what’s your pick?

Fulham made this video and posted it on their website. A fitting tribute to a true class act.

Well, where do I begin? Absolutely incredible! The United States managed to hold the best team in world to a 0-0 draw. This was no Argentina B-team, this was it, this was the best that Argentina has. This same Argentina team thrashed Mexico 4-1 last week. The US held strong.

Over 78,000 fans showed up to Giant’s Stadium to see a soccer game. What they got was an epic duel with the best team in the world playing with such high quality and determined underdogs playing absolutely out of their minds. To those that were a part of that 78,000, I’m jealous of you, and I thank you, because you as a crowd did not disappoint. I had assumed this would be a pro-Argentina crowd, I was wrong. Endless chants of U-S-A came down upon the field, roars of excitement at both ends of the field. dissent towards bad fouls and bad calls. You took a friendly and made it feel like a knockout round game in the World Cup. To be honest, I found myself turning the volume up every 5 minutes or so; wanting to be a part of it.

70 minutes of pure soccer joy from the Americans, 1 atrocious lack of concentration from the referee that resulted in a red card to US midfielder Pablo Mastroeni. I thought that was it, such a shame, but oh was I wrong. The Americans followed that with 20 more minutes of such determination and passion that I was left speechless. Praise goes to every single American player.

Tim Howard: He was spectacular. Argentine forward Julio Cruz had 3 breakaway shots on goal, and Howard saved them all. This may have been the best display of goalkeeping the US National Team has every seen (yes, even better than Kasey Keller’s brilliant day against a Brazil). Howard did not make a single mistake. Flawless.

Steve Cherundolo: He was wonderful on the right side of defense. He had a tireless work rate and was always looking to get forward in attack as well. This guy is most certainly our starting right back. He got stuck in early and never stopped.

Oguchi Onyewu: He did his job. When playing against the best team in the world, any back line will get beaten during the game. Onyewu’s ability to recover quickly and shut down attacks was amazing. He also had maybe the best chance on goal when a header from a Landon Donovan taken free kick smacked the crossbar.

Danny Califf: Let’s face it, the guy who plays his game in Denmark was a bit of question mark coming into this game. He’s not anymore. The US depth chart at center back is growing with real talent. He will play a role in World Cup qualifying. He proved that maybe the center back starting roles aren’t set in stone just yet.

Heath Pearce: Pearce started at left back in all of the big three friendlies. He got better each game. I was very impressed with Pearce. He was an absolute terror on the left side of the field, both defensively and offensively. Argentina just didn’t have an answer for Pearce, and his play helped give Beasley more time and space to operate. I couldn’t ask for anymore. Welcome, Heath Pearce, to your new full time job: starting left back for the US National Team, you locked it up with this one.

Clint Dempsey: How tired has Dempsey looked in the previous two friendlies? Because against Argentina we saw the Dempsey we know and love. He fought hard on both sides of the ball. One of his defensive recovery runs saw him block a shot from close range with a slide tackle. He ran at defenders with the ball at his feet, he won free kicks, he opened up space for other players to operate. Well done sir.

Pablo Mastroeni: He was born in Argentina, and he stuck it to his birth nation in this game. He was an enforcer, and stamped his presence in the midfield. Tough tackling, quality passes, great positioning. This guy was fantastic. He picked up a yellow card, and then, in seemingly, an utter failure from the referee saw him receive a second yellow, leading to his ejection. What happened? Sub Maurice Adu committed a hard challenge that saw the referee show him a yellow card. Then, it appeared as though the ref marked it down as a second yellow card to Mastroeni. Horrible. the one sour note of the match, this decision by the referee. Pablo showed that even though the younger players are coming on to the scene, he is still one of the best options in the center of the park.

Michael Bradley: He played only the first half, and played it well. He got better with each friendly. His tackles were good, His passes were good. Not much else to say. Good performance.

DaMarcus Beasley: He, like Dempsey, played like the Beasley we know and love. Obviously the recovery process was still ongoing with Beasley. He finally looked fully fit for this match. He was on full force with his speedy runs down the wing.

