After Beating Honduras 1-0, USMNT Advances To The Concacaf Nations League Final Vs. Mexico

 

    With NHL and NBA playoff games on tonight, I'm not going to assume that you were glued to the USMNT vs. Honduras in the inaugural Concacaf Nations League semifinal at Empower Field at Mile High. Still, it had some relevance since it was the USMNT's first official competitive match since way back in November 2019. Head coach Gregg Berhalter put together the second-youngest starting 11 in USMNT history and it worked as they squeezed out a 1-0 victory thanks to substitute Jordan Siebatcheu's clutch header in the 89th minute. Oh by the way, it was his first USMNT appearance, talk about making an instant impact! Most importantly, this sets up a juicy title game between the US and Mexico on Sunday night (9:36, CBS Sports Network). 

    If we want to take a more critical view, with most of their best players in the lineup (namely Zack Steffen, Sergino Dest, Weston McKennie, Gio Reyna and Christian Pulisic), you would expect the Americans to dominate against one of their mediocre Concacaf brethren. Honduras surprisingly had some good scoring chances too as Sargent cleared a ball off the goal line in the 27th minute with a great backwards header and Steffen also came out to challenge a shot in the 51st minute that could have been a goal if he was slower to react. Before their goal, the best opportunities for the US came on a Reyna shot early on that went inches wide of the net, a Sargent header in the 30th minute and Pulisic was stuffed in the next minute from in close. 

    This would have gone straight to penalty kicks if it was tied after regulation but thankfully it didn't have to come to that. The game-winning play came when defender John Brooks crossed the ball to McKennie who headed it back to the middle where Siebatcheau dove for a powerful header. I would say that the USMNT will have to play much better on Sunday to beat Mexico but they struggled as well and hung on for a 5-4 victory in penalty kicks against Costa Rica in the other semifinal. Hopefully playing each other brings out the best in these bitter rivals. I cannot think of a better way to wrap up the weekend and get this summer of soccer started than with the latest chapter of the USMNT vs. Mexico. 

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U.S. Men Cruise Into 5th Straight Gold Cup Final With 3-1 Win Over Honduras

The U.S. men's national team continued to roll along in 2013 (11-2-2) as they won their 10th straight match overall (extending a team record), a 3-1 victory over Honduras in the Gold Cup semifinals at Cowboys Stadium. Unfortunately, their bitter rival Mexico couldn't hold up their end of the equation as they lost 2-1 to Panama in the other semifinal meaning it'll be U.S. vs. Panama on Sunday (4 p.m. EST, Fox) for all the Gold at Soldier Field in Chicago. That's a rematch of the 2005 final, won by the U.S. in penalty kicks.

This outcome was never really in doubt as the U.S. jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first half and improved to 14-4-3 all-time vs. Honduras (11-2-2 at home). The intrigue over the next few days will have to do with whether head coach Jurgen Klinsmann will be on the bench or in the stands since he was sent off in the 88th minute for arguing with an overzealous referee about what should have been a foul called on Honduras.

I'm surprised it took me this long to mention him but Landon Donovan has been playing outstanding soccer this entire tournament (5 goals, 7 assists in 5 matches). He continued his torrid pace with two goals and an assist vs. overmatched Honduras-a little payback (emphasis on little, for the 2-1 Honduras win in February during World Cup qualifying) for the U.S.' A-team.

The other American to stand out from the rest has been Eddie Johnson. He opened the scoring in the 11th minute after Donovan played him through then the Sisqo lookalike darted past his defenders and blasted a shot into the upper netting. Former Boston College star Alejandro Bedoya had his best game in a U.S. jersey as he recorded the first two assists of his career. After goalkeeper Nick Rimando's goal kick was headed along by Johnson, Bedoya passed the ball to Donovan in the 27th minute and Landon settled it off his chest then hit it into the corner for a 2-0 U.S. lead.

It's hard to argue with their goal-differential (19-4) but if the U.S. has shown one weakness in this Gold Cup, it's been on set pieces. Once again, they were victimized as Honduras scored their lone goal in the 52nd minute when Nery Medina impressively headed in Marvin Chavez's cross. Oh well.

Well before the time he was subbed off, Donovan answered a minute after Honduras' goal with the final blow. It started with Clarence Goodson's long ball found Bedoya who crossed it to Donovan and he was right in front of the net so all he had to do was redirect it. Along with Klinsmann's transgression, Johnson picked up a needless yellow card in stoppage time (something to remember for the Final).

