Opinion: American soccer team can't be afraid of expectations

Michael Bradley, one of the stars of the U.S. national men's soccer team, was feeling defiant.

After Sunday's 3-0 victory over Egypt in the Confederations Cup, he attacked those who dared criticize his team after atrocious performances last week.

"All of the critics in America who said we were no good after losing to Italy and Brazil, let's see what they say now," Bradley said.

Well, Michael, if your team gets mauled by Spain in today's Cup semis, the critics will say the team is no good.

And they'll be correct.

Don't get me wrong. I was elated and surprised when the U.S. escaped virtually certain elimination with Sunday's win.

The Americans played brainy, passionate soccer. They played as if they expected to win.

And yet ...

Reaction to the victory left me worried about the future of American soccer on the world stage. This level of performance should be the norm, not the exception.

Americans are past - or at least should be past - jumping up and down after beating a team of Egypt's caliber. The Egyptians, remember, are ranked 40th in the world.

It hasn't been long since America seemed full of soccer promise.

In 2002, the U.S. stunned the world by traveling to the World Cup quarterfinals. Only outrageous goalkeeping by Germany's Oliver Kahn prevented the U.S. from a berth in the semis.

I talked last week with Colorado Rapids defender Pablo Mastroeni, who started for the 2002 and 2006 U.S. World Cup teams. He said the journey to the quarterfinals created outsized expectations.

Mastroeni, a native of Argentina, is angered by what he considers a ridiculous burden on the U.S. team. We don't live, Mastroeni said, in Spain or Argentina or Brazil.

"It's going to be awhile before this country becomes a world powerhouse," Mastroeni said.

Let's be realistic, Mastroeni says. Let's be patient.

Sorry, but that's the wrong approach. The realistic, patient, low-expectation approach helped doom the U.S. to first-round exits in the 2003 Confederations Cup, 2006 World Cup and 2007 Copa America.

Impatience is what's needed. Expectations that might seem ridiculous are required.

Let's look at history. A little more than two decades ago, the United States reigned as the world's undisputed king in basketball, but players and coaches in Greece and Spain and Argentina embraced the seemingly impossible task of conquering the giant.

They declined the easy route. They refused to make excuses after losses. They didn't put happy faces on losses.

And this tough approach worked. They steadily improved.

In 2004, I sat courtside in Athens watching Argentina maul the Americans in Olympic basketball competition.

The Americans were bigger, stronger and more talented, but Argentina played like a family of true believers, and this band of fierce amigos soon wore gold medals around their necks.

Bradley, son of U.S. coach Bob Bradley, should be proud of Sunday's victory. It was one of those dramatic Lazarus-like sports moments when a deceased team gains new life.

But it isn't enough. It's not close to enough.

Today, Bradley and the Americans need to show fans, opponents and themselves that a dangerous team resides in the Land of the Free.

The Americans broke from their recent humiliating history and actually traveled to the second round of a tournament, and that's great.

Now, Bradley should demand more.

A lot more.