Eddie Johnson: No, he didn’t get a goal, and he never really had a good chance on goal either. But for the first time ever he showed real passion, a willingness and desire to do whatever it takes to help the team get a result. A trait he hopefully picked up from one Wayne Rooney. He shows that passion game in game out, he may be deserving of his spot.

Landon Donovan: He came out on field and made a statement with his play. He said “You know what, I am a world class soccer player.” When Donovan plays at his best, so does the national team. Donovan was on his game today, his passing was exquisite, he showed his speed and his dribbling ability, he sliced and diced his way through the Argentina defense. Congrats are in order to him on his 100th cap, and he showed why he has earned all 100 tonight. Truly, a world class effort against a world class opponent.

Subs:

Maurice Edu: Came on at the start of the second half for Bradley. He was ready for his moment, and he took it well. He’s a young a guy, but everyday he gets better and better. Definitely a potential starter for a good European club team in the future.

Jay DeMerit: Came on for Onyewu in the 61st minute, and with his entrance the center back tandem became much less experienced, but it certainly didn’t show. It was if Onyewu never left. DeMerit was rock solid.

Freddy Adu: This 19 year old kid is so exciting to watch! He sliced and diced, and cut, and spun, and sped his way through the Argentine midfield and defense. Looked surprisingly similar, if not better, than a 19 year old Cristiano Ronaldo looked. This kid should be getting the start from now on. Keep it up Freddy!

Sacha Kljestan: He was very good when he came on. Made some great plays. Showed his uncanny ability to make dangerous passes. Created a great opportunity and almost got off a great shot.

Eddie Lewis: The only American player who has managed to look good for all three of big friendlies came on and played defense, and then some midfield. Again, had a solid performance. He can do anything on the left side of the field. A great player to have in the roster.

Frankie Hejduk: The ageless wonder played only in stoppage time.

I have to say that I don’t think I have seen this kind of performance from the national team since the 2002 World Cup. 78,000 fans cheering you on certainly helps. So here’s a call to every soccer fan in the country, to every sports fan in the country. Get to these games when they are played in your area. Scream your lungs out and help empower your national team. Those 78,000 in attendance for this one got more than their money’s worth, so will you.

Although I thought to myself, “oh my god, we’re dead” after the first 7 minutes. The team managed to get it under control, to get stuck in. to play their guts out. And I couldn’t be happier. What a game! All that I need now is some consistency. Let’s play at this level game in game out, if we do, we’ll shock the world.

Thoughts?

So here are the goals of the week in MLS, My vote is for Kenny Cooper.

Thoughts?

Spain played well, at times showing the class that makes this team one of the best in the world. The US played fairly well also…at least in the first half. 

The US started the game will a little bit more swagger than they showed in the game against England. The moved off the ball and did the best they could to create space in the middle of the field while also getting the ball out wide to the outside players. Defensively they kept things tighter and didn’t allow players like Torres or Fabregas much time or space on the ball. The insertion of Freddy Adu in the starting lineup helped tremendously. The second half was a little different, the US looked tired, they were dragging their feet, which in large part was due to the fact that Spain had the majority of the possession. I watched, helplessly, as the US defense continued to struggle. Less and less the ball would get over into the Spanish half. I knew what was coming, a goal for Spain. Xavi took care of that with a brilliant display of individual skill, burning past 3 US defenders and slotting the ball past Brad Guzan. It was lights out, there would be no coming back. But I’m not disappointed this time around; now on to some player analysis.

Tim Howard started in goal for the US, he made a couple of big saves early on in the game, but did have one moment of when he came out for a long cross that stayed up on him and went over his out reached hands. He hustled back to it and helped avert a potential disaster, but other than that a fairly solid half for Howard. Guzan came in for the second half and he too made some crucial saves that kept the US in the game longer than they actually should have been. I can’t fault him on the Xavi goal, but I would have liked to have seen him take that a little better, maybe be more instinctual in that situation rather than trying to rely on technique, which it seemed he was doing. Regardless, I won’t blame him for it, and a pretty good all around performance. 

