It’s a sport where cleats are called “boots,” the field is the “pitch” and using your hands is illegal — the game of soccer is a thing of beauty.Every four years, 32 nations gather in one country to compete in the greatest sporting event on the planet — the World Cup.Tomorrow, these teams begin a month-long fight for soccer’s most prolific honor. And while it’s obvious to me the United States is the best country in the world, when it comes to soccer they’re merely No. 14.Despite the USA’s lack of dominance in the sport, I like their chances this summer.When you think United States soccer, the first name that comes to mind is Landon Donovan. The 28-year-old midfielder will undoubtedly be the leader for the Stars and Stripes this summer.With 121 international caps (or appearances, for the uninformed), Donovan is one of seven U.S. players with 50 or more games of international experience. Veteran leadership combined with youthful skill give the U.S. a pretty solid roster.Starting with the man between the posts, the U.S. have a good combination of young and old talent at each level.Goalkeeper Tim Howard has established himself as one of the best in the English Premier League with 114 saves and 11 clean sheets in 38 games last season. You can never underestimate the value of a solidified keeper and having Howard in goal single handedly boosts America’s chances of competing.Scoring a goal in soccer is one of the most exciting occurrences in all of sports. Many fans are worried about the U.S.’s ability to produce goals, but I can see the offense actually being a strong point for the Americans.The most proven forward for the U.S. is also the youngest player on the team, in Jozy Altidore. The 20-year-old striker has 25 international caps and has scored nine goals in those appearances. Altidore sprained his ankle in training last week but has been cleared to play the team’s opener against England.Along with Altidore, United States’ head coach Bob Bradley will bring three other forwards to South Africa, including 28-year-old Herculez Gomez. Gomez led the Primera División de México in scoring last season, putting up 10 goals in 17 games.I see a lot of potential in Gomez, and Bradley will be looking to guys like Gomez and fellow forward Edson Buddle to come ready to play and produce goals.While the front line of the U.S. seems to be a bit iffy, the strong supporting cast in the midfield will help make up some ground.Donovan is always a threat when attacking the net and has racked up 42 goals his U.S. international career. Along with the L.A. Galaxy star, midfielder Clint Dempsey can make his presence known as well.Dempsey had a successful season with Fulham in England amassing seven goals in 24 appearances from the midfield. While the 27-year-old is listed as a midfielder, he could be seeing time as a forward, bringing depth and experience to a young American striking crew.The downfall of the United States could come with the back line of defense. And while we all love the mammoth of a defender Oguchi Onyewu is, there’s no doubt his form is questionable due to his recent knee injury.Despite being full of experience — with three of the projected four starters having more than 50 caps to his name — the U.S. defense has shown signs of weakness in international matches. U.S. captain Carlos Bocanegra leads all defenders with 77 caps, with Steve Cherundolo and “Gooch” both accumulating 50-plus appearances.In the end, the United States’ World Cup run will be made or lost in the defense. Maybe I’m looking through red, white and blue glasses, but I can see the U.S. getting past the quarterfinal round.The U.S. can and will get out of the group stage of play, with the only real competitor being the English. The Americans should take care of business with Algeria and Slovenia.Coming out of the group stage (most likely in second place behind England), the U.S. will play the winner of group D, the favorite being Germany. While Germany does indeed have a colorful World Cup history, I think the Americans match up well with “Die Mannschaft” and could come out on top.One thing with this U.S. team is that when things are clicking and the team is playing well, they can compete with any country in the world. They proved that in their second-place run in the Confederations Cup, also held in South Africa, last summer.Once past the group stages, anything can happen. Will America win the World Cup? Probably not. Can they surprise the world and make a run? Absolutely.So if America can’t win it all, who can?              The easy answer comes with Spain or Brazil. Both countries are stacked in all facets of the game and are safe choices to be hoisting the World Cup trophy come July 11.But my pick is England.With a deep roster and midfielders who can score from anywhere on the pitch, the stars are aligned for the English to capture their first World Cup since 1966. The loss of captain and defensive lynchpin Rio Ferdinand puts a damper on their hopes, but there’s still enough talent to see them through.It baffles me when people argue that England doesn’t have the striking power to compete with the best. Four of the top six goal scorers in the EPL this past season are English. The real question is who can’t score?And with a trio of talented goalkeepers, the Three Lions are looking to bring home the glory from South Africa.Always keep an eye out on the dark horses. Look for African nations Cote D’Ivoire and Cameroon, as well as European underdog Greece to make runs and spoil someone’s dreams.But when it’s all over, England will have defeated Argentina to be crowned the 2010 World Cup Champion.God Bless America.
 
 
 
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