Bruce Arena: Agoos did a lot of good things

On Tuesday, during his daily press briefing, U.S. coach Bruce Arena reflected on the tie with South Korea, looked forward to FridayÆs Poland match, and commented on U.S. injuries, the performances of Jeff Agoos and Claudio Reyna — and more.

Bruce Arena, U.S. coach

On looking back at the USA-South Korea match 24 hours later: ''I thought we gave a great effort. I thought we did a terrific job of taking a lead, unfortunately we gave up a goal in the last 15 minutes, but I thought given that circumstances — as IÆve said, we werenÆt playing Korea, we were playing against a nation. I thought with the pressure and magnitude of that game, that the result was very positive for us. It puts us in a position to get into the second round if we can be successful on Friday. I thought overall, given the circumstances, we played well. ''I think defensively we were pretty solid. They certainly had three or four very good chances, but Brad [Friedel] came up big. But I expect our goalkeepers to come up big. He is an outstanding goalkeeper and I expect him to make saves. In that game he bailed us out. ''On the other end of the field we created some decent chances. Obviously [Clint] Mathis was clinical on his finish, and [Landon] Donovan had a couple of good chances. We had a few good counters in which we were not able to get a shot off, but I thought that at times we were able to counter them. ''If I could be critical of anything, I would say in the second half we did not do a good job of possessing the ball to take a little pressure off our back line. But overall, I am pleased with the way we played and the result is what we needed. Sitting here today we feel good, and now we have to prepare real hard to be ready for Poland.'' On the teamÆs current injury situation: ''We came out of this game better than we did the Portugal game. Although Steve Cherundolo will likely not be available for the remainder of the Cup after suffering a slight knee injury. So we should have 22 healthy players available on Friday.'' On whether he has thought about how to get Earnie Stewart back into the lineup (after he missed the Korea game with a groin injury): ''Yes, weÆve thought about it. We are not worried about the starting lineup right now. The job is to recover and get our team back to a point where we are going to get on the field Friday and be ready to play. We are going to relax for awhile before we start talking about lineups.'' On whether he expects any lineup changes from Poland: ''I expect the game against Poland to be a very difficult game. If anything the pressure is off of them now and they can go out and relax and try and get a result. I imagine there will be some changes in their lineup, we know they have a player suspended for the third game [midfielder Piotr Swierczewski] and they might have a couple of injuries, however I think they will put a good team on the field and it will be a very difficult match for us. Our team has to be prepared to play in a very physical match.'' On his thoughts of Portugal against Poland, compared to the Portugal the U.S. beat 3-2 in their tournament opener: ''I think you cannot compare Portugal-USA to Portugal-Poland. I think the styles are different for all four teams in our group and the games are going to look different. You cannot compare one game to another. If you do, I think you are mistaken. Certainly, our game against Poland will look different than our games against Portugal and Korea.'' On whether he has thought about the benefits of a first-place finish, compared to second-place and earning an extra day of rest: ''I wish I had the luxury to think that way. All I want to do is be in the next round. We know it is going to be difficult to against Poland. I donÆt really care whether we finish first or second, or whether we play on the 17th or 18th. We need to focus on the game on Friday and whatever happens happens. And if we qualify and that means we are first or second, I can live with either one to be honest.'' On whether he thinks it is a fair assessment to say Jeff Agoos is struggling in this tournament: ''Well first of all, I donÆt think that is a fair assessment. I think actually yesterday Jeff played a very good game. He made a bunch of good plays. The penalty kick was a bunch of legs getting tangled up. I think 9 out of 10 times that call is not made. I think Korea being the home team and kind of pressure and the score of the game at the time … ''Now IÆm not saying that there wasnÆt contact and that it wasnÆt a play where a referee can make that call. I think it is rarely made in a World Cup in this situation. That is unfortunate for Jeff. That could happen to anyone, and it was Eddie Pope who actually knocked into him. ''The Korean forwards all game were fouling our guys, grabbing our shirts, falling down, and we are called for the penalty kick. Fair enough. On the play at the end of the game, it was a very good goal by the Koreans. Yes, Jeff could have done a little bit better on the play, but IÆll be honest with you, he made a bunch of good plays in this game. At the end of this game, he gets singled out a little bit. ''But I think he had a pretty solid game. And that was the case against Portugal as well, and yet he was still involved in a couple of plays there.'' On whether he has talked to Jeff Agoos about his performances in the last two games: ''Well