The back line was exactly the same as we saw against England, Steve Cherundolo, Carlos Bocanegra, Oguchi Onyewu, and Heath Pearce. I really liked the play of Pearce and Cherundolo on the outsides today. I felt they were pretty solid in marking and defending. Pearce got into the attack a little more than Cherundolo did, and I would like to see Cherundolo getting more involved in that regard, but a fairly solid outing for both of them. Frankie Hejduk replaced Cherundolo for the second half, and while Hejduk was better in the game against England, he was a little out of his element in this game. Spain’s skill was a little too much for Hejduk and he was beat a few times too many, and committed a few needless fouls. Yes, the entire team was weaker in the second half, but Hejduk had fresh legs and in my opinion should have offered a bit more than what we saw. 

Carlos Bocanegra really rebounded from the England loss in this game. His defensive effort was much improved as he helped keep the Spainish forwards from doing any damage. He got caught ball watching one or two times but quickly recovered. The only real fatal blemish was his lack in closing down the space on Xavi’s goal. Had he stepped up sooner Xavi might not have had enough time to make him look him so bad. The only player who ended up looking worse on the Xavi goal was Bocanegra’s center back partner Onyewu. Gooch was really put to shame and was made to look silly by Xavi’s blistering run. It’s unfortunate too, because for the most part, Onyewu had done a pretty good job as well, his play kept Fernando Torres from causing any problems and he showed a good work rate to get back on recovery runs. 

The midfield was shaken up a bit by coach Bob Bradley as we saw Clint Dempsey on the right and Eddie Lewis get the start on the left. Dempsey, again, was non existent. I am beginning to wonder if Dempsey cares more about looking cool than getting his job done. With his flashy orange/red shoes, his insistence on making virtually every pass a flick with the outside of his foot, and his lack of wanting to run at players with pace, I have a hard time seeing him be useful against quality teams like England and Spain. I’m starting to feel I like him better up top, where he doesn’t have as much responsibility to be a playmaker, instead just doing whatever it takes to get the ball in the back of the net, and he has proven he has a better touch for goal than Eddie Johnson (more on that to come). Eddie Lewis, again, was bright spot. He was forced to defend more than I would have liked to see but when he got forward he often was doing good things. Dare I say this, I’m gonna go ahead and compare Eddie Lewis to David Beckham. What?! No, he doesn’t make as much money, and no ladies, he’s not as good looking; but what is he? He is true professional who fights hard on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball, he’s not going to the player to beat defenders one on one, but he will be there to take corners (which he did well), take a dangerous free kick (which he was just a few inches off with one against Spain), and provide quality service into the box (which if Eddie Johnson could show any class, would have buried Lewis’ beautiful, pinpoint cross in the 47th minute). 

Michael Bradley and Maurice Edu started in the center of midfield. Bradley had a much better game this time around. He was more intelligent in his positioning and tackling, and he was passing the ball much better. He still needs to improve, but he certainly has plenty of time to do that. By the 75th minute, he was dragging hard and starting to make some stupid fouls. With Pablo Mastroeni on the bench, I don’t know why a sub wasn’t made, because it should have been before Bradley was beat out of position on Xavi’s goal. Overall though, this young talent is one of the best we’ve got for the center of the park. Maurice Edu in for Ricardo Clark; what does this mean? It means we didn’t see a constant supply of needless and reckless fouls in the center of the field, and we didn’t see possession being given up as easily. I don’t want to knock Clark too hard, cause I think he is a good player, he just isn’t the calibre needed against top quality opposition. Edu was very solid in the first half, and he proved he can hack it with the best of them. His tackling and positioning was good, his passing was simple but effective. Again, in the second half he was dragging and probably should have subbed too, but I think Edu is almost ready for the big stage, and a transfer to Europe is on the horizon.

