USMNT No. 1 Goalkeeper Matt Turner Leaves Arsenal (After 1 Season) For Nottingham Forest

 

    If you saw the headline that USMNT starting goalkeeper Matt Turner was bolting from Arsenal after one forgettable season and going to Nottingham Forest, let me do my best to quickly talk you off the proverbial ledge. It is simple really, while the Gunners finished second in the English Premier League last season-46 points ahead of Forest who were just two places above the relegation zone in 16th place-Turner only appeared in seven total matches, none of which were in the Premier League. At the age of 29, he is in the prime of his soccer career and as a pro athlete, he does not have the luxury to wait a few years in North London, hoping to grab the No. 1 spot for Arsenal at some point. The move that had been rumored for weeks was made official today, as he signed a four-year deal worth a reported $12.75 million with Nottingham Forest.

    With the USMNT, Turner is in a good position in terms of job security. He really does not have anyone that is coming for his place anytime soon. Still, to reach his pinnacle as well as the USMNT's, they need him playing as much as possible. The fact that Nottingham Forest will be underdogs in most of their Premier League matches is a good thing in this case since it means that Turner will get plenty of action in every game as they try to avoid relegation in 2023-24. While it is far sexier to say "wow, our goalie is at Arsenal (or one of the other powerhouse clubs in Europe)!" rather than at lowly Nottingham Forest, this temporary move should benefit him and the U.S. men's national team both in the short and long term. In an amazing twist of scheduling fate, Turner and his new club open their regular season on Saturday morning (7:30 am, USA Network) as they visit Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. Haha what are the odds of that? Hopefully he is ready for suit up in that one because that would be a pretty cool footnote to his stint in the Premier League.

    Keep in mind that if he plays well with Forest, he is unlikely to be there for the entirety of his contract. God bless European soccer since as soon as a guy blows up at a smaller club, he is usually snatched up by a bigger and more powerful team with the quickness. So who knows, Turner could end up back at Arsenal or one of the other title contenders in no time. No matter what sport you play in, you can only get so much out of practices and non-game situations. It would be one thing if Turner was a teenager and while goalkeepers typically have longer professional careers than field players, there is no guarantee of anything when you compete in the top soccer league in the world. 

    If you know anything about Turner and his Disney movie like backstory, you will never doubt his ability to exceed expectations in short order. This is the same guy who thought he would be a baseball player when he was growing up and never played competitive soccer until high school. He played at a very low level Division 1 college-Fairfield University in Connecticut-and then nobody knew him before he burst onto the MLS and USMNT scene with the New England Revolution. The USMNT has always been known for quality goalies and Turner is the latest in a long line of quality shot-stoppers. The difference now is that there is way more talent around him than ever before so ideally, he won't always have to stand on his head when the U.S. plays top competition from around the globe. 

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The USMNT Blanked Canada 2-0 To Capture Its Second Straight CONCACAF Nations League Title

 

    After all of the on-the-field and off-the-field drama for the US men's national team on Thursday, tonight was back to a more routine kind of match and result as they did what they always do on home soil: they beat Canada 2-0 to win the 2023 CONCACAF Nations League Final at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Despite the sorry state of the Mexican national team at the moment (they squeaked by Panama 1-0 in the third-place game earlier today), their matches vs. the United States will always be more highly-charged than when the USMNT plays Canada (this ain't hockey). Of course, a title is always nice particularly to start what should be a fun summer for the USMNT and the USWNT-the Women's World Cup starts in a month in Australia and New Zealand as the Americans vie for their third straight crown. 

    Displaying a scoring punch that was severely lacking at the 2022 World Cup, the US struck for a pair of goals in the first half this evening that left Canada stunned and they ultimately never recovered from it. The first was from defender Chris Richards who headed in a corner kick by midfielder Gio Reyna in the 12th minute. Richards plays at Crystal Palace in the Premier League but I have to admit that after he scored, I wondered aloud for a few moments "who is that?" For good reason since it was his first career goal for the USMNT and truth be told, it was one that Canada's goalkeeper the immortal Milan Borjan should have stopped. The header was not that powerful and it did not go into a top corner of the net, instead it somehow went comically under a diving Borjan. 