The U.S. will be looking for its fifth Gold Cup title: 1991, 2002, 2005 and 2007 were the champions so it would be the first in six long years. Panama has never won it since only the U.S., Mexico and Canada have captured the crown. Keep in mind that the 2013 Gold Cup winner will meet the 2015 Gold Cup winner for a spot in the 2017 Confederations Cup (as CONCACAF's representative).



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2013 Gold Cup Update: Landon Donovan Is Earning His Place In The 2014 World Cup

This is coming from someone who spent money on a ticket to last week's the U.S. men's match vs. Costa Rica in East Hartford, CT: By and large the Gold Cup is pretty pointless. Yes, I have paid attention to all the U.S. games and even some that didn't have much bearing on anything but that's only because it's smack dab in the middle of the summer when the lack of choices in the sports world is dire.

I would compare the Gold Cup to preseason games in other sports, the best players either don't play at all or not as much as usual leaving the contests up to the B-squad players. You know, the has beens, never weres and never will bes. Oh and it's against mostly garbage squads from CONCACAF, many of whom don't have a prayer to beat the U.S. (hello Belize). To make my point clear, the U.S. men beat El Salvador 5-1 this afternoon at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore but probably all people will talk about is Landon Donovan's re-emergence. The U.S. advanced to the semifinals (for the seventh consecutive time) on Wednesday in Dallas, Texas against Honduras (a 1-0 winner over Costa Rica) at 7 p.m. on Fox Soccer Channel. Mexico plays Panama in the other semifinal.

After his sabbatical from soccer and the U.S.' A-squad, he seems to be returning to form in MLS with the Galaxy (or so I hear) and in this tournament. I believe this makes him a lock to go to Brazil with the U.S. next summer, assuming they reach the World Cup. I also think he could find himself back in the starting 11 after this journey of self-discovery. He still isn't finishing at a very high level but he managed to put up a goal and two assists today, giving him 55 career goals and 54 career assists for the Red, White and Blue.

The funny thing is that this could have been even more of a blowout, the U.S. easily should have scored another goal or two but who can worry about such things after 4-goal victories? Goodson got forward and one-timed Donovan's cross in the 21st minute. Joe Corona, who might have the best name ever, made it 2-0 with a pretty little move then shot from the top of the box in the 29th minute.

El Salvador's only highlight came via a penalty kick in the 39th minute earned by their lone star Rodolfo Zelaya. He chipped it in slow motion down the middle to beat U.S. goalkeeper Nick Rimando.

A 2-1 halftime lead only motivated the U.S. to put their cleats on the gas more as Eddie Johnson (sporting bleach blonde hair like Sisqo or Cisse, Gus Johnson called him "Demolition Man"-Wesley Snipes movie in 90s-which hopefully catches on) came off the bench and scored seconds later in the 60th minute with a powerful header on Donovan's corner. Johnson returned the favor by finding Donovan for a breakaway in the 78th minute then Mix Diskerud completed the scoring with another header-this time from Donovan in the 84th minute.

We always root against Mexico but I am openly hoping for a U.S.-Mexico Gold Cup Final, that would be a rematch of 2007 (the last time the United States won this dinky competition). The U.S. is currently riding a nine-game win streak, the longest in the team's long history.

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U.S. Men Complete 3 For 3 Run, Jozy Altidore Scores In 4th Straight Match

It lacked the excitement of their improbable 2-1 win at Jamaica from a few weeks ago or the incredible crowd in Seattle for the 2-0 win over Panama last week but tonight at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah, the U.S. men's national team got three more vital points thanks to a 1-0 win over Honduras. This put them in real good shape to come in first place in the hexagonal to reach the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Jozy Altidore had the goal on a one-timer in the 71st minute after a cross by Fabian Johnson and Tim Howard earned the clean sheet despite a very quiet night in the goal. Altidore now has scored in four straight matches, tying a U.S. record held by five other guys: William Looby, Eric Wynalda, Brian McBride, Eddie Johnson and Landon Donovan (twice).



The Americans have won their last four matches including three World Cup qualifiers in a row. The U.S. leads the hexagonal standings after six matches with 13 points, Costa Rica (11), Mexico (8), Honduras (7), Panama (6) and Jamaica (2) round out the rest of the group.