first of all he knows me. IÆve knocked him down and IÆve picked him up over the last 24 hours. He knows me. WeÆve talked about it. He is a big boy.'' On any changes he might consider making in the U.S. lineup in advance of USA-Poland: ''Any changes we make in our lineup will come from a variety of reasons. They will come from injuries, they will come from fatigue, they will come because of cards. And also, we will evaluate the Poland team and decide on our best 11 who can be successful against Poland.'' On his thoughts on Clint MathisÆ performance against Korea: ''It was a great goal. Clint is a great finisher, no doubt about it. Not many people would have finished off that play. He did well taking down the ball by John [OÆBrien]. It was a great pass by OÆBrien. A great run by Clint. Beautiful technique in getting the ball down quickly and a clinical finish with his left foot. ThatÆs Clint. ''I thought in the second half he was one of our few players who did a pretty good job of holding the ball, and he had some good combinations with Beasley that were dangerous at times.'' On how he felt Claudio Reyna filled his role in the U.S. lineup against Korea: ''That is a difficult game for a midfielder, with the pressure that the Koreans apply to the midfield. It was ClaudioÆs first game in about three weeks, he was a little rusty and his match fitness wasnÆt what it needed to be. ''But I think he did a lot of good things. He worked hard defensively. He was one of a bunch of players who helped us get at them in countering. I think that game is going to help him for the game on Friday. He needed that. We didnÆt say anything publicly, but Claudio went easily a week without training. So he was a little rusty.'' On his thoughts and prediction on the South Korea-Portugal match on Friday: ''If you look around this World Cup and you had to try and predict these games, you wouldnÆt be making a very good living. They are very unpredictable. That is why you roll the ball out there and play. I am not in the business in predicting any results, in group play for sure, but clearly you have two teams with two different styles, and once again the Korean fans will come out and support their team and it is do or die. ''They need a result in this game. I think that home-field advantage will be big, and they will bring a lot of pressure on the Portuguese team. On the other hand, the Portuguese team now has confidence and they think they are the team they thought they were going to be coming into this tournament, so it is going to be a great game.ö On his decision to start Brad Friedel in goal for the first two matches of the World Cup: ''Well first of all, I donÆt believe we have a goalkeeper controversy. I just happen to believe we have two great goalkeepers. Which I donÆt think is a bad problem to have. ''Obviously Brad is coming off two great seasons with Blackburn. And I thought in these games — Kasey is a great shot-stopper as well — but I think one of the things that separates Brad from most goalkeepers is his feet are outstanding and his ability to play balls out of the back under pressure, on goal kicks and on balls back to the keeper, all of those things that maybe the average fan doesnÆt notice are big in games like this. ''And he is an offensive weapon for us as well, besides the fact that he does what we love to see goalkeepers do yesterday in the goal, which is denying the other team. That is really your overriding factor in making that decision, I think that is another outstanding part of his game.ö On FriedelÆs performance against Portugal: ''I thought against Portugal he played well and had a good solid game. And obviously he couldnÆt be faulted on the two goals they got, he might have been able to save Agoosé actually [laughter], but he wasnÆt set for the shot. His kicking game was outstanding, and again, I continue to think that is an area that really helps our team.'' On whether he decided before the World Cup to start Brad in each of these three games: ''I donÆt do that. You must think IÆm an absolute liar. We look at every game. We play the game, and then we decide what we do the next game. Goalkeepers are no different in my eyes for me than field players when we evaluate, and in how we set a team for each and every game.'' On his views on CONCACAF and their success: ''CONCACAF has done well. Who can argue that? We are the only confederation that is undefeated in this World Cup. That speaks for itself. I have always said that I would like to see a lot of these other teams have to go to Azteca Stadium [Mexico] and Saprissa Stadium [Costa Rica] and Honduras and Guatemala to play. I would like to see how they would do. It is a tough region to play in. The home games are one thing, but the traveling is another animal that not too many realize.'' On if he thinks there are any tactical reasons responsible for the CONCACAF success: ''No. I really donÆt. I think there is a lot of experience there. Costa Rica may have had an easy time at the end of qualifying, but they fought like dogs to get into the final round, winning a playoff. At the start of the final round, they lost their opening game. Mexico fought to get in, and we fought. We have all been in a lot of pressure games in a way, and I think that helps a lot. I think that might be part of the reason the CONCACAF teams have done well. They have all been in a lot of pressure situations.''