Toronto FC coach Vanney says Bradley, Altidore ‘will never forget’ crushing loss in Trinidad
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TORONTO – Coach Greg Vanney says his American players “will never forget” missing out on the 2018 World Cup.
He knows from experience.
Toronto FC’s bench boss missed out on the 2002 tournament after suffering an injury that kept him off the plane to South Korea.
“It’s a loss. You’re going to grieve that loss,” Vanney told the Toronto Sun as both Michael Bradley and Jozy Altidore returned to Toronto fresh off a crushing loss in the Caribbean.
The Americans were stunned Tuesday night in Trinidad, where the Yanks needed just a draw to stay alive in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying.
Instead, a shocking 2-1 loss to the already-eliminated Soca Warriors put the U.S. out of the World Cup for the first time since 1986, the last time Canada made the event.
“It’s the passing of something you strive for and live for as a player,” Vanney added. “Now, it’s gone. I think there’s time to process that.”
It takes time to process something that, before this week, was incomprehensible.
American Millennials haven’t experienced a world in which the U.S. wasn't at soccer's marquee event. The U.S. always has been a dominant forced within the region.
Not now. And the legacies of those involved almost certainly have altered course.
Vanney said he intends to sit down with Altidore and Bradley when they return to training Thursday morning. While he expects both to turn their attention to Sunday’s game against the Montreal Impact, he knows there will be lasting effects.
“In terms of a processing standpoint, it’s going to be hitting them every now and then,” Vanney said. “They’ll feel this loss for awhile, I’m sure.”
Having earned 37 caps for the Stars and Stripes, Vanney compared what his guys are going through to his own experience 15 years ago.
“That was the one World Cup when I had a real shot,” Vanney said. “It was crushing.”
Put together a massive World Cup qualifying roundup in today's @TheTorontoSun pic.twitter.com/cN9ULHK4OT
— Kurtis Larson (@KurtLarSUN) October 12, 2017
WORLD CUP RUNDOWN
CONCACAF
Qualified: Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama
Intercontinental playoff: Honduras
Notable absences: United States, Trinidad & Tobago
The skinny: With Mexico and Costa Rica already qualified for Russia 2018, Tuesday night was one of the wildest in CONCACAF history. Panama was out — until it wasn’t. Then Honduras. By the end, the Americans found themselves on the outside looking in for the first time in 30 years after Honduras stunned El Tri in San Pedro Sula as the Panamanians sealed qualification with a dramatic last-minute winner against the Ticos. Some have argued failure to qualify could set American soccer back a decade.
CONMEBOL
Qualified: Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Colombia
Intercontinental playoff: Peru
Notable absences: Chile, Paraguay, Ecuador
The skinny: A World Cup without Lionel Messi wouldn’t have seemed right. With his team in need of a win in South American qualifying, Messi put La Albiceleste on his back on Tuesday night, collecting a hat trick in Ecuador in a 3-1 win after watching his side go down a goal in the first minute. Keep an eye on Peru in its playoff against New Zealand. La Blanquirroja haven’t qualified for a World Cup final since 1982, when Teofilo Cubillas was wrapping his international career.
AFC
Qualified: Iran, South Korea, Japan, Saudi Arabia
Intercontinental playoff: Australia
Notable absences: Syria, Uzbekistan, China, UAE, Iraq
The skinny: The Australians find themselves in a precarious situation after outlasting Syria to secure a playoff date against Honduras. Tim Cahill’s double this week in a 3-2 aggregate win over the Syrians saved the Socceroos the same embarrassment the Americans face. Iran remains the class of the Asian confederation, having conceded just five times in 18 fixtures. Once considered a minor powerhouse, South Korea was a loss away from allowing Uzbekistan to sneak in ahead of it.
OFC
Qualified: No automatic spots
Intercontinental playoff: New Zealand
Notable absences: New Caledonia, Fiji, Tahiti, Papua New Guinea
The skinny: The Kiwis are back in a familiar position after wading through Oceania qualifying without a loss. That said, a goal-less draw with New Caledonia en route to securing a place in the intercontinental playoff was somewhat eye-opening. Don’t forget, it was just seven years ago in South Africa that New Zealand played Slovakia, Italy and Paraguay to three straight draws, leaving the 2010 tournament unbeaten.
CAF
Qualified: Nigeria, Egypt
Almost there: Senegal, Morocco, Tunisia
Notable absences: Cameroon, Algeria, Ghana
The skinny: Tunisia is likely to qualify, needing just a draw against Libya on Nov. 11. Morocco will qualify with a draw at Ivory Coast. Senegal is in position to qualify if South Africa doesn’t beat it twice, on Nov. 10 and 14. The story in Africa, though, is the absences. You’ll remember Round of 16 finishers Algeria took Germany to extra time four years ago in Brazil before falling 2-1.
UEFA
Qualified: France, Portugal, Germany, Serbia, Poland, England, Spain, Belgium, Iceland
UEFA playoffs: Switzerland, Italy, Denmark, Croatia, Sweden, Northern Ireland, Greece, Ireland
Notable absences: Netherlands, Hungary, Czech Rep., Wales, Slovakia, Scotland, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Ukraine, Turkey
The skinny: The Dutch are set to miss out on their second major tournament in two years after watching Sweden slip into the playoff spot on goal-differential. Welsh hearts were crushed on the final day of qualifying after the Republic of Ireland left Cardiff with a 1-0 win that clinched second place in Group D. Iceland continues to be a huge story in world football. The tiny Nordic nation of 330,000 topped a difficult group that contained Croatia, Ukraine and Turkey. Germany, England and Belgium all dominated qualifying.
LOOMING PLAYOFFS
Kurtis Larson breaks down two intercontinental, aggregate series in November to decide who’s in, who’s out.
Intercontinental playoffs (Nov. 6-14)
Honduras (CONCACAF) vs. Australia (AFC)
The skinny: Flip a coin. This series could go either way. The Socceroos will get a taste of CONCACAF next month when they travel to San Pedro Sula — one of the most intimidating environments in world football — for the first leg of this intercontinental playoff. While the Aussies haven’t been nearly as stingy as in past editions, Los Catrachos were poor throughout most of qualifying. Honduras starts three MLSers in Maynor Figueroa (Dallas), Romell Quioto (Houston) and Alberth Elis (Houston).
Larson’s pick: Honduras
New Zealand (OFC) vs. Peru (CONMEBOL)
The skinny: The Kiwis don’t want to head to Lima without a lead. The Peruvians lost just twice — to Brazil and Chile — during nine home qualifiers at the 50,000-seat Estadio Nacional. The South Americans boast a better roster — which includes Vancouver Whitecaps standout Yordy Reyna.
Larson’s pick: Peru
EIGHT LEFT IN EUROPE
*UEFA playoffs (Nov. 9-14) will see eight second-place finishers divided into two pots based on October’s FIFA World Rankings.
Pot A (Seeded)
- Switzerland
- Italy
- Denmark
- Croatia
Pot B (Unseeded)
- Sweden
- Northern Ireland
- Greece
- Ireland
LARSON SAYS...
Weakest team: Northern Ireland
Strongest team: Italy
Team that could surprise: Greece
And another thing: Denmark’s up-and-down qualifying campaign leads me to believe they’re ripe for an upset.
2018 FIFA World Cup
*21st FIFA Men’s World Cup
Russia (12 venues in 11 host cities)
June 14 – July 15, 2018