    Haters will knock that first US goal (and rightfully so) but the second was all class as our new striker/savior 21-year-old Folarin Balogun took a nifty pass from Reyna, shielded his defender and buried a one-time shot with power and accuracy in the 34th minute. He made his debut on Thursday for the US and this goal should only fuel the hype for what I'm predicting could be the best goal-scorer that we have ever produced. Needless to say that the USMNT rarely ever scored goals that looked like that but if Thursday and today were any indication, we should expect many more highlight reel strikes before long. Canada trailed 2-0 at halftime and despite a misleading 64%-36% advantage in possession, the impotent Canadian attack could only muster four shots on goal and goalkeeper Matt Turner stopped all of them for his second shutout in a row. 

    After some well-deserved partying in Vegas (what a place to win the CONCACAF Nations League!), the team will mostly go home to rest for their upcoming club seasons or take a vacation to get away from soccer for a bit. There is only a handful of guys that will be competing for the US in the Gold Cup which starts for them next Saturday night (9:30, FS1) in Chicago against Jamaica. The Gold Cup is usually a welcome diversion in the dog days of summer sports but keep in mind if you tune in that you will not be seeing most of the top American players other than Turner who needs all the playing time that he can get after being the backup for almost every Arsenal match in 2022-23. This is a squad that is MLS-heavy since that league is currently in season while all the European leagues are on summer break. Also, the US will look to defend their Gold Cup championship as they won the last competition in 2021. 

What Should Have Been A Great Night For The USMNT Is Overshadowed By More Silly Drama

 

    On the surface, tonight was a fabulous result for the U.S. men's soccer team as they thrashed their biggest rival Mexico 3-0 in the CONCACAF Nations League Semifinals on Thursday night at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. The Americans extended their unbeaten streak vs. the Mexicans to six games (4-0-2). United States captain and midfielder Christian Pulisic scored twice, striker Ricardo Pepi added the other goal as a substitute and goalkeeper Matt Turner only had to make one save as the U.S. dominated Mexico to reach the Final on Sunday night (9, Paramount Plus & Univision) against Canada who earlier had blanked Panama 2-0. Unfortunately, the match will be remembered as much for its ugliness on the field (13 combined cards including two guys that received reds on each side) as well as off (anti-gay chants from idiot Mexican fans who also pelted the field with trash) which forced the referees to end it early in stoppage time when everything became too much to handle. Oh and a bombshell came out during the proceedings that after six-plus months of searching for a head coach, the U.S. men's soccer team is going to reappoint Gregg Berhalter in charge. You have got to be kidding me!

    The whole bizarre situation left U.S. legend Clint Dempsey stunned at halftime, wondering why they had wasted so much time simply to go back to where they started with Berhalter. Indeed, since they were badly outclassed 3-1 vs. Netherlands in the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup on December 3, the U.S. men's national team has been beset by drama involving Berhalter and the Reynas. It felt like a no-brainer to get someone from the outside to bring some fresh ideas and a new perspective to a group that on paper is far more talented than any team that they have ever had in their history. As recently as earlier this week, we heard that former Arsenal and French star Patrick Vieira (who coached at Crystal Palace in the Premier League and NYCFC in MLS) was interested in the job. I cannot say that he is an outstanding coach from what we've seen early in that side of his career but at least he is a big name in soccer and a non-American who has played and coached at the highest level. Nope, instead we are going back to a guy that is best suited to be a coach in MLS or Mexico (there was a rumor earlier this week that Berhalter turned down a coaching opportunity with Club America). Ugh. I guess we should have seen this coming though since the breadcrumbs were there for a Berhalter return with some of the USMNT's best players like Pulisic and midfielder Timothy Weah publicly pledging their support to him lately which seemed odd at the time. 