This was the perfect way to begin the summer since the top players can get some rest before younger guys or washed up former stars (Donovan) start training in July for the Gold Cup. The U.S. opens up with Guatemala on July 5 in San Diego; they meet Belize on July 9 in Portland, Oregon; they are back in Sandy, Utah on July 13 to play Belize and finally they take on Costa Rica July 16 in Hartford, CT.

They have four more hexagonal matches left: two in September, at Costa Rica (Sept. 6) and hosting Mexico (Sept. 10) in Columbus, Ohio. Things will be sorted out in October as the U.S. hosts Jamaica (Oct. 11) in Kansas City then travels to Panama (Oct. 15).

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U.S. Men Get Ready For A Busy Couple Weeks, Calling 26 Players Into Training Camp

I have been slacking lately with this blog but things should be picking up in the next month. The U.S. men's national team has a pair of top-notch friendlies stateside (vs. Belgium and Germany) before they get back to 2014 World Cup qualifying against Jamaica, Panama and Honduras. In anticipation of those matches, U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann today named his 26-man roster that's coming to training camp in Cleveland starting on May 26.

U.S. ROSTER
GOALKEEPERS (6) : Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tally Hall (Houston Dynamo), Bill Hamid (D.C. United), Tim Howard (Everton), Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS (8) : DaMarcus Beasley (Puebla), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Edgar Castillo (Club Tijuana), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy), Clarence Goodson (Brondby), Fabian Johnson (Hoffenheim), Michael Parkhurst (Augsburg)
MIDFIELDERS (10) : Michael Bradley (Roma), Joe Corona (Club Tijuana), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo), Maurice Edu (Bursaspor), Stuart Holden (Bolton), Jermaine Jones (Schalke), Sacha Kljestan (Anderlecht), Brek Shea (Stoke City), Danny Williams (Hoffenheim), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
FORWARDS (5) : Jozy Altidore (AZ Alkmaar), Terrence Boyd (Rapid Vienna), Clint Dempsey (Tottenham Hotspur), Herculez Gomez (Santos), Eddie Johnson (Seattle Sounders FC)

For me, the most notable parts of the roster are Holden who hasn't played for the U.S. since October 2010 because of various injuries. Also, Howard and Johnson are back after they missed the last qualifiers-in March. Of course the biggest name not to be on here is Landon Donovan although reports earlier in the week indicated this would be the case. Defenders Steve Cherundolo and Timmy Chandler are both still out like in March as they rehab from knee injuries.

The friendlies start on May 29 as the Americans host Belgium at First Energy Stadium. After that, they'll play Germany on June 2 at RFK Stadium in Washington DC. Things get real on June 7 as the U.S. visits Jamaica in Kingston then they return home to face Panama on June 11 at CenturyLink Field in Seattle. This very busy stretch wraps up on June 18 with the U.S. taking a trip to Rio Tinto Stadium in Honduras.

“We are very excited about the group we have put together,” said Klinsmann in a press release. “The players understand more how we’re working, what we’re looking for, the way we want to play and the way we want to challenge big nations eye-to-eye. As we go into this stretch of two friendly games against Belgium and Germany and three big World Cup Qualifiers, we want to see more consistent performances. There is a huge opportunity to pick up a lot of points and put ourselves in a good position to qualify for Brazil.”

Michael Bradley will compete in the Coppa Italia Final on May 26 in Rome against Lazio.

Edgar Castillo and Joe Corona have continued the historic run with Club Tijuana in the 2013 Copa Libertadores, advancing to the quarterfinals to face Atletico Mineiro on May 22 and May 29.

Sean Johnson (May 26-30), Bill Hamid (May 30-June 2), Tally Hall (June 2-June 8) and Nick Rimando (June 9-19) will all rotate through camp at different stages and serve as the third goalkeeper.

Eight players are carrying yellow cards into the next World Cup qualifiers: DaMarcus Beasley, Michael Bradley, Matt Besler, Brad Davis, Clint Dempsey, Maurice Edu, Fabian Johnson and Graham Zusi. Their next caution will result in a one-match suspension.

I'm looking forward to all these matches since it's rare that they get to play such quality European squads. The World Cup qualifiers are their own animal and it will be exciting to get back into that emotional grind.

UPDATE 5/21: Midfielder Brad Davis was added to the training camp roster.

