Gold Cup: U.S. vs. Guadeloupe, Loss Could See Bob Bradley Fired
By Ty Duffy
Yes, Guadeloupe is a small Caribbean island. It’s not even a full-fledged FIFA member, and is only eligible to compete in CONCACAF competitions. The reason is because it is an overseas department of France, legally equivalent to any territory on the French mainland. Players can compete for Guadeloupe without losing their French eligibility and remain eligible if they have not competed for France for five years.
This means Guadeloupe loses its best talent to the French National Team, William Gallas, Lilian Thuram, Thierry Henry and Louis Saha would have been eligible. But, it also means, like Algeria, they can draw from a pool of players with ancestry who’ve been trained in French academies. World-beaters they aren’t, but they have qualified for the knockout round in the past two Gold Cups, reaching the quarterfinals in 2009 and the semifinals in 2007.
The U.S. must be aggressive, come out strong and put the result out of reach before the pressure mounts. My earlier roster suggestions seem to conform with consensus. Expect to see Agudelo removed, Dempsey through the middle as an attacking midfielder/auxiliary striker, Bedoya and potentially Kljestan in midfield and Carlos Bocanegra sliding over to replace Tim Ream in central defense.
Besides winning, the Americans must keep their composure. Their flurry of cards against Panama means that six players enter the match at risk of suspension for the quarterfinals.
[Photo via Getty]