Gold Cup 2011: The U.S. Loss to Mexico or Rather the 'Rumble in the Rose Bowl'

The US was upended by Mexico tonight in the 2011 Gold Cup Final 4-2. The 90,000 fans that packed into the Rose Bowl on this beautiful summer night saw a game that will go down as one of the greats in this storied rivalry.

The US did what every announcer, critic, and fan said they should do: score early. They did it not only once, but twice. Logically it was an ideal way to start.

Everyone assumed that they would not be able to shutout Mexico and knew they would need at least two goals to win this game. And they got them...but maybe too early.

The cruel irony in soccer is that scoring early can sometimes be detrimental to your game plan. The US got the first goal off a corner very early.

So early that the play was open and no one had yet established dominance. It was somewhat of of a gift that seemed to shock the US players more than anyone.

The second came early as well, but it was clear that this was a goal against the grain of play. Mexico was dominating possession.

In an instant the US got a quick counter which ended with Dempsey sliding the ball to Donovan, calmly scoring to put the US up 2-0. There were still 65 minutes left.

After the second goal, the US fell back in into a defensive scheme. They seemed to be content with their two goal lead and were going to just try and survive for the next hour.

Within minutes of the second goal, you could tell Mexico was going to score. Their attack became relentless and shots were coming from everywhere.

Chicharito was constantly getting behind the back line and Giovanni Dos Santos was cutting them with passes like a surgeon. Six minutes later, the lead was cut in half as Mexican midfielder Pablo Barrera scored.

The US continued to ride their one-goal lead.

A few more minutes have passed and Mexico was still pressing. I was in the middle of texting a friend the following message: "It's not a matter of if they will score, but a matter of when."

As I pressed the "send" button Jose Andres Guardado capitalized on a error by US defender Eric Lichaj and evened the game at two. I felt that pressing that "send" button, I had single-handedly sealed their fate.

Let's be honest, Mexico was and is the better team. I know it's difficult for US fans to stomach, but we are not in the same class as them.

We have Dempsey, Donovan, Howard and a bunch of other guys. They have a unit that is synchronized and works together. They feed off each other's energy and have play makers who brought out their best.

But perhaps the one biggest thing the Mexicans have over the US is simply heart. There were tens of thousands of Mexicans who were discouraged by Donovan's goal, but not a single one of them was on the field.

Nothing changed in the Mexican attitude or game plan after the first goal. Nothing changed after the second. They held their heads high and reset from half each time. If you ask the players, I doubt one of them would ever say they felt like they were in trouble.

Maybe this is because they knew they were the better side. But they knew they were the better side because they convinced themselves they were the better side before the ball ever kicked off.

The US reaction was quite different. The first goal woke them up that there is a lot of time left. The second deflated their hopes of winning. The third shut the door on those hopes and the fourth locked it up.

Watching this game was like watching the Ali/Foreman Rumble in the Jungle. Foreman poked and prodded all night. He even looked like he was making progress and might win the match.

However, it was only a matter of time before Ali came alive and when he did he did it with so much force, speed and confidence, Foreman couldn't do anything to take control back.

At a certain point in the fight, it was obvious Foreman was going to lose. That everything that happened in the beginning of the fight meant nothing because the superior side was going to win convincingly.

The famous image of that fight was at the end. As Ali connected on a series of hooks to the head, Foreman lost his balance and started to stumbled toward the mat. As he did, Ali could have landed one or two more shots to finish him. Instead, he let him fall as not to ruin the aesthetic of this giant falling back to earth.

Dos Santos' last goal resembled this moment. Ali was so in control of this man's fate that his decision to not punch, is the same as Dos Santos' ability to dribble the ball in the 18. The five defenders around him were at his mercy. He could do what he pleased, because the US was already beaten.

They were the stumbling giant falling to their defeat. Mexico was was Ali: the clearly superior side whose confidence never wavered and was always sure they would win.

Mexico played like champions, and that is why they won the championship.