USMNT: 7 Reasons the United States Isn't Going to the Olympics

Call them the almost men. The United States almost made it through the group stage of the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament. But my dad always said, "Almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades," and the expression holds true here.

An unlikely last-minute goal from El Salvador's Jaime Alas was the final nail in the U.S.'s coffin. The 3-3 draw was enough to send head coach Caleb Porter's team home and send the Salvadorans through to the semifinals.

The end result is that a team weaker than the United States will represent the region at this summer's Olympic Games in London. But it will be a team that rose to the big occasion, rather than one that shrunk under the spotlight.

Here are the seven reasons that the United States men aren't going to the Olympics.

The U.S. Didn't Have Their Best Players There

The U.S. team that took the field against Cuba, Canada and El Salvador was not the one that would have taken the field in London.

Players not available for qualifying included senior team stalwarts Jozy Altidore and Timmy Chandler. It also included occasional seniors Danny Williams and Alfredo Morales.

Additionally, Joshua Gatt, who was recalled to Molde just days before the national's first qualifying match, and Juan Agudelo, who injured his knee against Cuba, were unavailable for the two losses.

Had all those names been available, a very different United States team begins to take shape in the imagination. Unfortunately, that's where it will have to remain this summer.

One-Dimensional Attack

Since the Klinsmann era began, the United States has paid a great deal of lip service to playing attractive soccer. The program involves a 4-3-3 formation and a possession-based approach to the game.

The U-23s seemed to take a page from the more traditional U.S. soccer guide by basing their attack almost exclusively on speculative crosses aimed at a generally outnumbered lone striker. It was a strategy that Canada and El Salvador seemed to invite and welcome.

With the exception of Freddy Adu’s phenomenal mid-30ish minutes of the El Salvador game, no U.S. player appeared to have any other attacking ideas. There was no Plan B.

There was no effort to combine in the final third, no effort to turn the corner on one of those mad dashes for the endline and as a result there was precious little danger to their semifinal bound opponents.

Brek Shea's Disappearing Act

Of the players who were available to the United States, few come more highly touted than Brek Shea. In fleeting glimpses it was obvious that he had the ability to take the game over. But those glimpses were few and far between, as the mohawked winger failed to assert himself on proceedings against Canada or El Salvador.

Neither opponent had enough speed to counter Shea in full flow. Neither opponent managed to keep him from getting to the end line whenever he chose. But neither opponent had to worry about him consistently, as he trotted around the left side of the pitch seemingly unconcerned about whether he got involved or not.

Shea's highlights for the tournament consist mostly of a dozen or so crosses lumped into the area. For a player with the speed and technique that Shea so tantalizing flashes every so often, it is not good enough.

Mix Diskerud Turned Negative

At his best, Mix Diskerud is the axle around which the United States' attack spins. Against Canada and El Salvador, Diskerud settled for a game dominated by negative passing options. As a result, the United States lost all ability to penetrate with the ball.

When he is effective, Diskerud generally operates much further forward than he was able to manage in the final two matches of the qualifying tournament. As he was forced backward, his passing options became fewer and less dangerous.

Far too often in the losses, Diskerud was reduced to benignly switching the ball from one outside back to the other from positions only marginally ahead of his center-backs. Canada and El Salvador were more than happy to let the U.S. playmaker have that one.

Horrific Defending

Ike Opara’s match against Canada will be the talking point for many fans. The San Jose Earthquakes defender looked so awkward and unsure of himself that every person in the audience just wanted to give him a hug.

But Opara wasn’t the lone culprit in a shocking United States defensive showing. Over the last two games of the tournament, the Yanks gave up five goals. To Canada and El Salvador. Three of those came on corner kicks. The other two from lax defensive play (even before you mention goalkeeping).

The United States weren’t undone by genius. They were undone by their own defensive ineptitude. The scary part is that the damage could have been much worse against more clinical opponents.

Giving Up the Center of Midfield

One area of the field where the United States did have a full complement of first-choice players was in the center of midfield. Unfortunately for the nationals, the game plan didn't seem to involve them for the majority of the final two matches.

Following his hat trick against Cuba, Joe Corona went missing for the majority of the next two games. Mix Diskerud was forced to drop so deep into his own defense to pick up the ball that he ceased having any attacking impact. Even when Freddy Adu switched into the middle against Canada, the U.S. team immediately lost track of how to find their captain.

Looking at the last two matches the U.S. played, you can count the number of attacking movements that involved the central midfielders on two hands. It's a failing that directly contributed to their inability to consistently threaten goal against what were much weaker opponents.

Sean Johnson's Miscue

You hate to blame one person. But at the end of the day, despite all the other problems, the United States would have won the group if Sean Johnson had dealt with Jaime Alas’ final shot.

Johnson had already made several big saves since coming on for the injured Bill Hamid. But the one shot he flubbed was the most important.

It’s true that his defenders failed to close Alas down and that the game shouldn’t have been that close to begin with; but the final shot was eminently stoppable, and Johnson didn’t stop it.

Life as a goalkeeper can be harsh. Here's hoping that Johnson can take this mistake on the chin and grow from it.