The United States men's soccer program might need a complete overhaul after the under-23 team failed to qualify for its third straight Olympics — and four of the past five — suffering back-to-back losses to Mexico and Honduras in the CONCACAF Olympics qualifying tournament.
And this after the U.S. Men's National Team failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
After Olympic qualifying failure in 2016, U.S. Soccer committed to a U-23 team loaded with professionals and a squad comprised of mainly Major League Soccer players, hiring noted head coach Jason Kreis who won the MLS Cup with Real Salt lake in 2009. The 2021 qualifying team, however, proved just as unreliable, making careless mistakes that cost them in both tournament losses, including this embarrassing clearance pass Sunday by goalkeeper David Ochoa that resulted in the game-winning goal:
2-0, Honduras! 😳 pic.twitter.com/NQPWGPOdbe
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) March 28, 2021
Unlike women's soccer, which uses its senior squads for Olympic qualifying, the men are bound to under-23 rosters by FIFA, the world's governing body, to preserve the World Cup as the premier men's competition. So top U.S. players under 23 years old — Christian Pulisic, Sergiño Dest, Gio Reyna, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah — could not play in the tournament, as they require a release from their European pro clubs to participate. In a cruel irony, those players mentioned participated or were on the roster Sunday for a meaningless international friendly against Northern Ireland.
Is help on the way?
It's less likely than it was 11 months ago when the U.S. Soccer Federation shuttered permanently its Development Academy for both boys and girls, citing financial constraints due to the coronavirus pandemic — curious coming just one month after all sports were postponed. With no formal plan in place, the federation has decided it will now rely on the individual development programs of MLS and the National Women's Soccer League teams to identify talent for its national teams.
What an embarrassment this has become. It will be eight years, assuming the USMNT qualifies for the 2022 World Cup, since the U.S. men participated in a prestigious international tournament. No national development program? Good luck being relevant or having respect on the international stage.
YOUR TURN: How would you fix this mess? Should U.S. Soccer have a dedicated development program or should it just focus on the World Cup for the men on the international stage?
