This football Arena used to the shadows

Keith Duggan talks to US coach Bruce Arena about the constant battle of raising the sport's profile in a land with its own particular…

Keith Duggan talks to US coach Bruce Arena about the constant battle of raising the sport's profile in a land with its own particular set of priorities

Bruce Arena is a minor American sporting hero. He is the most successful American international soccer manager of all time. Normally, America adores "winningest" coaches and confers a guru status upon them. If soccer ever gets big in the States, people will quote Arena-isms.

But with soccer it is different. Many Americans believe the US participates in the World Cup as a chivalrous indulgence of the outside world's strange but harmless carnival, the celebration of a game without scores. A sport that can end the same way as it began. They get into the spirit of it, but rather than spoil the fun they deign not to win.

"I think we would have to probably win the World Cup in order to be perceived to be successful," admitted Arena at the US team camp yesterday.

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"Many Americans probably don't completely realise the magnitude of the World Cup and just how difficult it is. They don't really know the full story behind this game. But the pressure on us is to perform well, not to win the World Cup."

America will be playing in Korea in the middle of the gargantuan NBA play-offs and smack in the middle of the Tyson-Lewis hype. Given that a substantial percentage of the population was happily unaware of the soccer tournament when America played host to it in 1994, the States will hardly come to a standstill this time around.

"We still compete on a different level, in that many or our best athletes don't play soccer," points out Jeff Agoos, the third most experienced US player with 126 caps.

"I mean, we are fortunate in that we have some fantastic athletes in the squad at present, but you know, Michael Jordan never could have opted for soccer. Athletes like him opt for basketball and baseball."

But despite the relative invisibility of the sport, the US squad still brings traditional virtues to its concept of soccer, such as intense pride, organisation and ambition. And because of that they are still smarting from a recent loss described by Arena as "a good spanking from the Germans".

That 4-2 score line is misleading, however; the US led 1-0 until just before halftime, and the game was still 1-1 going into the last half-hour. But the result has prompted a mood of introspection in the squad and as such they haven't done much swatting up on the Irish.

"It wasn't a completely horrendous performance, but since then we have been investing most of our efforts on our own team.

"We need to turn around what was a sloppy performance. And we know about Ireland, beating Holland and playing so well against Portugal. We don't have a Duff or even a Robbie Keane, but we play attacking football and are capable of creating chances."

America's FIFA ranking of 13th is something of an anomaly and is a statistic that Arena is unconcerned with.

"Are we? You telling me we are five places better than Ireland? I don't think that it means a whole lot. There are probably teams below Ireland who feel they are better. The FIFA rankings are based on our winning the Confederate Cup, and that sort of skews the whole points system."

The profile of US internationals has risen over the past few years.

"Well, (Casey) Keller features regularly with Tottenham of late, Joe Max-Moore has played some with Everton, (Brad) Friedel has been regular with Sunderland as has John O'Brien at Ajax," lists Arena before deadpanning: "Unfortunately almost all of those clubs are battling relegation. So I don't know that that means."

Arena is serious about wanting to win tonight. He is honest if self-effacing about his team's ability, describing one of his midfielder's as "a poor man's Roy Keane". But everything is geared to June 5th, the date of the US's first World Cup game.

So does Ireland's scalp matter?

"Big picture? No. It's important we play well, but seven weeks time is the game we'd rather win. But hey, we'd take 'em both."