    Back to the game which was all about Pulisic. In the first half, he had a wonderful chance as he dribbled around Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa only to put the not that difficult shot over the net. Christian was stunned as he lay on the ground for an extended period of time in disbelief. Thankfully, he shook that off as he pounced on a loose ball in the Mexican box and finished a pretty left footed shot in the 37th minute for a 1-0 U.S. lead. Less than two minutes into the second half it was 2-0 U.S. (Dos A Cero!) as Pulisic buried a perfect cross from Weah. Striker Folarin Balogun's much-anticipated debut for the USMNT could have ended on an ugly note as Mexico's goon defender Cesar Montes chopped him down in the 69th minute with a brutal trip that rightfully resulted in a red card. Sadly, American midfielder Weston McKennie got drawn into the scrum and ended up with a red card of his own a few moments later. Balogun survived and the U.S. extended the beating as Pepi entered in the 75th minute and scored the final goal three minutes later after a pinpoint feed from defender Sergino Dest (who received a red card of his own in the 85th minute).

    It has a long way to go to match the intensity or history of U.S. vs. Mexico but I will submit my prediction that over the next few years, the U.S. vs. Canada should become much more of a rivalry since the Canadians are better than they have ever been with legitimate stars like striker Jonathan David (Lyon with Weah) and midfielder Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich)-who scored both of their goals vs. Panama-who compete at top European clubs. Conversely, Mexico is in shambles (which I almost feel badly about, well not really) with few stars left on its roster these days. It sounds like Berhalter will be re-introduced (oh joy) on Friday but at least Sunday night should be fun as the U.S. men go for another CONCACAF Nations League title. It is a bummer than McKennie and Dest will miss the match because of those stupid red cards but that will give other guys like Balogun and midfielder Gio Reyna (sporting his fresh new Eminem-esque blonde hair)-who didn't do much against Mexico-a chance to really shine on Father's Day evening in Vegas along with Pulisic.

Survive & Advance: USMNT Hangs On To Beat Iran 1-0, Reach Knockout Round Vs. Netherlands

 

    It was nervy and a bit sketchy at the end but all that matters is that the U.S. men's national team got the job done this afternoon in its Group B finale vs. Iran. The stakes were simple enough: win and they proceeded to the knockout round; lose and they catch the next flight out of Qatar. Thanks to a superb goal by star Christian Pulisic and the second straight shutout by goalkeeper Matt Turner, the Americans finished in second place in Group B with a 1-0 victory against Iran. They now will face the Netherlands on Saturday morning (10 am, FOX) in the Round of 16. England beat Wales 3-0 to finish in first place in Group B and they will meet Senegal on Sunday (2 pm, Fox). 

    With only two goals in its three games in Qatar, goal-scoring has clearly been a major issue facing the U.S. They played really well in the first half today though and were rewarded when midfielder Weston McKennie sent a long pass to defender Sergino Dest which he headed towards the goal line. Pulisic bravely went right at Iran's goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand and volleyed the ball into the net just before he received a swift kick to a very sensitive area. After understandably staying down on the ground and being tended to by the USMNT medical staff, Pulisic briefly came off the field before going back on to end the half. He was replaced to start the second half and after a trip to the hospital, he said that he would be ready to go against the Dutch which is a huge relief given how serious it initally looked.

     Iran stepped up its play in the second half, particularly in the latter portion of the final stanza. US head coach Gregg Berhalter used all five of his substitutes and other than the mostly useless striker Haji Wright and midfielder Brenden Aaronson (who was a fine replacement for Pulisic), he focused on defenders with Shaq Moore (who shouldn't be on this team) coming on for Dest, Kellyn Acosta taking out McKennie and Walker Zimmerman subbing in for Timothy Weah (who had a stoppage time goal in the first half wiped away despite no VAR review of what looked like an incredibly close offside call). No Gio Reyna appearance for the second time in three matches, no Joe Scally (yet to see the field in Qatar) or no DeAndre Yedlin who I would have preferred vs. Moore.