Eddie Johnson. I know I have this before, but Eddie Johnson is the player who teases you. He doesn’t do much, but every now and then he shows a glimpse of something special and you get your hopes up. He just doesn’t have it though. How long can a player be labeled as promising? How many years of not living up to the potential, of not finding a bit of breakout success are needed before he stops getting chances. I know forwards are limited, but there’s Jozy Altidore, Kenny Cooper is finding some great success. Young Robbie Rogers is having a breakout year with the Columbus Crew. Robbie Findley is showing he might have what it takes. I’m not saying any of these players are the solution, but they at least should get a shot. 

And then there was Freddy Adu. Adu really caused problems for the Spanish defense, he was creative with the ball, he was able to get himself into open space, he played quality balls forward and out wide. He did the things needed to create attacking chances. He was true spark in the middle of the field. A playmaker, and the only American who looked as though his play might be able to change the game. He forced the Spanish midfield to stay at home a little bit for fear of the damage he might cause. He helped open up the wings, and let Michael Bradley and Maurice Edu have more space and time to operate. He’s a player that needs to be on the field for the national team. Adu was subbed out at halftime with what appeared to be a foot injury that occurred from a nasty challenge just before half. DaMarcus Beasley came on in place of Adu and the team was weaker for it. Beasley is fresh off a very long absence due to a knee injury, so I’m not going to throw up any warning flags yet, but he is playing a bit timid and has yet to replicate his best form in either of the two friendlies, He is still a threat on the field and deserves to be out there, but he just wasn’t as effect as Adu was.

Josh Wolff saw some more action, but again was pretty much non existent, save for one run through the middle of the field, unfortunately the team was gassed by this point and no help was offered to him. I’m not going to write Wolff off completely just yet, He’s certainly not the best option for the future of the team, but I still think he can help out until some of the younger players have the experience to step it up a bit. That being said, I don’t see him as starter, just a utility player to come on for 20 minutes and help finish out a game. Unless, of course, he can really step it up soon.

Pablo Mastroeni saw 5 minutes, he came all the way from Colorado for that. He should have been introduced in the 65th-70th minute for Michael Bradley in my opinion. 

In the end, a better performance. I’m more hopeful for the upcoming game against Argentina now. 

So? Your Thoughts?

Lewis—————-Adu—————Dempsey

————–Bradley—-Edu——————-

Pearce—Bocanegra—Onyewu——Cherundolo

——————-Howard———————-

It looks to be a 4-2-3-1, which is essential a 4-5-1. I’m happy to see Adu get the start, and hopefully he will provide a creative spark in the midfield. Bradley and Edu will have to work hard to keep Cesc Fabregas from doing much damage. This is a line up that could take it to Spain offensively, but still provides some coverage in the back. Let’s hope that’s the style they bring.

Everyone enjoy the game. My full report comes tonight!

What do you get when mix a Swede with a Mexican? I’m really not sure, but I am very worried for the US National Team.

Former England manager and Manchester City head coach Sven Goran Eriksson has been introduced as the new manager of the Mexican National Team.

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Eriksson is a high quality manager, and I think he can certainly bring out some of the best in his players. I do think it’s a weird fit, and I never would have guessed this is would ever happen, but if it works, Mexico could be come a real problem for the US National Team. For almost the past decade the US has had the upper hand with their rivals. The only place that still remains a threat is playing in Mexico City as Azteca Stadium. However, the US has Mexico’s number everywhere else. Eriksson could turn that around. If this hiring works.

Thoughts?

Josmer “Jozy” Altidore has transfered from MLS side New York Red Bulls to Spain’s Villarreal.

It has been reported that Altidore commanded an $8 million transfer fee, which would make him the highest player sold from MLS to Europe, breaking previous record holder Clint Dempsey .

