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Tuesday, September 19
Agoos thrilled to don U.S. jersey
By John Pye
Associated Press
CANBERRA, Australia -- Jeff Agoos says he'd have to be struck by lightning before even contemplating missing the U.S. soccer team's Olympic opener Wednesday against the Czech Republic.
|  | | Jeff Agoos, left, is thrilled to be representing the United States in the Olympics. |
Agoos has represented the United States at just about every level, but he has never run onto the field at a World Cup, so the Olympics is his biggest shot on the international stage.
A good performance in Sydney could bring him more consideration for the U.S. team, which is currently attempting to qualify for the 2002 World Cup.
The 32-year-old defender, one of three senior players allowed on the under-23 roster for the Olympic tournament, is preparing to
unleash all the aggression and frustration he has been bottling up for years.
Not that he hides his disappointments. Devastated at being the last player cut from the World Cup squad in 1994, Agoos torched his uniform.
"You put in a year and a half of physical and mental hardship, you get that close, you're pretty close to being insane. Anything can happen," he said.
Was it tantamount to burning the flag?
"No, it wasn't that bad," Agoos said. "It was just a uniform. ... There was no thought behind that when I did it. I was just pretty angry at the time. I didn't think it would be so overplayed."
Despite figuring prominently on the U.S. national squad, Agoos didn't get in a game at the 1998 World Cup in France, watching instead from the sideline as the Americans were eliminated in the first round.
"This tournament is an opportunity for me. It's a special experience in my lifetime, and I'm looking forward to it," he said.
Agoos is confident the Americans can improve their Olympic record, with games against Cameroon and Kuwait after Wednesday's match against the powerful Czechs.
The top two teams in each of the four pools advance to a second-round knockout stage. The United States never has gotten beyond the first round at the Olympics.
No international ratings exist at the under-23 level but, as qualifiers through the European confederation, the Czech Republic would be considered among the top four teams in the 16-nation tournament.
Clive Charles, who took over as U.S. Olympic under-23 coach from current national coach Bruce Arena after the Atlanta Games, says
his only concern now is to beat the Czech Republic.
"We want to go in and play well. If we play well, we'll make the second round," he said Tuesday.
Would he accept one point for a tie against the Czechs?
"In a New York second," he admitted. "But we're still chasing three points (a win), and that will set us up for the rest of the tournament."
Of the 18 U.S. players, 13 are pros in Major League Soccer. Veteran goalkeeper Brad Friedel plays for Liverpool in the English Premier League. John O'Brien plays for Dutch giant Ajax, and teen-ager Landon Donovan is with Bayer Leverkusen in the German Bundesliga.
It is the youngest team the U.S. has ever sent to an Olympics, but it also is the most experienced.
At Atlanta, the team was made up mostly of college stars, but the advent of the MLS and the increasing popularity of soccer in
the States contributed to a much stronger team for Sydney.
The Olympic soccer tournament kicks off Wednesday, two days before the official opening ceremony of the Sydney Games.
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