UPDATE 5/23: Houston Dynamo defender Corey Ashe was added to the training camp roster for the U.S.

UPDATE 5/28: Edu, Shea and Ashe are all out with injuries that will force them to miss this week's friendlies and the World Cup qualifiers in June.

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World Cup 2014 Qualifying: U.S. Men's Soccer vs. Honduras Live Blog

The U.S. starting 11: Howard; Chandler, Gonzalez, Cameron, F. Johnson; Williams, Jones, Bradley, E. Johnson; Dempsey, Altidore

Honduras' starting 11: Valladares; Peralta, Bernardez, Figueroa, Garcia; Boniek, Espinoza, Garrido, Martinez; Bengtson, Costly

This might be the first U.S. men's national team game that the legendary Ray Hudson has commentated for. Exciting for hardcore soccer fans. Former U.S. star Cobi Jones also joins him and

1st minute-Great news already, with Chandler starting that means that now he's CAP tied and a U.S. player (not German) from here on out.

4th minute-Chandler gets burned by Martinez who whips a low cross in. Howard bobbles it but he hangs on.

8th minute-Honduras had a 3-on-1 but they screwed it up by going offside, big break for the U.S. defense. No clue where all the guys went on that play.

15th minute-Haha Honduras' head coach is wearing jeans and a Honduras polo shirt, classy.

17th minute-4th time Honduras has been called offside already, weird.

23rd minute-Espinoza has a shot from outside the box, caught by Howard.

25th minute-the 1st U.S. corner is a good one but Eddie Johnson heads it over. Gotta put that on goal.

29th minute-that was a nice counterattack by the U.S. Eddie Johnson crossed a low ball to Altidore who one touched it barely over the net. The U.S. has picked it up after a slow start.

31st minute-Chandler clears a Honduras pass off the goal line, yikes.

33rd minute-Howard with a strong punch on a quality shot from distance.

36th minute-Jones chips it beautifully to Dempsey who runs onto it and one touches it out of the air. Exquisite goal, 1-0 U.S. 33rd career international goal for Dempsey which moves him up to sole possession of 3rd place in U.S. history.

40th minute-Honduras ties it with an even more brilliant goal. It all started with a corner kick then ended with a bicycle kick by Garcia. You'll see that on highlight reels for years. Nothing you can do about that.

Halftime: U.S. 1, Honduras 1. A fair score since both teams finished their best chance with a flourish. The U.S. would have been in much better shape with a 1-0 lead but they probably didn't deserve it anyway.

No changes for either team to start the 2nd half.

50th minute-Bradley had a chance but his weak shot was deflected out.

52nd minute-Boniek is free down the wing but he puts the shot in the side netting.

55th minute-Bengtson almost takes advantage of Cameron's miscue in the back but he shoots it over.

56th minute-Haha Honduras is offside again, wiping out a goal.

58th minute-Come on Bradley, his corner kick never even went inbounds. That is unacceptable and can't happen at this level, ever. 1st U.S. sub: Maurice Edu is on for Williams.

59th minute-2nd U.S. sub: Sacha Kljestan on for Eddie Johnson.

65th minute-Bradley laid it off for Dempsey, his shot might have been trouble but it was blocked out for a corner before it got on goal.

67th minute-last U.S. sub: Graham Zusi in for Jones. So this is it, the U.S. won't have any more guys come on.

70th minute-Figueroa flashes up for a header but he can't put it on Howard. That was a good chance if he aimed it better.

71st minute-Costly shoots wide from distance.

79th minute-lazy defending leads to a tap-in by Bengtson. Gonzalez and Cameron were the culprits leaving Howard stuck in no-man's land. 2-1 Honduras, crushing goal to allow, especially in that fashion.

84th minute-And Bengtson gets carried off on a stretcher. Haha pathetic, let the stalling tactics commence.

93rd minute-Honduras makes its first sub: Welcome in for Costly.

94th minute-That's about right, the U.S. has one last chance on a corner but Gonzalez heads it over.

Final: Honduras 2, U.S. 1. That was a crappy performance by the U.S. and a blah game as well but you felt like Honduras would find the go-ahead goal at some point if the U.S. didn't take another lead. As always, the U.S. defense is a disaster and they can't find four above average players to put together. Ugh, nothing like a heartless loss by the U.S. to ruin your day. Thanks guys! They had never lost the opener during the final round of World Cup qualifying until today so they've got that going for them.

