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.

Dos A Cero Forever and Ever: The USMNT Beats Mexico For The Third Time In A Row Since June

 

    Remember when the USMNT (4-2-1) was on the brink of utter disaster just a few short months ago? That hardly seems to matter now as they beat their archrival Mexico (4-2-1) 2-0 tonight at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, OH. Canada (3-4-0) held off Costa Rica (1-3-3) this evening in Edmonton leaving the Canadians one point behind both the United States and Mexico. Panama (3-2-2) is the only other country that is in the same neighborhood as those top three teams. Any victory against Mexico is a huge one but this carried extra meaning since it vaulted the U.S. to the top of their eight country CONCACAF group. It was also the first loss of this round (the 3rd) of qualifying for the Mexicans and it meant that the Americans have now beaten them in three staright matches dating back to this past June-something that neither country has done in this epic series since 1937. 

    It was scoreless at halftime and it remained 0-0 for much of the second half before the U.S. got a jolt of energy from its best player (who was a substitute) followed by an insurance goal by another one of their main stars. Of course, this was all made possible by goalkeeper Zack Steffen (4 saves) who earned the shutout with some solid play including a diving stop on a partial breakaway by Hirving Lozano-Mexico's best goal scorer-in the 18th minute. Forward Christian Pulisic did not start because he's only played two games for his club team-Chelsea-since returning from a serious ankle injury. In five minutes of action though, he made an immediate impact as he connected on a diving header with fellow forward Timothy Weah providing a picture perfect cross from the right side into the box. 

    Much like Pulisic, midfielder Weston McKennie is already proving to be a big-game performer for the USMNT not to mention his powerhouse club (Juventus). Unfortuately, in the 68th minute he picked up a yellow card for the second match in a row so he will miss the next U.S. World Cup qualifier-on Tuesday (5, Paramount+) at Jamaica (1-3-3). He made up for that by corraling a loose ball and dribbling through or around multiple Mexican defenders before finishing a low shot into the corner of the net. That made it 2-0 in favor of the U.S. in the 85th minute and stunned Mexico never had any time to recover. The only other negative for the Americans was that defender Miles Robinson picked up a red card in the 89th minute on a shaky at best call. He will sit out as well on Tuesday meaning that head coach Gregg Berhalter needs to make at least two changes to his starting lineup from tonight. 

    Finally, Tuesday night represents a golden opportunity for the U.S. to try and separate itself a bit at the top of the table. Sure from the outside it appears to have all the makings of the usual CONCACAF trap game that affects every country in this wacky region from time to time: they are facing an underdog opponent on a shoddy field and in a terrible stadium that has next to nothing to lose at this point. You'll remember that the previous time that the USMNT and Jamaica met on October 7, the Americans walked away with a 2-0 victory in Austin, TX. It will take another strong team effort to get the desired result of three more points. It is also their final World Cup 2022 qualifier in 2021 and the next one after that won't be for over two months (vs. El Salvador on January 27) so what better way to go into the holidays than with a win?

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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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The USMNT & Mexico Staged An Instant Classic In The First-Ever Concacaf Nations League Final

 

    Tonight's 2021 Concacaf Nations League Final pitting the U.S. men vs. their archrival Mexico in Denver's Empower Field at Mile High, was further proof that you could put these two teams in any almost venue and/or match situation and they will probably produce something wildly entertaining. This was the first time this mini-tournament had ever been held and it turned out to be a very memorable one as the USMNT defeated Mexico 3-2 in extra time. The three top American attacking players of this new era-Giovanni Reyna, Weston McKennie and Christian Pulisic-fittingly all scored goals while backup goalkeeper Ethan Horvath (a complete unknown to everyone but the most hardcore U.S. fan) was an unexpected hero after he came on following Zack Steffen's non-contact knee injury (yikes). 

    There was some awful defending right from the start by the host Americans as fullback Mark McKenzie (who is normally a forward) gave the ball away to Jesus Corona less than a minute into the match and the Mexican forward blasted a shot over Steffen's shoulder for a shocking 1-0 lead. The U.S. settled down and eventually tied it at one in the 27th minute as McKennie's header went off the crossbar allowing Reyna to get an easy tap-in when the Mexican backline was slow to react to the loose ball. It was 1-1 at halftime and stayed that way for much of the second half before everything went crazy. Steffen left the field in the 69th minute after he appeared to tweak something in his knee when he was about to do a drop kick. Yeesh, hopefully it's not too serious since he is firmly entrenched as the No. 1 American goalkeeper for the near future. However, Horvath who is from Colorado and plays at Club Brugge in Belgium was very impressive in such a tough spot. He did allow the go-ahead goal 10 minutes later but it could hardly be deemed his fault as some lazy marking by the U.S. defense allowed Mexican forward Diego Lainez to receive a cross at his feet and calmly put it in the net. 