    The Netherlands will represent a true step up in class for the U.S. but their 0-0 tie with England proves that they can hang with the better teams that are here. The Dutch won Group A after finishing 2-0-1 via a 2-0 win vs. Senegal, a 1-1 draw with Ecuador and a 2-0 shutout of Qatar to close it out earlier this morning. Their breakout star has been forward Cody Gakpo who has scored a goal in each game so far in the 2022 World Cup. It should be a good matchup since like the Americans, the Dutch have only allowed one goal in Qatar. Expect another low-scoring affair like today was and hopefully the U.S. attack can wake up a little bit more. For context, the last two times that the U.S. reached the knockout stage of a World Cup, they lost in the Round of 16: 1-0 to Belgium in 2014 and 2-1 to Ghana in 2010. Their last win at this point was that memorable 2-0 upset of Mexico way back in 2002.

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Eight Years Later, The U.S. Men's National Team Return To The World Cup With A 1-1 Tie Vs. Wales

 

    So much has changed since the last time that the U.S. men's national team was in its last World Cup (2014 in Brazil). This afternoon, an almost completely new squad (defender DeAndre Yedlin is the only holdover from that team) took the field in Qatar for their Group B opener vs. Wales. While this team is brimming with far more individual talent than the Americans have ever possessed, they still came away with a disappointing result: a 1-1 draw. Earlier in the day, England opened with a 6-2 thrashing of Iran which is what a heavyweight team like the English are expected to do. Of course, up next the Americans meet England on Black Friday (2, Fox) in a huge showdown that now takes on even more meaning since the U.S. settled for a point rather than earning the full three against the Welsh. Ugh.

    The U.S. played a nearly flawless first half and took a 1-0 lead in the 36th minute on a brilliant build-up play (more on that later) and a top-class finish by 22-year-old forward Timothy Weah. Rather than push for the all-important second goal in the second half, head coach Gregg Berhalter decided to sit on that perilous lead and ended up getting burned by Welsh legend Gareth Bale who drew a dumb foul in the box from defender Walker Zimmerman. The LA Galaxy star (that still sounds so weird to say) predictably converted the penalty kick in the 82nd minute and the Welsh grabbed a point in a match where the U.S. owned 59% possesion and had two more corner kicks (5-3) than Wales. 

    Did I mention that the U.S. finished with just one shot on goal? Yeah, that will not get it done at a major tournament. I think any objective American fan came into this cursed event in an awful and backwards country most scared of Berhalter screwing this whole thing up since he is their most glaring weakness besides inexperience of the players on this stage. Today was not a fireable offense but budding star midfielder Giovanni Reyna never seeing the field while forward Jordan Morris was a late substitute for Weah was a ridiculous decision. Turner did his part with a spectaular save to punch a dangerous Welsh header over the crossbar in the second half. He even got a hand on Bale's penalty kick but it was stuck way too hard to make a difference. 

   Starting with striker Josh Sargent's holdup then Pulisic's rush forward followed by a perfectly weighted pass to Weah who one-timed a finish before Wales' goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey could rush out to stop it, that U.S. goal was utterly gorgeous. Needless to say, past American teams never pulled off sequences like that against legitimate competition. Berhalter's starting 11 was about as good as it gets given the current roster: Turner in goal; Antonee Robinson, Tim Ream, Zimmerman and Sergino Dest in the back; Yunus Musah, newly-elected captain Tyler Adams (who was deservedly voted Man of the Match) and Weston McKennie in the midfield; Pulisic, Sargent and Weah up front. Other than the puzzling Morris move, Yedlin came on for Dest, Kellyn Acosta replaced Musah and Brenden Aaronson subbed in for McKennie. Besides Reyna, there really were not any other guys that never played against Wales that you could make much of a fuss about. 

