The U.S. men’s soccer team, fresh off a runner-up finish at the Confederations Cup, begins defense of the CONCACAF Gold Cup on Saturday against Grenada in Seattle. It will play Honduras on Wednesday in Washington and Haiti next Saturday in Foxboro, Mass. U.S. coach Bob Bradley held a conference call Thursday with reporters. Here are five pressing questions he answered: 

1. Is this tournament more about winning or more about evaluating players?

“Our goal clearly is to defend our championship. We know that at times, there are many different factors that get considered when putting a roster together. But once we are together, our focus is the way we try to go about our business, the way we play. This is an important tournament, and we are excited about defending our title.” 

2. What did your team learn from a long run in the Confederations Cup?

“We’ve always been able during the last couple years to understand what it takes to move forward as a team, to look at all sides of the game, to see things we do well, to see areas we need to improve. We’ve tried to play as many top teams as we can because when you play top teams, that’s when you find out the most. … We’ve always been able to improve in these ways. It was great that we were able to experience a big final, both the things we did well and the things we could have done better in the second half. I think this experience all around will help us.”

3. Was it a strategic decision to blend old players with young players on this team?

“There’s always a need to size up different options going forward, to consider what different guys would possibly bring to our team in a situation like the World Cup. Every team needs a good balance, and it’s important to constantly assess what’s going on in Major League Soccer, see which players are important on their team and playing well.” 

4. What are your thoughts on the progression of Freddy Adu?

“It’s important that Freddy can now with his club team make the next step. We recognize that there’s talent, and yet it’s not easy to come into a national team during a period when you’re not playing and play against the likes of Italy and Spain and Brazil. But having him in the group is a way of letting him know that we want to keep trying to push him forward. It’s most important that he can push his way through with his club team.”

5. Why was Jose Francisco Torres not on the 30-player roster?

“Jose has had a very, very busy schedule with his club team, and we felt that it was important that he had a little bit of a break before things start up again. … Like all players that come into the national team, it takes time to establish yourself, it takes time to get a feel for the group. He’s a young player that has shown us that he has talent. We feel very good about having him on the United States national team. We feel good about what Jose has shown us thus far, and we hope that his experience with his club and his continued experience with the national team will push him further.”

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