The US National wrapped up their European sojourn yesterday with a disappointing 3-1 loss to Denmark in Aarhus. After losing to Slovakia 1-0 on Saturday, the Americans head back to their clubs or off-seasons 0-2 in November friendlies, with only one goal scored in 180 minutes of play.


The first conclusion most will draw after a mediocre effort (Slovakia) and a poor one (Denmark) is that the Americans are not the same without Landon Donovan.


Ya think? Donovan is clearly, and these friendlies have only served to sharpen the sentiment, the best attacking player the United States has. Even when he's not intricately involved in the offense on a given play, his presence adds a threat the makes the team significantly better. So yes, the US is a different team without Donovan.


I don't think this is some kind of revelation, or should be lamented as indicating the United States is as poor as they appeared in Europe over the past five days. Of course the US should be developing more attacking players of Donovan's caliber; but these friendlies were not about that issue as much as they were about Bradley's need to learn more about fringe players. For that reason, I refused to get sucked into the downward spiral of negativity that is running rampant through certain segments of the National Team fan base.


That being said, I'm not happy. I had hope for a better showing this month, and I am slightly worried bout the mental toughness of some players. But form is tough to pin down, and as we saw during the summer, the US is capable of playing very well against very good teams when things go right. Tossing this European trip out of the window isn't quite the right approach, but neither is using it to indicate that the US has regressed as a team or that Bob Bradley is incapable of getting the best out of them.


I'm forcing myself to use perspective, and I suggest you do the same. Some American regulars didn't play very well, while others acquitted themselves nicely. As a team, the effort and results were lacking, but never was the overall team performance the focus. Bradley's teams during the trip were mixtures of front line guys and players whose chances of making the World Cup squad range from "possible" to "not a chance in hell". That shouldn't be forgotten.


There are a lot of excuses available, and I'm even tempted to make them. I won't, simply because I know there are plenty of people out there that don't want to hear them, but I do think one or two are valid. Just because their "easy" doesn't make them untrue.


Bradley has work to do, and I'm sure the hand wringing over the loss of Davies and Onyewu will continue. It doesn't look like November helped with filling those holes, and match days are at a premium during the World Cup. But there's no reason to throw in the towel quite yet, no matter how tempted you might feel to do so.


A poor November 2009, with teams that look nothing like what will go to South Africa next year, doesn't mean 2010 won't be successful.