There is no doubt that Altidore is true prospect at forward. He has size, speed, technical ability, and even a finishing touch. Most of these attributes are still very raw, however, and I think that Spain’s La Liga is a perfect place for Altidore to grow as a player and a professional. His skill set fits very well in the Spanish league, and I think he has a chance to really star at Villarreal. But don’t get your hopes up for an immediate impact. Villarreal is quality team, and Jozy breaking into the starting line up immediately is quite a stretch. Give him a few years to develop and then I think we’ll see him in a starting role. I have also heard rumors that Villarreal will loan Altidore to a smaller club in Spain’s La Liga. This may sound strange, a team acquiring a player and immediately loaning him to another team, but in effect this could potential provide Altidore an opportunity to be starting for a team in one of Europe’s top leagues. In doing so, he could develop faster and Villarreal could reap the benefits. No matter what happens, it will be interesting to see how it all comes together for Altidore in the coming months.

The transfer will not be official until July 1st, when the international transfer opens for business, but the deal has been made and agreed to. Expect Jozy to play out his days at New York, and then expect NY to be making some big mid season moves to fill some gaps.

In the end, I think Spain is perfect for Jozy, and I really hope to see him develop into a true world class player.

Thoughts?

After a disappointing showing against England, the US must rebound with some dignity; against Spain however, that may prove quite difficult. Let’s face it, Spain currently has one of the most talented attacking teams in the world, if not the most talented. Up top, expect to see the high scorers, and extremely dangerous forwards David Villa and Fernando Torres. An unbelievably strong midfield line consisting of Cesc Fabregas, Andres Iniesta, Xavi, and Xabi Alonso. Their back line will be anchored by Sergio Ramos and Carles Puyol. In goal, either Iker Casillas or Pepe Reina will be a brick wall.

Spain will be technically better than England was, they will be quicker on and off the ball than England was, yet they do have some weaknesses that the Americans can capitalize on. First, physicality. The English could match up toe to toe with the Americans on physicality, Spain can not. The US could take a bruising approach to the game and keep the Spanish attackers on the ground for most of the game. Yellow cards would be plentiful, but perhaps worth it if the US can get their playmakers and strikers frustrated. Second, Spain’s defense is no where near as equipped as England’s is against the set piece. This may be where the US has the best chance to do some damage.

How this game will go for the US really depends on the line up they come out with. Oh yeah, Landon Donovan is still out with a groin injury, so no Donovan. As we have seen, that hurts. While he can’t do it alone, he can make a difference in terms of making dangerous runs and opening up space for others to operate. Not having that doesn’t help. If the US comes out with a mind set on attacking and taking it to the Spanish regardless of the cost, I’ll say the US loses 4-2 or 5-2 in an entertaining end to end match up. If the US comes out in a defensive shell and tries to capitalize only on counterattacks and set pieces, I say expect to see the same, boring, uninspired, and passionless team we saw against England and we’ll lose 2-0 or 3-0.

So here’s hoping for the former, let’s see and end to end attacking game, let’s throw caution to wind wind and give Spain what we’ve got. Hardworking, physical play, and “grind it out” mentality that strives to win it all, regardless of how it looks or how exposed it might make you in the back. As we have all heard, the best defense is a good offense. They can’t score if we have the ball in their half of the field. So here’s hoping!

The game will be live on ESPN360.com at 4pm EST, or you can see it tape delayed on ESPN2 at 5:30pm EST! Watch it! Tivo it!

Thoughts?

This news is a real bummer to US national team fans. Jonathan Spector will undergo surgery to repair his hip. He will be out for 3-6 months, and will certainly miss the Olympics.

Spector is one of the best young American players. At 22 he has already become a mainstay in the English Premier League where he currently plays for West Ham United.

He was expected to be a rock in the back line for the US in the Olympics. Perhaps even to captain the Olympic team. Now, coach Peter Nowak must look for a central back to fill this gap with one of his overage players. The first choice would obviously be Carlos Bocanegra, as he was currently just released by Fulham and could use the Olympic stage to find another buyer.

Other ideas would be Oguchi Onyewu or even Jimmy Conrad. Currently the U-23’s has Michael Orozco, who had a good showing during Olympic qualification. Patrick Ianni and Nathan Sturgis are also potential candidates to fill the void.

We shall see how this all plays out. Hopes for a quick recovery for Spector, hope he gets back to the field soon.