Nashville Star... or not

There are a variety of ways that one could take the USMNT's 0-1 loss to Morocco last night. Many may view it as a horrible omen of disaster to come. That last night was just another in what has been several games in a row where the offense has struggled to score. Others may look on it as a tactical and personnel experiment that can now be put to rest. That last night was not necessarily a precursor to our future performance but that the Nats need to stop messing around and get down to the business of preparing their starting XI. And there are still the rest of us that are very glad we had such a game as the one we did and think that what we will have learned from this game will pay huge dividends at the World Cup. Here's why:

Unlike what many believed, playing a North African team isn't going to help us against Ghana rather the Atlas Lions were the perfect scout team for Italy. The Moroccans consistently played 8 behind the ball, congested the midfield and attacking third, relying on occasional counter-attacks for their offense. They forced us to move the ball quicker and acclimate to a higher speed of play. Hello Italy.

At the World Cup, one little mistake can cost you the game, even in the 90th minute like what happened last night. I don't think anyone realized how good Morocco was (after all, they just missed the WC by 1 point in qualifying). They were technically sound and quick. And most importantly they weren't a walk-over.

Again, I'm very happy for the game, even with the loss. The USMNT can take nothing for granted and this game will help them remember that. This team also needs to gel a bit more and I'm far from convinced that the line up and formation we saw out there will be what goes on the field June, 12th. Look for Eddie Lewis and Eddie Johnson instead of Gibbs and Wolff. We'll also have to see what's going on with Claudio Reyna's hamstring. Hopefully, and probably, it's just a little tweak that may keep him out of the match with Venezuela in a couple of days, but John O'Brien, even being only 80% match fit (according to him), proved he's more than capable to do the job.