This was the first of 10 matches (2 against 5 other teams), if the U.S. can't finish ahead of Panama and Jamaica then heaven forbid lose to New Zealand in the final playoff, well then they don't deserve to be in the World Cup. That's a long way off though and a doomsday scenario. Still, the next U.S. game: March 22 vs. Costa Rica in Denver, Colorado now becomes a must-win since the next match is at Mexico and we all know how much they struggle there. Thankfully, the Costa Rica game will be on at a better time (10 p.m. EST and a real network (ESPN). Today's game in Honduras was a B-squad presentation all-around: middle of the day and week, on an obscure network.

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This Is It, Don't Get Scared Now: U.S. Men Set For World Cup Qualifier At Honduras On Wednesday

Nobody has really focused on it, since there have been a million other things going on in the sports world but the U.S. men's national team's final round of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil begins on Wednesday at Estadio Olimpico in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. Luckily for us, the game (4 p.m. EST) will only be broadcast on beIN SPORT which means that most will be following it on ussoccer.com's gametracker and their Twitter account (@ussoccer). Sigh.

This morning, U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann released his 24-man roster for the match. They'll train in Miami today before leaving for Honduras later this afternoon.

From ussoccer.com
“We want to have a sense of urgency right from the start of the Final Round," said Klinsmann. “We have a lot of respect for Honduras, but our message to the team is that we are going there to get three points. One thing we learned from the Semifinal Round is that you have to bring the right mentality to play in the tough games on the road, and I’m confident we are ready to do that.”

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION (World Cup qualifying Caps/Goals)
GOALKEEPERS (3) : Brad Guzan (Aston Villa - 5/3 SO), Tim Howard (Everton – 22/9 SO), Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire – 0/0)
DEFENDERS (9) : Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City – 0/0), Carlos Bocanegra (Racing Santander – 31/5), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City – 5/0), Edgar Castillo (Club Tijuana – 0/0), Timmy Chandler (Nuremberg – 0/0), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders – 0/0), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy – 0/0), Fabian Johnson (Hoffenheim – 3/0), Michael Parkhurst (Augsburg – 3/0)
MIDFIELDERS (8) : Michael Bradley (Roma – 19/5), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo - 0/0), Maurice Edu (Bursaspor – 9/0), Jermaine Jones (Schalke 04 – 5/0), Sacha Kljestan (Anderlecht – 12/0), Jose Torres (Tigres – 9/0), Danny Williams (Hoffenheim – 4/0), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City – 3/0)
FORWARDS (4 ): Jozy Altidore (AZ Alkmaar – 17/6), Clint Dempsey (Tottenham Hotspur – 26/10), Herculez Gomez (Santos – 6/2), Eddie Johnson (Seattle Sounders – 11/10)

Since it is on an official FIFA approved international fixture date, Klinsmann will bring in the varsity as opposed to the JV squad that had a scoreless draw with Canada last week (that's the last time I'll ever reference that worthless friendly). 17 of these players compete for clubs in Europe or Mexico and five of them have 50 or more CAPs.

The United States holds a 12-3-3 lifetime record against Honduras in a series that goes back to 1965. Both the United States and Honduras earned a place in the here by virtue of winning their respective semifinal round groups. The Catrachos qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup after only losing once at home in nine qualifiers throughout the cycle. That lone loss came against the United States.

The U.S. and Honduras are part of the six-team hexagonal along with Costa Rica, Jamaica, Mexico and Panama. The 10-game, round-robin format will take place from Feb. 6-Oct.10. The top three teams will automatically advance to the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, while the fourth-place team will compete in a two-leg playoff against the champion from the Oceania Confederation.

It's important that the U.S. get off to a good start since this round means everything and only the best teams remain alive. Their next match won't be until March 22 when they host Costa Rica at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado. That's a long time to think about a loss so they at least need a draw to feel confident about themselves.

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Carlos Bocanegra Out Six Weeks With Muscle Tear, Luckily The Next U.S. Game Is In February

For professional athletes, there is never a good time to pick up an injury. However, in the case of U.S. defender Carlos Bocanegra, things could be much worse at this point.

He tore a muscle in his left leg in the 2-2 draw with Russia on November 14 and now he's expected to miss six weeks with his current club-Spain's Racing Santander. You'll remember that he's on loan there since his real club-Rangers-dropped down to the second division in Scotland after financial troubles.

