So much for a surprising berth in the quarterfinals.
The United States' strong start in group play was nullified by a red card issued to Michael Orozco in the early minutes of this morning's game against Nigeria. (There is some serious questioning by the stats people whether the card was issued in the third or fourth minute.)
But either way, the United States had to play with 10 men for the bulk of the game.
It was only a matter of time before Nigeria took advantage of the situation and scored its first goal with only minutes left in the first half.
The United States came out strong in the second half, trying to string together an attack and tie the game back up, but they struggled with playing a man down.
When Nigeria scored again in the 80th minute, it looked like the game was about over, but a penalty kick put the United States on the board.
Minutes later, in stoppage time, the team almost scored the equalizer, but it clanked off the crossbar and was cleared by Nigeria.
Looking back on the tournament, the United States ended up where many people figured they would finish, third in group play and eliminated.
Had we not gotten that red card and had Freddy Adu and Michael Bradley been available today, I think the outcome would have been different.
Brad Guzan gets my nod for best player in the tournament. He had amazing save after amazing save through out the games, giving the offense a chance keep games close.
As far as how my Maryland guys did, Mo had a solid showing today. Robbie was forced to play back in a more defensive role in today's game after the red card. He made the best of playing in a spot that isn't his natural strong point. Seitz was the back up to Guzan and didn't see any playing time, which was to be expected.
Here's today's stats courtesy of ussoccer.com
Statistical Summary: USA / NGA
Shots: 8 / 20
Shots on Goal: 4 / 5
Saves: 4 / 2
Corner Kicks: 3 / 5
Fouls: 7 / 11
Offside: 0 / 1
Yellow cards: 1 / 1
Red cards: 1 / 0
Substitutions: 3 / 2
(Thanks to ussoccer.com for the photo!)
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