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Respect not enough for U.S.

Sun 28th, June 2009

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Landon Donovan plopped down on the grass at Ellis Park, a bulky blue coat shielding him from the 39-degree temperatures, as he and the United States contemplated a 3-2 loss to Brazil on Sunday.

Brazilian captain Lucio, who scored the game-winner in the 84th minute, grasped the FIFA Confederations Cup trophy, lifted it into the chilly air and looked up at the prize with tears in his eyes.

Just over an hour earlier, Donovan showed Brazil why he's the caretaker for the No. 10 jersey - which was made famous by Brazil legend Pele - when he scored to put the United States in front by two goals midway through the first half.

Donovan, with his last name in blue letters on the back of his jersey, wouldn't have looked out of place sporting a yellow jersey with green trim - the famous colors of the five-time World Cup champions.

Of course, it would have just said Landon on the back, though.

Donovan's goal was brilliant. World-class. Yes, even Brazilian-like.

The U.S., for one half, was equally as impressive.

"I think people around the world see that we have a good team," U.S. coach Bob Bradley said.

But Brazil doesn't flinch at two-goal deficits, and Luis Fabiano scored twice to tie the match before Lucio headed home the game-winner to snatch the title from the U.S.

Great teams don't blow two-goal leads. Especially in a tournament final.

Sure, the U.S. followed up its stunning upset of No. 1 Spain with another fine performance. Sure, the Americans earned a little more respect, proving that they can compete with the "big boys," as U.S. captain Carlos Bocanegra called them.

The United States gained invaluable experience playing five matches, including four against teams ranked in the top five in the world, in South Africa just a year before the 2010 World Cup is held in the country.

But, the U.S. is ranked 14th in the world. And respect, well, that just doesn't cut it anymore.

"We're at the point where we don't want respect, we want to win," Donovan said.

The U.S. was in its first FIFA final, and playing in another Confederations Cup final or a World Cup final may not happen again during Donovan's career - if it ever does happen.

Spain has never played in a World Cup final. Only seven teams have ever won the World Cup, and total of 11 have even reached a World Cup final.

"There's no guarantee that we ever get back to a final game like this," Donovan said, "so it's disappointing."

The Americans may still be trying to win over a regular fan base, but when the team succeeds, the wagon will be full. And Donovan's right, the U.S. should be done trying to earn respect.

The U.S. has done well at the World Cup a few times, most recently in 2002 when it reached the quarterfinals and put in a performance good enough to knock off eventual runner-up Germany in a 1-0 loss.

Yes, the 2006 World Cup didn't go very well; three-and-out for the U.S. But are World Cup tournaments supposed to be easy? Remember 2002, when defending winner France and two-time winner Argentina didn't make it out of the group stage?

How soon we forget.

Just like we easily forget the U.S. has performed well against many of the top teams in the world for nearly a decade. The Americans beat Brazil 1-0 in 1998, beat Portugal and Mexico in the 2002 World Cup, lost 1-0 at Spain last summer, and just four days later, tied then top-ranked Argentina, 0-0.

Donovan is realistic, he knows the Americans lack the overall talent of Brazil and some of the other countries they are trying to not just compete with, but beat.

"You look around at their players and you realize why they are worth so much and why they play at the teams they play, but it's disappointing when we gave such a good effort," Donovan said.

Despite its performance at the Confederations Cup, the United States will still be overlooked on the world stage. The United States' 3-1 loss to Italy and its 3-0 defeat to Brazil in the group stage will leave unanswered questions.

Brazil also beat Italy 3-0 in the group stage, but the Italians have four World Cup titles to their credit.

"If we want to continue to get better," Donovan said, "we need to expect to be able to compete ... with these teams [every time we play them]."

The United States proved - once again - it can play with the best teams in the world in its loss to Brazil.

But the United States can't be satisfied with just competing if it's ever going to take the last, giant leap toward becoming one of the top teams in the world.

More wins - not respect - are what the Americans really need.