Downright Awful

Wow. Not only did the U.S. national team not look great in its opener today, the Yanks looked downright awful. Czech Republic came out, took it to the U.S. and dominated them in all phases of the game in the 3-0 win.

The U.S. backline was exposed by the attacking Czech team, while the offense looked disorganized. No attacking. Bad ball movement. Just a pathetic performance, honestly.

I'll break down the individual performances and see how the U.S. can regroup going into Game 2 against group favorite Italy.

Kasey Keller -- Keller was average. All three Czech goals were because of defensive breakdowns. The first one, in the 5th minute, came off a defensive breakdown on the left side, after Eddie Lewis had pushed up offensively. Jan Koller headed in a cross from point-blank range. Two of the goals were on shots where Keller simply had no chance. The second goal was a magnificent strike from 30 yards out into the upper-right corner of the goal. Beautiful shot. However, Keller didn't do anything spectacular either. He was simply average. He didn't show a great deal of leadership either in reorganizing his backline.

Eddie Lewis -- Lewis played all 90 minutes and was actively involved in both the offense and the defense. Had the early defensive breakdown, but responded to have one of the team's better performances. One of the few players who hustled and was active the whole game.

Steve Cherundolo -- Average game from right back. Played only the first half before being subbed out to get more offense on the field. Did not do anything to stand out -- either good or bad.

Eddie Pope -- Pope was solid. No glaring mistakes, which is usually the senior centerback's MO.

Oguchi Onweyu -- A World Cup debut worth forgetting. Has a reputation for fouling and lived up to it. Also picked up an early yellow card. Was beaten by Koller on the first goal. Also didn't clear the ball out of the zone to set up the Czechs' second goal. He's young and immensely talented. Improved somewhat during the second half. But he looked outclassed on this day. Nerves? Or sign of what's to come? That is yet to be seen.

Bobby Convey -- Another World Cup debut worth forgetting. Very passive. Did a lot of passing backward instead of attacking. When he did attack, he normally turned it over. Did have a couple of good moves, only to lead to bad crosses into the box. Rather disappointing performance. Must improve his game.

DaMarcus Beasley -- See Convey above. Whether he's not in great shape (most likely not the case) or he's uncomfortable playing on the right side (he's left-footed and normally plays left mid, like Convey), he looked out of it the whole game. Beasley's game is attacking, yet he did none of it against the Czechs. The move for him was to get him and Convey on the field at the same time. But the fact of the matter is they play the same position, and one of them will likely be sitting on the bench.

Pablo Mastroeni -- Played the first half and did his job. No glaring mistakes. He was forgettable, which at his position, unlike Beasley and Convey, is what you want.

Claudio Reyna -- Gave the U.S. its best scoring chance, hitting the left post on a strike that would have tied the game at 1 in the first half. Not his best game, particularly in the second half, when he dropped back to holding midfielder. He can play that position, and most likely will more during the Cup, but he's better suited for the attacking midfield position.

Landon Donovan -- Frustrating day for Landon. Started up top at forward and dropped back to attacking midfielder during the second half. Didn't get the ball on his feet much, which is when he's the most dangerous. And also didn't make many attacking runs. Donovan is the star on this team, and he has to have the ball on his feet for the U.S. to be successful.

Brian McBride -- Played about 70 minutes and didn't get too many chances. He provides a big target around the goal, but the U.S. never really got the chance to get the big fella involved in the game.

Eddie Johnson -- The youngest player on the team at 22. Entered the game at halftime and immediately provided a spark. Had 3 shots that all had a chance to go in. Really was the best player on the team against the Czechs.

John O'Brien -- The team's best ballhandler entered at the half due to fitness concerns. Injuries have limited his time on the international level since 2002. Looked good. Serves a great ball. The U.S. offense runs much better with him on the field.

Josh Wolff -- Entered for McBride late. Had one scoring chance. That will be Wolff's role on the team, a late sub to give the team some extra speed and spark up top.

Where to go from here against Italy? On the positives, Eddie Johnson earned a start up top. He simply came to play. Pair him with McBride up top against Italy.

In the midfield, you have to choose between Convey and Beasley. They are 2 of probably the 5 best all-around players on the team, but they play the same position. So who do you choose? While not an easy decision, it's Beasley. One, he's got more experience. Two, Convey had his chance to play on the left side against the Czechs. He didn't do much. So give Beaz a chance to play his natural position for at least the entire first half against Italy. In the middle, you put Donovan and Reyna. They are your young star and your captain -- your 2 best players. Mastroeni didn't do anything wrong, he's just left out due to the numbers game. O'Brien showed flash of his old abilities as a sub. Put him on the right side to start the game and see if he's fit enough to play 90 minutes.

In the back, Eddie Lewis was stellar. Another option here is Convey. He and Beaz attacking on the same side could be interesting. But Lewis played an outstanding first game. Cherundolo also didn't do anything to lose his starting position. In the middle, Pope is a given. And I understand Onweyu had first-game jitters. Do you give him a chance for redemption? Maybe Bruce Arena does, but I don't. I'm putting Carlos Bocanegra in, giving up a little size and power, but maybe getting a bit more polish.

With the 3-0 loss in Game 1, the U.S. has set itself up for a must-win game against Italy. A tie really does you no good because of the goal differential tie-breaker coupled with a three-goal deficit already. The Yanks must beat Italy -- and that's no easy task.