    Berhalter should not panic and if I were him, I would roll with basically the same lineup vs. England. The U.S. has to be careful then since four guys (Ream, Dest, Acosta and McKennie) will carry yellow cards into that match with risk of missing the Iran Group B finale (should they pick up another yellow) which is likely to be very important for all four countries in the Group. England will be favored but the United States has shown in the past that they can play with the English. Goal differential is always something to pay attention to in this format so if they lose, it cannot be by more a goal or two. The U.S. led 1-0 at halftime against Wales and were up for 46 minutes late into the second half so hopefully this group takes some lessons from their first taste of the World Cup and puts it to good use when they meet one of the best teams on the planet.

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The U.S. Men Finished The Job By Beating Mexico 1-0 In Extra Time To Capture The 2021 Gold Cup

 

    For the second time in less than two months (and the first time in team history), the U.S. men's soccer team beat Mexico in back-to-back finals. This time, defender Miles Robinson (game-winning goal) was the unlikely offensive hero while the goalkeeper Matt Turner (5 saves, 5th shutout of the tournament) continued to play out of his mind as the USMNT survived 1-0 in extra time at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas-the enormous indoor home of the Raiders. This was the seventh Gold Cup title all-time for the U.S. and their first since 2017 (keep in mind that it happens every other year). They hunkered down and made the most of their limited chances as Mexico possessed the ball by a wide margin (64%-36%) compared to the Americans. This was also the fifth time in six Gold Cup matches this summer where the U.S. has won by a slim 1-0 final score. 

    Other than Turner-who was rightfully named the Man of the Match after one last superb performance-Robinson was the only other U.S. player to play in every minute of every game in this edition of the Gold Cup. The Arlington, MA native & Syracuse product scored what undoubtedly was the biggest goal of his life very deep (117th minute!) into the second half of extra time. In fact, it was the latest goal that the USMNT had ever scored against Mexico. The winning sequence all started on a set piece as midfielder Kellyn Acosta swung a cross right into the box where Robinson rose the highest to head it in for his third career goal for the Americans-all scored this year.

    As he showed time and again in this tournament, Turner doesn't get rattled by much and when he is on his game like he has been for the past few weeks, look out world! By going 6-0 in this tournament, he probably ensured that he is about to get much richer whether that is with the New England Revolution or somewhere else. He has also placed himself firmly in the discussion for who should be the No. 1 USMNT goalkeeper moving forward: either Manchester City's Zach Steffen (who is clearly the odds on favorite) or him seem like the only legitimate options at this point. For what it's worth, nobody's stock on this team improved more than him at the 2021 Gold Cup. 

    The other aspect of this Gold Cup that I found most fascinating was seeing so many of the less heralded but still promising young U.S. players that will most likely be their future depth in support of their A-team pals from the Nations League title squad. We are exactly a month away from World Cup qualifying getting started up again meaning that birthday boy and U.S. head coach Gregg Berhalter will have some tough decisions to make to create that final roster. They meet El Salvador on September 2, followed by September 5 vs. Canada in Nashville and September 8 against Honduras. Before then, these players and coaches deserve to have a well-earned short break before things truly start to get serious in September.

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Zardes & Turner Push The USMNT Past Qatar 1-0 & Through To The 2021 Gold Cup Final Vs. Mexico

 

    The 2021 Gold Cup could not have dreamed of a better possible matchup in the final on Sunday night (9, FS1) in Las Vegas as this evening, the U.S. survived a major challenge from Qatar 1-0 at Austin's Q2 Stadium in the semifinals while Mexico got an extremely late stoppage time game-winner (in the 99th minute!) to defeat Canada 2-1 in Houston. It is not like the USMNT and Mexico haven't played each other in a long time (you'll recall that the Americans defeated the Mexicans 3-2 in extra time of the fantastic Nations League Final on June 6) but regardless, it is always a treat when two of the great rivals in international soccer get together especially with a trophy or something important to play for. 

