the first half, making the most of their few opportunities to take a two-goal lead.
“We played a fantastic game, especially in the first half,” U.S. head coach Bob Bradley was quoted as saying on www.fifa.com.
Clint Dempsey guided in a Jonathan Spector cross in the tenth minute. And in the 27th minute, Landon Donovan and Charlie Davies worked the perfect high-speed counter-attack to put the U.S. up by two.
But when Luis Fabiano scored less than a minute into the second half, one knew the United States had the wind knocked out of their sales. Up to that point the U.S. had done a terrific job of clogging up the top of the 18-yard box and dealing with Maicon’s crosses from the right wing.
But this time, Maicon found Luis Fabiano who made a world class turn and fired a left-footer past U.S. goalie Tim Howard.
“They scored straight after the break and we never recovered from that. The goal came very quickly and that hurt us,” said Bradley
The U.S. got a lucky break when Kaka’s 60th minute header was shown to have crossed the goal line but the referee and his assistant didn’t call it a goal. It should’ve been 2–2 right then, but the U.S. escaped.
A debate could ensue about the merits of goal-line technology, but, since Brazil got the win they deserved, Kaka’s “goal” will soon be forgotten.
Kaka, the former AC Milan star and now Real Madrid playmaker, had a quiet game until he started working down the left wing. In the 74th minute, he burst down the left wing and sent a cross into the six-yard box. Robinho’s shot hit the crossbar but the ball fell kindly to Luis Fabiano who equalized with a header.
Nothing Tim Howard could do about that one. The American goalie, who plays for Everton in the English Premier League, had stopped Luis Fabiano on a breakaway just a few minutes earlier.
With the game winding down and the U.S. defense beating back Brazilian attack after Brazilian attack, the South American champions made the most of a corner kick.
Brazilian captain Lucio rose above everybody else to power home an Elano corner in the 84th minute. His header glanced off the post giving Howard no chance at all. The goal sparked mad celebrations on the Brazilian bench and on the field.
“Even though we were losing 2–0 at the break, we felt we could do it when we came back out on to the pitch. That’s the strength of our team; we just never give up,” said Lucio.
“What we mustn’t do now is get carried away. We won here because we stayed calm and kept our cool,” said Kaka who was voted Man of the Match.
Brazil wound down the game by keeping the ball away from the Americans and was crowned Confederations Cup champions once again.
“When you see them play, the players that they’ve got, you understand why they are what they are. We got so close, though, and that’s the most disappointing thing,” said Donovan who plays in Major League Soccer for L.A. Galaxy.
Brazil’s task next summer in South Africa will be to win the World Cup, something a defending Conferderations Cup champion has never done.
For the U.S., this was another learning experience and certainly nothing to be ashamed of. Brazil isn’t just some ordinary team they played against.
The Americans are well positioned to return to South Africa next year and will definitely get more respect given their performances at this year’s Confederations Cup.
“People can now see that we’ve got a great side [team] and great players. We’ve taken a step forward for sure,” said Bradley.
It seemed like the U.S. would pull off another miracle after jumping out to a two-goal first half lead but Brazil showed the world their will to win, along with their typical flair and finesse.
As Spain did against the U.S. in the semifinal on Wednesday, Brazil controlled the game and generated far more scoring opportunities. But the U.S. executed their master plan to perfection in the first half, making the most of their few opportunities to take a two-goal lead.
“We played a fantastic game, especially in the first half,” U.S. head coach Bob Bradley was quoted as saying on www.fifa.com.
Clint Dempsey guided in a Jonathan Spector cross in the tenth minute. And in the 27th minute, Landon Donovan and Charlie Davies worked the perfect high-speed counter-attack to put the U.S. up by two.
But when Luis Fabiano scored less than a minute into the second half, one knew the United States had the wind knocked out of their sales. Up to that point the U.S. had done a terrific job of clogging up the top of the 18-yard box and dealing with Maicon’s crosses from the right wing.
But this time, Maicon found Luis Fabiano who made a world class turn and fired a left-footer past U.S. goalie Tim Howard.
“They scored straight after the break and we never recovered from that. The goal came very quickly and that hurt us,” said Bradley
The U.S. got a lucky break when Kaka’s 60th minute header was shown to have crossed the goal line but the referee and his assistant didn’t call it a goal. It should’ve been 2–2 right then, but the U.S. escaped.
A debate could ensue about the merits of goal-line technology, but, since Brazil got the win they deserved, Kaka’s “goal” will soon be forgotten.
Kaka, the former AC Milan star and now Real Madrid playmaker, had a quiet game until he started working down the left wing. In the 74th minute, he burst down the left wing and sent a cross into the six-yard box. Robinho’s shot hit the crossbar but the ball fell kindly to Luis Fabiano who equalized with a header.
Nothing Tim Howard could do about that one. The American goalie, who plays for Everton in the English Premier League, had stopped Luis Fabiano on a breakaway just a few minutes earlier.
With the game winding down and the U.S. defense beating back Brazilian attack after Brazilian attack, the South American champions made the most of a corner kick.
Brazilian captain Lucio rose above everybody else to power home an Elano corner in the 84th minute. His header glanced off the post giving Howard no chance at all. The goal sparked mad celebrations on the Brazilian bench and on the field.
“Even though we were losing 2–0 at the break, we felt we could do it when we came back out on to the pitch. That’s the strength of our team; we just never give up,” said Lucio.
“What we mustn’t do now is get carried away. We won here because we stayed calm and kept our cool,” said Kaka who was voted Man of the Match.
Brazil wound down the game by keeping the ball away from the Americans and was crowned Confederations Cup champions once again.
“When you see them play, the players that they’ve got, you understand why they are what they are. We got so close, though, and that’s the most disappointing thing,” said Donovan who plays in Major League Soccer for L.A. Galaxy.
Brazil’s task next summer in South Africa will be to win the World Cup, something a defending Conferderations Cup champion has never done.
For the U.S., this was another learning experience and certainly nothing to be ashamed of. Brazil isn’t just some ordinary team they played against.
The Americans are well positioned to return to South Africa next year and will definitely get more respect given their performances at this year’s Confederations Cup.
“People can now see that we’ve got a great side [team] and great players. We’ve taken a step forward for sure,” said Bradley.