    McKennie was named the best player of the tournament & the man of the match for a reason since he was dangerous all night on headers. In fact, he tied it up three minutes later with Reyna hitting a corner kick which the young Juventus midfielder was able to knock past Mexico's goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa. It was 2-2 at the end of regulation and the score remained the same after the first 15 minutes of extra time. In the second half of extra time, Pulisic was taken down in the box by Mexican defender Carlos Salcedo in the 109th minute. VAR checked it and it held up allowing Pulisic to blast his penalty kick to the upper right corner in the 114th minute. McKenzie's nightmare outing continued as he was whistled for a handball in the box in the 119th minute. That ruling was also reviewed by VAR and stood up. However, Horvath bailed out his teammate in spectacular fashion by making a diving stop on Mexico's midfielder Andres Guardado's (who had subbed in earlier) penalty kick in the 124th minute. The U.S. had to sweat out seven (!) more minutes of stoppage time but they somehow managed to survive it for the thrilling victory which gave them their first trophy in ages.

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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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With a Chance to Bring Positive Energy Back, USMNT Fall Flat On Their Face in Gold Cup Final

I'll keep this brief because first of all this team-the USMNT-really doesn't deserve much attention (at least in a positive manner) and likewise, especially on today of all days when the USWNT just captured their fourth World Cup title. However, let it be noted that the U.S. men fell 1-0 tonight in the Gold Cup 2019 Final to Mexico at a sold-out Soldier Field in Chicago. The Americans were bidding for their seventh Gold Cup title but they were outdone by their most bitter rival the Mexicans who earned their record eighth Gold Cup crown in front of what must have felt like a home game to them. Oh and did I mention that Mexico improved to 5-1 against them in the Final? The only U.S. win vs. Mexico in the Final remains from 2007.

The U.S. had two great scoring chances early in the match as midfielder Christian Pulisic had a breakaway stopped by Mexico's goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa (I'm the biggest Pulisic honk I know but he should have done better with that shot). That was frustrating but not even in the same galaxy as striker Jozy Altidore's pathetic breakaway that started off so well with him putting a Mexican defender on skates but that ended with him shooting the ball wide of the net. When you don't score on either opportunity like that in soccer, you have a sense of impending doom that hits you right away when you are playing a team that is better than you to begin with.

Sure enough while it was 0-0 at halftime, Mexico turned up the pressure in the second half and was rewarded in the 73rd minute with a beautiful goal (part of me just died inside admitting that). The sequence began when midfielder Rodolfo Pizarro (who earlier in the 1st half appeared to hyper-extend his elbow) passed to forward Raul Jimenez in the box who back-heeled a pass to midfielder Jonathan dos Santos whose left-footed shot rose enough to hit the crossbar but bounce in past U.S. goalkeeper Zach Steffen.

One goal shouldn't automatically mean that you are cooked but with Altidore already subbed out and the other veteran American Michael Bradley (why is he still on the team?) giving away the ball in the midfield left and right, you knew that the USMNT was in dire shape down 1-0. They finished with only two shots on goal and despite having four more corner kicks than Mexico (7-3), they did nothing but waste them all.

I'm not going to say that he was exposed since I didn't think much of him to begin with but I can't say that I'm overly impressed with the latest U.S. vanilla head coach Gregg Berhalter. His roster decisions for the Gold Cup were puzzling (no Josh Sargent?) and while I admit that he was understandably hamstrung a bit by a Tyler Adams injury right before the tournament started, that's no excuse for making such bizarre decisions like putting in something called Daniel Lovitz in the 83rd minute this evening down a goal. Huh? I understand that winning a Gold Cup doesn't mean all that much in the grand scheme of things but to get this program back on track, shouldn't they focus on tasks that they can excel at like this while building to those more pipe-dream thoughts (ruling CONCACAF, winning a group stage and competing for a World Cup, etc.)?

This could have been a change of pace from their last few years of painful irrelevance, a rare good development for the USMNT. However, instead they continue to spin their collective wheels despite possessing a ton of young talent (Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Tyler Boyd who somehow didn't play tonight) that thank god, choose to play in leagues outside of average MLS.

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Oh Hey Guys, the USMNT Advanced to the Gold Cup Final vs. Mexico With a 3-1 Win vs. Jamaica

Even the most serious person would have a hard time keeping a straight face when they pretend to compare the importance of the Women's World Cup to the utter irrelevance of the Gold Cup. That's why I have failed to mention anything about the USMNT in the Gold Cup this summer until just now because beating up on the likes of Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Panama and Curacao (outscoring them 12-0 in the process) means very little to a hardcore soccer fan like myself so who else would really care?

However, in the slowest sports time of the year I started to come around to this bi-annual event with Mexico's 1-0 extra time victory over powerhouse Haiti last night in the semifinals. All the U.S. had to do was take care of business tonight in Nashville vs. Jamaica (who they beat in the 2017 Gold Cup Final) and they survived a 90-minute weather delay (due to lightning) en route to a 3-1 victory.

