On a night where the US was missing many key regulars (Oguchi Onyewu, Steve Cherundolo, Benny Feilhaber, Ricardo Clark, Charlie Davies), it was the substitutes who came on later who lit a fire under the US side. Bob Bradley's experiment with Robbie Findley and Jose Torres stalled and his continued reliance on Jonathan Bornstein bit him in the ass. Not to mention the ankle contusion suffered by Stuart Holden (which would've been a red card had a US player been the perpetrator) and all in all it was a night to forget for the Yanks.
The last 14 minutes for the US were easily the best soccer they'd played all game. The insertion of Maurice Edu allowed Michael Bradley to march forward and get involved in the attack and DaMarcus Beasley and Alejandro Bedoya were threatening from the wings. It was this hybrid 4-3-2-1 if you want to call it that, that produced the best soccer for the US, including setting up 5-6 set pieces in the final minutes of the game.
Some quick hits:
- Abysmal night for Bornstein in particular, who, like MOST players from MLS, peaks against CONCACAF opponents. He is the one man wrecking ball of the US back line. The given penalty was well deserved, Bornstein clearly dragged down Wesley Sneijder in the box (sound familiar?). Another would have been given had the referee spotted the clear handball in the box, and the second Dutch goal deflected in off Bornstein. He was poor in getting forward, poor in his service, and for me, played himself straight off the plane to South Africa. Heath Pearce is smiling, somewhere.
- The Robbie Findley experiment should also be officially over. I don't care how fast a guy can run, if you can't do anything with that speed then you sure as hell don't deserve to be playing. Sure it works in MLS, but the Dutch defenders made mince meat of Findley. The only player who can replace Charlie Davies is??.....Charlie Davies. I've had enough of the endless rotation of "speed" guys who play in MLS (Cunningham and Findley).
- Jose Torres earned just his third start in a US jersey and his supposed strength is his ability to possess the ball. Torres just was off. His touch was too strong at times and his teamwork with Michael Bradley was begging. His singular bright moment was his 25 yard cannon which went just over the bar. He's still in the 23, but after this showing won't be much more than a substitute.
Now, on to the good that can be salvaged from this match:
- Jay DeMerit and Carlos Bocanegra are as hardy as central defenders come. They played well together and DeMerit proved that he's not afraid of anything. Bocanegra took the initiative in the 88th minute and scored on a great header.
- If Maurice Edu continues to get good minutes with Rangers, he will be the starter alongside Bradley this summer. Bradley's game got much better when Edu was inserted and able to take over the central destroyer role. His SPL roots came out as he tackled hard, tracked well, and distributed smartly.
- DaMarcus Beasley and Alejandro Bedoya, two names most wouldn't expect to make a difference, did make a difference. Beasley took some time to find the game in the first half but soon looked like the Beasley of old, running at players and providing pin point set pieces. Welcome back to the fold Mr. Beasley. Bedoya, the least experienced player on the US roster, was brought on for the dormant Findley in the 62nd minute. His hustle and quick play was on display and very nearly drew a penalty that could tied the game. That said, probably too late to be considered, but now, everyone knows the kid is a contender.
- Jozy Altidore with a workmanlike 94 minutes yesterday and acquitted himself well, though usually draped in two or three Dutch defenders. His hustle was almost rewarded with a rocket of a shot late in stoppage time.
- Clarence Goodson nearly became the hero in stoppage time as he nearly bagged what would have been a spectacular equalizer on an awkward side volley. In his 10 minutes of play, he showed glimpses of why he's cementing that 4th center back spot.
- Great thing about Heath Pearce's 25 minutes? We didn't hear his name called in the defending half, meaning he was doing what was expected of him. Even got forward and provided some late crosses.
PLAYER RATINGS
Tim Howard (7)- Was himself for all of the match. Can't be blamed for either goal and his stop on Rafael Van Der Vaart's shot was world class.
Jonathan Spector (5.5)- Aaron Lennon and or Theo Walcott are licking their chops after this one. Was beaten for speed by Elia on a few occasions, but at least he tried different things when he found one way wasn't working. His crossing wasn't up to par either.
Jay DeMerit (6.5)- The bruiser on the US back line, there wasn't much which came Jay's way that he couldn't handle.
Carlos Bocanegra (6)- The captain paired nicely with DeMerit, but was forced to cover for Bornsteins mistakes way too much, giving JB an earful in the process. The goal was class too.
Jonathan Bornstein (2)- He started and played 85 minutes. Those are his two points. Everything else sucked.
Stuart Holden (6)- When he was in he showed why he had become a starter in the EPL, quick with his touches, and smart on the ball. Was forced out by a should've been red card challenge from De Jong. He will miss 6 weeks.
Michael Bradley (6)- Really wasn't able to find his game until the second half after Torres got yanked. When that happened though, his runs into the attacking third became much more potent.
Jose Torres (4)- Another experiment that failed. Torres looked lost and the touch that he supposedly possess' wasn't there. His lone bright spot was the shot from 25 yards.
Landon Donovan (5)- Is this the same guy who has Everton fans up in arms about trying to sign? Without Dempsey and Davies the US needed some creativity, Donovan didn't fit the bill.
Robbie Findley (2)- Again, started and played 60ish minutes. Other than that, worthless.
Jozy Altidore (6.5)- Played well considering he was covered in Dutch defenders for the majority of the match. His late blast was well saved by Stekelenburg.
SUBS:
DaMarcus Beasley (6.5)- Tapping into his 2002 form, Beasley showed that he is back and he punched his ticket into SA. His set piece delivery has improved dramatically as well and the assist to Boca proved it.
Maurice Edu (6.5)- Once on, he changed the flow of the match for the Americans. Allowed Bradley to push forward as he took sole responsibility for the destroyer role.
Alejandro Bedoya (6)- If he continues to play like he did, he may be able to sneak on to the plane. Seriously.
Eddie Johnson (5)- Once on, didn't show much but was better in possession than Findley was.
Heath Pearce (6)- Better than Bornstein and didn't have any glaring screw-ups. He is the ultimate winner from this game.
Clarence Goodson (6)- His ten minutes were enough to prove why he's the 4th CB.
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