And just like that, everything changed. In sports, momentum can be a powerful thing. The Slovenians seemed unable to do anything right, and the USA felt the surge. The second half became a quest for the equalizer. The tension in the stadium was unbelievable as the whole crowd sensed a discernible shift.
It was a little tough for us to see the goal the Americans were attacking because we were close to the field on the 20 yard line on the other side. But it was clear as day from our angle when the ball bounced from Jozy Altidore's forehead into open space in the 18-yard box in the 82nd minute. And there was Michael Bradley to pounce on it. With an incredibly deft touch while sliding foot first, he sent the Jabulani over the keeper's shoulder and into the back of the net. This is the best video I could find, and it's from Univision in Spanish...
Bedlam. Just absolute bedlam. I've never witnessed or been part of a more ecstatic crowd than the Americans in Ellis Park that day. On the SuperSport replay the next morning, the South African television announcer nailed the game call (mostly British accent, think "stiff upper lip but still excited"): "There's a good ball!...Redemption!...For the United States of America!...The coach's son!...And he's being mobbed by his teammates!" Minimal and restrained, and highly effective. The fans in the stands were anything but minimal and restrained.
But still, we wanted more. "U-S-A!!! Yes we can!!! U-S-A!!! Yes we can!!!" We wanted, and felt like we needed, a win. England was still to play Algeria that evening, so we thought we couldn't afford to come away with a single point for a draw. And voila, a mere three minutes later, Maurice Edu knocked in Donovan's free kick, leading to even more intense bedlam in the stands. Only, some groans interrupted the party. Nobody in our section of the stadium could tell exactly what had happened, but the goal was being waved off. Rumor had it as offsides, or a foul, but nobody really knew. As it turns out, it was one of the most blatant officiating blunders of the entire tournament--a game winning goal disallowed! Boooooooooooo!
The game petered out a few minutes later. We, along with everyone else in the crowd, left with an ambivalent, dissatisfied feeling. First of all, as Americans, we are not used to sporting events ending in draws. The NFL has maybe one tie a year; college football has overtime now; baseball has extra innings; basketball has overtime; etc. Moreover, while the draw in the England match felt like a "win," this one kinda felt like a "loss." The emotional lows and highs and lows associated with USA-Slovenia were about all anyone can take in one soccer match. As the favorite over a small country, we really should have won. The first half was horrible. Then we showed such tremendous grit in the second half. Then the ref ripped away what was rightfully ours. How were we supposed to feel? Drained pretty much describes it.
Upon reflection, you realize that the stress is what makes this game great.
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