    If you have been paying close attention to this Gold Cup or even casually following the USMNT, you will notice that this followed a very familiar script since four of their five matches (all wins by the way) have been 1-0 results. That means that New England Revolution goalkeeper (how much longer can we say that with these type of performances?) Matt Turner (3 saves) recorded another clean sheet-his fourth of the tournament-along with man of the match honors while substitute forward Gyasi Zardes notched the lone goal in the 86th minute. You probably wouldn't believe me unless you were watching it yourself but Qatar had the best scoring chances of the game (aside from Zardes' goal, obviously): Turner made a pair of unbelievable reaction stops-one off a deflection and another on a beautiful volley-in the first half and he lucked out as midfielder Hasan Al Haydos chipped a penalty kick just over the crossbar in the 61st minute.

    The goal was a pretty one as forward Nicholas Gioacchini (who had just entered in the 81st minute) turned a few Qatar defenders around before serving a perfect pass on the ground for Zardes to run onto and poke in with the toe of his cleat before he was swarmed by the goalkeeper and defense. It is no wonder that the U.S. will meet Mexico in another Gold Cup final since these two countries by far have had the most success in the tournament over the years. This will be the record 12th Gold Cup final appearance for the Americans while they aim for their seventh title; the Mexicans have won eight Gold Cups in nine appearances in the final. Mexico beat the U.S. 1-0 in the most recent edition (2019) while the Americans' last crown was in 2017 vs. Jamaica (2-1). No matter if you are a bandwagon USMNT fan or a hardcore like myself, all are welcome on Sunday in what should be an incredible atmosphere at Allegiant Stadium (home of the Raiders) which has a capacity of 65,000 people.

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Hoppe Got His First International Goal & USMNT Beat Jamaica 1-0 To Reach Gold Cup Semis

 

    You might not have noticed but the USMNT continues to get it done at the 2021 Gold Cup as they hung on for an exciting 1-0 victory tonight in the quarterfinals against Jamaica at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX (aka the home of the Dallas Cowboys). 20-year-old American forward Matthew Hoppe-who plays for FC Schalke in Germany-was the hero as he bravely headed in a cross from Seattle Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan in the 83rd minute for his first international goal. That turned out to be all the USMNT needed as New England Revolution goalkeeper Matt Turner made five saves for his third clean sheet of the tournament. With the win, the U.S. advances to their 11th straight Gold Cup semifinal (and 15th overall) vs. Qatar on Thursday night (7:30, FS1) in Austin, TX at the beautiful new Q2 Stadium (home of MLS' latest expansion club, Austin FC). 

    If the US had somehow lost this match, it would have been super frustrating since they absolutely dominated possession (67%-33%!) but that really meant very little because both teams had exactly five shots on goal and seven corner kicks apiece. Hoppe's clutch goal saved head coach Gregg Berhalter from some nervy minutes in extra time-and possibly penalty kicks-as his guys battled Jamaica's fantastic goalkeeper Andre Blake (4 saves) who stars for the Philadelphia Union in MLS. As I explained in the previous post, this is far from the A-team for the USMNT these days but nevertheless, they have been grinding out results against other CONCACAF teams these past few weeks. In fact, if you throw out the 6-1 blowout of Martinique, the US has topped Haiti, Canada and Jamaica by the exact same 1-0 final score.

