The US and The 2009 Confederations Cup: An Adventure in Experience

As most know by now, the United States Men's National Team lost to Brazil 3-2 in the FIFA Confederations Cup Final on Sunday after leading 2-0 in the first half.

Of the many things the U.S. fans, and the team in particular, can take out of this Cinderella story run, one stands above the rest. The invaluable experience of hanging with two of the best teams in the world stands above all else.

While much theatre was made of the United States' runner up finish, the ESPN coverage of the trophy presentations where Clint Dempsey was visibly upset by the heartbreaking loss to Brazil, we all have to start viewing their fantastic finish as a positive.

After losing 3-1 to Italy and then 3-0 to Brazil in the group stage, many fans, including myself, were calling for Bob Bradley's head, and criticising the United States for a lack of drive, effort and organization.

However, the thrilling result of a 3-0 win over Egypt and a 3-0 result from Brazil over Italy, meant the U.S. had the opportunity to face FIFA World No. 1 Spain.

The U.S. carried it's grit and determination used to oust Egypt into the game and outplayed Spain for 90 minutes and on the back of two goals and great performances by Tim Howard and the United States' back four, the National Team were in the final.

The high many fans were experiencing from the wins over Egypt and Spain was still going strong as Clint Dempsey redirected a perfect cross from Jonathan Spector into the far corner of the Brazilian net, and Landon Donovan provided two world class touches to add to the US lead.

Unfortunately, the U.S. were unlucky to concede just 36 seconds into the second half, and that goal proved to be the spark Brazil needed on its way to two more goals and the victory.

This three-week-long tournament provided an adventure that the U.S. team and its fans will not soon forget. It was an adventure in both soccer and, most importantly, experience.

With the first two results cemented, the U.S. men had to look inside themselves for reflection. They looked like they didn't belong at the tournament, and they had to beat Egypt just to salvage some of the self confidence they utterly lacked in the first two contests.

That three point deficit in the group, and their response, beating Egypt 3-0, will provide more confidence than you can possibly imagine. In a year's time, they will be back in a group of four teams, in South Africa, with a clean slate.

Should they need three points in their third and final game of the group stage to qualify for the knockout stage of the World Cup, they will have the game against Egypt to fall back on.

With that win under their belt in a FIFA competition, this group of players knows they can go out and get a result against a great side when it is needed most.

The victory over Spain gave them the invaluable experience of knowing they possess the quality to not only beat a World No. 1, but get a clean sheet in the process.

While they fell short against Brazil, the United States has a FIFA competition final under their belt. They can take solace knowing that they played brilliantly for 45 minutes against a relentless team. 

In soccer, there are very few things more valuable than experience. If countries like Brazil's, Spain's, Germany's, and England's experience levels are like a castle, the U.S. soccer team's experience is a barely-finished foundation.

We are teenagers in the soccer world, but competing against and beating teams on as grand a stage such as the FIFA Confederations Cup, our maturity is only beginning to speed up.

The experience acquired by the U.S. Men's National Team in the 2009 Confederations Cup will serve not just them, but the ascendancy of U.S. soccer on the world stage.

With some work still to do in World Cup qualifying, the U.S. National team will take the confidence of knowing they can beat a team like Spain into games against the inferior competition in CONCACAF.

There are only 11 months until the US will be returning to South Africa. The experience the U.S. Men's soccer team gained there this summer will prove as invaluable tool as any in their quest to make a competitive run in the World Cup in 2010.