Chip on Shoulder Mentality Back...

As I wrote yesterday, and Luke Cyphers writes here---it appears the near national crisis nature of U.S. Soccer heading into the game against Egypt finally mobilized the team and perhaps helped this group of Americans craft a mentality and identity before next year's World Cup. One could only wonder heading into the game if they read, or at least were well aware, of the assault they were under by the press at home, and perhaps more important to them, the message boards and bloggers who follow the team with fervor. The answer was a resounding yes, and one hopes this is the return of the "chip on the shoulder" the American teams played with for several years under Bruce Arena after the "3-6-1 was about as good an idea as Affleck taking the role in Gigli, but not quite, because at least Gigli had J-LO" debacle in France in 1998. Let's hope so-- because the Yanks will need attitude, as well as discipline and a heroic effort to have any hope of ending the Red Fury's 35 match unbeaten streak Wednesday night.



That said-- I thought it would be nice to post some of the comments made by the fiery Michael Bradley after Sunday's miracle. I'd say these quotes more or less sum up the mentality in the American locker room-- one which has returned, hopefully good, at just the right time. Enjoy.

Bradley: "At the end of the night you walk into the locker room and to be able experience the feeling you have with your teammates, your coaches, with the trainers, that's why you play.To do something special like that, where everything is against you, everybody wants to say how bad you are, everybody wants to write you off, to leave all that bull s--- outside the locker room and just be committed to the team, to leave everything on the field, to run for each other, to fight for each other, that's what we did."

Bradley on the accusations that the Yanks played with no passion:

"We played with 11 guys for 90 minutes. All the f------ experts in America, everybody who thinks they know about soccer, they can all look at the score tonight and let's see what they have to say now. Nobody has any respect for what we do, for what goes on on the inside, so let them all talk now."

Bradley on the folks that thought the Yanks would mail it in:

"That's clear, nobody thought (that the Americans would win).We didn't for one second feel sorry for ourselves. We didn't give up. We kept running, we kept fighting, and we did the same thing tonight. Guys get ready for the game, guys believe in one another. Guys are ready for 90 minutes to go out and run and fight and give everything they have for the next guy."

There's an argument it is a bit early-- but you can't fault the kid's passion. It is distinctly...American.