    You probably don't know much about Qatar (the Asian champion and host of the 2022 World Cup) but trust me, they will test the US on Thursday. They are here after a wild 3-2 nailbiter over El Salvador on Saturday night. Before that, they had won Group D-which also featured Honduras, Panama and Grenada-and including the El Salvador triumph, they have scored the most goals (12) in the entire competition. Moreover, they are fielding what is the closest to their best roster of all the countries in the Gold Cup so for those reasons, the semifinal is not a layup by any means even though it is guaranteed to basically be a home game for the USMNT. In the other semifinal on Thursday night (10, FS1), Mexico meets Canada so yes my friends, we are only one game away from possibly another installment of the superb USMNT vs. Mexico blood rivalry this time in the 2021 Gold Cup Final next Sunday night (8:30, FS1) in Las Vegas.

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USMNT Beat Canada 1-0 To Finish Atop Group B & Advance To The Gold Cup Quarterfinals

 

    On the one hand, I cannot blame you for not paying much attention to the 2021 Gold Cup which is a joke compared to the recently completed Euro 2020 or Copa America. Then again, what the hell else is there to watch in this super boring time of the sports summer? After beating mighty Haiti and Martinique earlier in the week, the US men's national team finally faced a half decent opponent this afternoon at Children's Mercy Park in Kansas City. Midfielder Shaq Moore scored his first career goal 20 seconds into the match (a modern USMNT and Gold Cup record for the fastest opening goal) and goalkeeper Matt Turner made three saves for the clean sheet as the U.S. held off Canada 1-0 to finish first in Group B. From here on out, they will likely only see other quality opponents as they proceed to the quarterfinals next Sunday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas (aka the home of the Dallas Cowboys) where they meet either Costa Rica or Jamaica. 

    As you can probably guess from the aforementioned names, this is far from the A-team for the USMNT. It is basically the American MLS All-Stars with a few other random guys sprinkled in, minus all the top players that compete for European clubs. Still, guys like Moore and Turner are perfect examples of younger players that are fighting like hell to earn a spot on the top roster as they continue World Cup qualifying this fall in hopes of making it to Qatar next November for the 2022 World Cup (that will never sound right). Today's match was one of those classic soccer games where if you only saw the first few minutes, you really didn't miss anything else that was notable. The Americans hit the Canadians with a quick opening strike and Canada (2-1-0) never really had a proper response but they also advance to the quarterfinals since they finished a close second in Group B. 

    Thankfully for a match that was devoid of too many highlights or interesting moments, Moore's goal was awesome. Midfielder Kellyn Acosta won the ball in the center of the field and served it out wide to midfielder Sebastian Lletget who one-timed a dime of a low cross to Moore at the far post who tapped it in. Besides Moore, Turner was the other real standout for the USMNT as the New England Revolution star (arguably the best goalkeeper in MLS these days) continued his rapid rise. He stuffed Revs teammate Tajon Buchanan and also made a diving stop on dangerous Canadian striker Cyle Larin. Zach Steffen plays at Manchester City so he obviously will be the USMNT's starting goalkeeper for a long time but there is no clear backup behind him so Turner-who has started and won all three of these Gold Cup matches-could very well be that guy. 

    From an American perspective, the only bad news from the day was that captain Walker Zimmerman had to leave in the 15th minute after picking up an early injury from a rough challenge. With this group, he's probably the best American defender so hopefully it was nothing too serious and he can return to action on Sunday in the knockout round. The margin for error with this version of the USMNT is pretty small so while they have the ability to win the Gold Cup, they could likewise get upset by their next opponent. That unpredictability makes this tournament more watchable than it has any right to be. With most major soccer tournaments, there are only a handful of teams that can truly go all the way but with wacky CONCACAF (and a few invited guests), anything can happen this summer.

UPDATE 7/20: Zimmerman has been ruled out for the rest of the Gold Cup with a hamstring injury; Earthquakes forward Cade Cowell & Revolution defender Henry Kessler will join the USMNT for training tomorrow. Also, Costa Rica just beat Jamaica 1-0 to win Group C meaning that the U.S. will face Jamaica on Sunday night (9, FS1) while Canada gets Costa Rica (7, FS1) before them on Sunday night in the quarterfinals. 

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