CONMEBOL, the South American soccer federation, expressed its displeasure with the third-string team the United States sent to the 2007 Copa America in Venezuela. U.S. coach Bob Bradley clearly used the tournament as an opportunity to blood new talent for the national team, bringing in just seven players from the squad that lifted the CONCACAF Gold Cup two weeks ago. Sixteen of the United States’ 22-man roster had 10 or fewer caps, making it by far the most inexperienced team at the South American championship. Despite several brave performances, the U.S. finished last in the tournament, losing all three of its games by a combined margin of 8-2.
“We like for the continent’s most important competition to be respected with the best players,” CONMEBOL general secretary Eduardo Deluca told The Associated Press in a telephone interview, adding that the Americans “opted to send a team with some players who aren’t their regulars. That doesn’t please us.”
However, Deluca stopped short of saying the USA wouldn’t be invited back to future Copa Americas. Mexico, the competition’s other North American invitee, has had a glittering history since its first invite in 1993, where it reached the final and lost to Argentina. This year a close-to-full-strength Mexican team — three European-based players pulled out after the Gold Cup — topped a group featuring the likes of Brazil and Chile. A full-strength U.S. beat Mexico to lift the Gold Cup trophy two weeks ago.