Graham Zusi continues rise with USMNT

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The book says Graham Zusi is a "late-bloomer," whatever that means. To paraphrase the great Dorothy Parker, the book should not be tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force.

"I guess you could say it was a quick ascent," the Sporting KC midfielder said after helping the United States men's national soccer team score a 3-1 World Cup semifinal win over Guatemala Tuesday night. "But in my eyes, I don't just look at it as the last year of work. It's been a long road — 20 hard years, a lot of dedication and hard work that went into this. And I'm extremely happy that it's paying off."

Which it is. On both sides, now that you mention it. Fun fact: With Zusi in the starting lineup, the U.S. is now 5-0-0 in international play. And they've yet to lose any of the six matches in which Zusi has appeared.

"Let's keep him," midfielder Herculez Gomez cracked.

"You know, he's a good player. He's earned his spot. He's always been a good player to me. I never knew why they didn't give him more time when I was there (in Kansas City) when he was a rookie."

Hindsight is a beautiful thing. So was Zusi's corner kick from the right side about 10 minutes into the contest, a rainbow that Clint Dempsey neatly headed to the waiting feet of Carlos Bocanegra, who slotted it home for a goal that leveled the match at 1-all. The floodgates pretty much opened after that, with Dempsey piling on two more goals before things had reached the 40-minute mark.

"He is technically so good, that he keeps the ball, his passing is accurate," USA coach Jurgen Klinsmann said of Zusi. "I told him before the game — he was extremely excited, obviously, (Tuesday), playing in his home stadium. I just told him, 'Keep things simple, because when you have a special moment, you're going to overdo it.' And he didn't. He kept it simple."

Simple looks easy, until the red light comes on. About 20 months ago, Zusi couldn't crack Sporting's starting lineup, and now here was, the target of nearly every eye in the place, the hometown boy on an international stage. Each move, good or bad, was met with rapture from the 16,947 in attendance, usually accompanied by hearty cries of "ZUUUUUUSE!"

"At first," Gomez said, "we were asking why everybody was booing him."

"If you don't have a little bit of nervous energy with the atmosphere that was created here," Zusi said, "there's something wrong with you."

And if you can't enjoy Zusi's backstory, you might want to make sure you've still got a soul left to bare. A second-round pick out of the University of Maryland in the 2009 Major League Soccer Draft, the 26-year-old Florida native recorded just nine starts over his first two professional seasons.

But the light went on last summer, and it's been burning brightly ever since. Zusi, who leads the MLS with 15 assists and is a prime candidate for league MVP honors, got the attention of Klinsmann during a U.S. men's national team training camp back in January. He was cut from the U.S. roster in May, but returned later in the summer after winger Landon Donovan injured his knee.

Zusi nearly scored twice against Jamaica in Columbus on September 11, with one shot cleared off the line and another clunking off the crossbar. He notched an assist in last Friday's 2-1 win at Antigua & Barbuda, and helped get the party started Tuesday night against Guatemala. With each passing week, the bandwagon gets a little more cramped.

"You know, timing's everything," forward Eddie Johnson chuckled. "You can say he's a ‘late-bloomer,' but I just think he's coming into his own … he's a fantastic player. Really knows the game, reads the game really well."

Zusi's gifts are subtle. He's neither a burner up the pitch nor a beast in the box. A set-piece specialist, a set-up artist, his style is more akin to John Stockton than, say, Magic Johnson. But the fact that he's meshed so well with the national team has some folks wondering what took Klinsmann and company so long to get on board.

"I don't think I deserved to be here earlier," Zusi said. "I think, as of late, my game has evolved a little bit. And I've found myself in the position, especially with (my) club, to play a lot more games and get my confidence up and make a difference."

He's more aggressive, attacking, assured. He's making defenders respond to him, as opposed to vice versa.

Never mind trusting teammates; now, more than ever, Graham Zusi trusts Graham Zusi.

"That's a big part of it as well," he said. "When you feel confident, that's when you're able to take a little bit more risk. And just believe in yourself."

With that, Zusi grinned. Better late than never.


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