The next U.S. men's game isn't until February 6, 2013 against Honduras in the hexagonal CONCACAF World Cup qualifying. If I'm American head coach Jurgen Klinsmann, I'm telling my best defender to take as much time as he needs to recover. No need to rush back or hurt it any further. The most important thing for him should be his country, not the club that he's only temporarily playing for.

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There's Only One Clint Dempsey

I'm in New Hampshire for the long weekend so I only caught bits and pieces of the U.S. vs. Honduras match tonight but I had to post this highlight. The U.S. won 1-0, Jurgen Klinsmann's first win, in Miami and it was all thanks to Clint Dempsey's excellent strike. Tim Howard earned the shutout.

I have the game sitting on my DVR at home. It didn't seem to be too exciting overall (it was pouring) but if I decide to watch it (good chance), I'll write a more detailed summary at some point next week.

Until then, say it with me: there's only one Clint Dempsey! What a goal, there's nobody else on the U.S. that could even dream of pulling off a move like that.

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U.S. Men's Roster Set For Ecuador & Honduras Friendlies In October

It has sneaked up on us a bit but the U.S. men's national team is less than two weeks away from a pair of friendlies on its own shores.

The U.S. meets Honduras on October 8 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami (6 p.m. ET) before visiting the East Coast to take on Ecuador on October 11 at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J. (7 p.m. ET). With that in mind, U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann named a mostly familiar roster of 22 players for those games this afternoon.

U.S. roster
GOALKEEPERS (3): Bill Hamid (D.C.United), Tim Howard (Everton), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)

DEFENDERS (7): Carlos Bocanegra (Rangers), Timmy Chandler (Nürnberg), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Oguchi Onyewu (Sporting Lisbon), Michael Orozco Fiscal (San Luis), Tim Ream (New York Red Bulls), Jonathan Spector (Birmingham City)

MIDFIELDERS (7): Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Michael Bradley (Chievo Verona), Clint Dempsey (Fulham), Maurice Edu (Rangers), Jeff Larentowicz (Colorado Rapids), Brek Shea (FC Dallas), Danny Williams (Hoffenheim)

FORWARDS (5): Juan Agudelo (New York Red Bulls), Jozy Altidore (AZ Alkmaar), DaMarcus Beasley (Puebla), Teal Bunbury (Sporting Kansas City), Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy)

I included a picture of Williams since I'd never heard of him before (hat tip to the fine U.S. blog Yanks Abroad). You'll also note that Onyewu, Bradley and Beasley are back after not taking part in the disappointing matches against Costa Rica and Belgium at the start of September.

"We would like to continue seeing our players develop through these initial couple of months," said Klinsmann in a press release. "One important thing is to see continuity in the build-up of our national team and also in the way we work as coaches. We'd like to see new faces as well, but we also don't want to shake up the core structure of the team too much.

"The two results with Costa Rica and Belgium didn't work in our favor but we saw clearly that the team started to understand what we demand from them in terms of pace, playing style and how to play. "

I think we all know what we get with those three aforementioned players and it was assumed all along that they'd each rightfully have some place on this new iteration of the U.S. team. Bradley should immediately help in the midfield where the U.S. has struggled in three games under Klinsmann in terms of doing anything offensively from the middle of the park. Likewise, Beasley gives Altidore and Donovan some much needed skill. I've never been an Onyewu fan but it's still all hands on deck in terms of finding a fourth defender to pair with Bocanegra, Chandler and Cherundolo or possibly coming off the bench as as substitute.

After tying Mexico in Klinsmann's first match in August (in Philadelphia) then looking lethargic against Costa Rica in California and in Belgium, it is high time for the U.S. to get their new boss some more impressive results. Clearly, gaining chemistry and teaching new styles are paramount under Klinsmann but looking better in the process and pulling off some wins can only help gain confidence for all involved as well.

Update 10/3: Donovan is out with Edson Buddle replacing him. Apparently Landycakes has a strained right quadriceps.

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Honduras appoints a new head coach

Honduras named a new head coach today: Juan de Dios Castillo replaces Reinaldo Rueda, who brought the team to the 2010 World Cup.

Castillo's contract will run through December 31, 2011 according the Honduras soccer federation.

The 59-year-old Mexican will debut with the national team on Sept. 3 in a friendly against El Salvador in Los Angeles.

