Dempsey stuns Italy

Friendly international play should be seen for exactly what it is a rehearsal ahead of bigger things to come.

Friendly international play should be seen for exactly what it is a rehearsal ahead of bigger things to come. Nevertheless,there are some men who take their chances to claim moments of destiny in their careers. Three such men would be Lionel Messi,Arjen Robben and Roberto Soldado,who scored three,two and three goals respectively in their nations friendly matches Wednesday.

A fourth,certainly,is Clint Dempsey,whose goal in Genoa enabled the United States to register the first victory in its history over Italy in soccer. Never mind that the Italians are noted for taking rehearsals lightly; scoring the only goal against a former World Cup champion on its own soil is headline material.

It could hardly happen to a more deserving character than Dempsey,who,week in and week out,shows his class in the English Premier League for Fulham. His shot,hard and low into the corner of the net,will be remembered as a milestone goal,but Dempsey said,Its just a confidence builder. Were trying to move in the right direction.

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Typical Clint Dempsey. Do the deed and deflect the over-the-top praise. Messi,of course,is genius dressed up as modesty. His critics blame him for scoring so many hat tricks for Barcelona,and never,until now,for Argentina.

Well,he put that right,scoring all of Argentinas goals in a 3-1 victory against Switzerland in Bern. So now his detractors will say that it was only a friendly,and Messi still has not done it where and when it matters,in South America. Similar things might be said of France,whose players will not shake off the disgrace of their 2010 World Cup mutiny until they start winning at the next major tournament.

That,as it happens,is the Euro championship that starts in Poland and Ukraine in less than 100 days. France has now gone 18 games since September 2010 undefeated under coach Laurent Blanc. Its run was embellished Wednesday when Les Bleus beat Germany,2-1,in Bremen.

Arjen Robben was kicked by England defender Micah Richards,and that seemed to prod the unpredictable Dutchman into action. Robbens response was to run from the halfway line with the ball. His pace is searing when his mind is clear,and no Englishman could get near him.