Castillo has won club championships in Honduras with Real Espana and Olimpia.

Congrats. Honduras, you were not the worst team in the 2010 World Cup

Thanks to Jonathan Bornstein, Honduras made the 2010 World Cup and not Costa Rica, a better team.

There was no magical run by the minow from CONCACAF. They were placed in a pretty good Group (H) and they lost to Spain and Chile but picked up a point vs. Switzerland. So there's that. Technically, Honduras is better than Cameroon and North Korea, the only two teams that finished with no points in the 2010 World Cup.

Honduras

Best moment: The unlikely help from Bornstein and just getting into the 2010 World Cup.

Worst moment: The first two matches as they didn't score a goal and couldn't get a point against Spain or Chile.

Best result: The draw with Switzerland. They took a point from the team that somehow knocked off Spain.

Worst result: A 2-0 loss to Spain is nothing to be ashamed of, especially for Honduras but that second match sealed their short trip in South Africa.

Final tally: 2 losses, 1 tie. 0 goals scored, 3 goals conceded.

Best player: Goalkeeper Noel Valladares who had a clean sheet against Switzerland and only allowed three goals combined against Chile and Spain-two of the most explosive teams in the 32-team field.

Worst player: Anyone that played midfield or forward. No goals? Weak sauce bros.

Spain and Chile move on, shitbums go home

Goal-scoring is way down in the 2010 World Cup but there's a great lesson to take away thus far: if you want to play defensive, pack 'em in soccer, don't pack a big bag because you won't make it out of the knockout stage.

Spain held on for the 2-1 win over Chile but both deservedly advanced to the round-of-16. Brazil plays Chile at 2:30 p.m. on Monday and Portugal meets Spain at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Both matches are full of juicy possibilites.

Honduras and Switzerland tied 0-0 and frankly, that's what Shimer and I have been preaching. It's not just that we prefer offensive, creative soccer (who doesn't?), we simply want to see the best teams move on. It's very gratifying to see our words come true as the three most boring squads: Greece, Italy and Switzerland are all done.

Four minutes of useless added time

Switzerland and Honduras are still scoreless in the 92nd minute.

Danilo Turcos came on for Honduran forward David Suazo.

2-1 Spain in the 91st minute with two minutes of stoppage time.

Last Swiss sub and Honduran puts in part of my all-name team

Xherdan Shaqiri is in for Switzerland midfielder Benjamin Huggel.

Honduras inserted forward Georgie Welcome for Jerry Palacios.

That snoozefest is still 0-0 in the 84th minute.

Spain is up 2-1 in the 82nd minute.

Alonso out, Martinez in

Spain's second move was taking Xabi Alonso out for Javi Martinez.

Spain up 2-1 in the 74th minute.

0-0 Honduras-Switzerland in the 76th minute.

South American teams are unbeaten in the 2010 World Cup (10-0-4) and they've outscored opponents 21-4. Not too shabby.

Changes from the boring match

I can't watch the Switzerland-Honduras match since I can only imagine how dull it is.

However, I will faithfully update everything that's going on there. Switzerland replaced forward Blaise N'Kufo with Alexander Frei.

Honduras made their first move: forward Walter Martinez in for midfielder Ramon Nunez.

Still scoreless in the 73rd minute, nobody is going to score in this one. Deal with it.

Spain is up 2-1 in the 71st minute.

Sanchez out, Orellana in

Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez was subbed out for Fabian Orellana, their last change. Orellana is famous for scoring the game-winner in qualifying vs. Argentina, the first time Chile beat the Argentines.

2-1 Spain in the 67th minute.

0-0 Switzerland-Honduras in the 69th minute.

Suazo booked

Honduran forward David Suazo picked up a yellow card.

As of right now, the 2.1 goals per match average is the lowest in any World Cup.

2-1 Spain in the 62nd minute.

0-0 Switzerland-Honduras in the 64th minute.

Fabregas and his beard check in

One of our other favorites-Cesc Fabregas-just replaced Torres. It speaks to the depth and quality of Spain that possibly the best midfielder in the EPL comes off their bench.

Granted, he's coming back from an injury. He's also rocking a Dustin Pedroia-esque beard in his 52nd international appearance which is particularly impressive when you remember that he's only 23.

2-1 Spain in the 58th minute.

0-0 Switzerland-Spain in the 60th minute.