Do you realize how incredibly special Sunday could be for U.S. soccer in general? While our beloved USWNT meet the Netherlands (11, FOX) in the World Cup Final for the main course, the night cap is a juicy USMNT vs. Mexico showdown in Chicago (9, FS1). U.S. vs. Mexico is always must-see TV and especially in a setting like this which should be electric. If that's not enough to entice you to wrap up your holiday weekend with Gregg Berhalter's hodgepodge collection of youngsters and a few veterans, think about this: midfielder Christian Pulisic at the ripe old age of 20 is already the best men's player in USMNT history. Not convinced? Well he had two goals tonight but let's not forget that this summer he will begin his journey at Chelsea (England), you know one of the best and most powerful clubs in the world. The U.S. failing to qualify for last summer's World Cup was a disaster for a million reasons but I will always point to missing out on Pulisic getting to play against the world's top teams and players at such a young age would have been utterly awesome.

Pulisic gets most of the headlines as he should but there are other intriguing talents on the USMNT that you probably aren't aware of. Midfielder Weston McKennie (who recently signed an extension with Schalke of Germany's Bundesliga) opened the scoring with a pretty goal in the ninth minute. It all began with a long pass from Michael Bradley (yes, he's still a thing) to Reggie Cannon who one-touched it into the box for Jozy Altidore (soon to be Mr. Sloane Stephens to you) who laid it off for McKennie to blast by Jamaican goalkeeper Andre Blake. It was McKennie's second goal of the tournament, his other one was the game-winner in the previous match (a snoozefest 1-0 quarterfinal win vs. Curacao). Pulisic and McKennie have been friends for awhile as you can tell from their fantastic post-goal celebrations.

U.S. goalkeeper Zack Steffen is leaving the Columbus Crew (MLS) for Manchester City (England) but first, he'll be loaned to Dusseldorf (Germany). He only had to make three saves against Jamaica but a few of those were quality stops. After returning from the long delay, the U.S. was up 1-0 at halftime. In the 52nd minute, Pulisic pounced on a juicy rebound after Blake fumbled a relatively easy shot from Jordan Morris. It was Pulisic's 12th career goal for the USMNT and his second of the 2019 Gold Cup. McKennie and Altidore both picked up yellow cards in the first half so it was no surprise that Jozy was Berhalter's first sub out-in the 56th minute-as Gyasi Zardes came on for him. Also, his fitness level is shall we see not at peak condition at the moment.

Jamaica turned up the offensive pressure and they were rewarded with a goal in the 69th minute as forward Shamar Nicholson (who entered 4 minutes earlier) headed in a cross from midfielder Leon Bailey. It was the first goal conceded by the Americans in the tournament so there is that. There were some nervy moments for the U.S. hanging on to that 2-1 lead as midfielder Cristian Roldan replaced his Seattle Sounders teammate Morris in the 70th minute. Pulisic refused to let his squad lose though as once again, Blake was extremely generous in his rebound control. He made a diving save on Paul Arriola's shot from outside the box but Pulisic was able to jump up from the ground and put in some more loose change. In the process, he became only the second U.S. player to score a brace (2 goals) in the Gold Cup semifinals, joining Landon Donovan.

This will be the U.S.' 11th appearance in the Gold Cup Final which is a tournament record and they have made it this far in seven of the last eight editions. Dating back to the 2017 Gold Cup, they have won 10 straight games in the competition and five in a row overall. It feels like it is always U.S. vs. Mexico in the Final but this is only the sixth time out of 15 times that it's happened (Mexico is 4-1 with the only U.S triumph coming 12 years ago). In the history of the Gold Cup, the Mexicans have the most titles (7) but the Americans can tie that with a win on Sunday. Mexico always draws huge crowds wherever they go (don't forget your festive bags of urine to throw at your most hated U.S. players!) and hopefully a decent amount of U.S. fans show up in Chicago as well, it is on their home soil after all. Hopefully as we are basking in the glow of the fourth USWNT World Cup crown, we see an entertaining match between these two countries that genuinely hate each other. The USMNT has a long way to go towards earning back many of the fans it lost over the last few depressing years but a win against Mexico would be a nice way to kick start that effort.

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After Almost 5.5 Years in Charge, Jurgen Klinsmann is Fired as USMNT Head Coach & Technical Director

After a wretched 4-0 loss in a World Cup qualifier last Monday night in Costa Rica, you had to wonder if Jurgen Klinsmann was done as both the USMNT head coach and technical director. U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati was non-committal after the match and after he had a week to think about it, today he made the somewhat expected move: Klinsmann was out in each capacity. By itself, this was disappointing enough but heap on the fact that LA Galaxy head coach (and former USMNT head coach Bruce Arena) is said to be returning once again so I can't help but feel like the U.S. Soccer Federation has lost its common sense.

I understand that it's quite possible many of the key players (Michael Bradley for sure) had begun to tune Klinsmann out, how else do you explain their recent form, but you'll never convince me that Arena or any other American for that matter will be able to match Klinsmann's all-World resume. He was a World Cup winner as a player with Germany and also coached their national team along with Bayern Munich (Germany), one of the most powerful clubs in the universe. Instead, they are at least temporarily going back to a guy that hasn't been in charge of the USMNT in a decade (1998-2006) and who has been coaching in lowly MLS (New York Red Bulls and Galaxy) since then. Ugh. Thanks to Klinsmann, the U.S. was able to bring in many Mexican-American and German-Americans (Jermaine Jones, John Brooks, Julian Green, Fabian Johnson and Timmy Chandler) who have become some of the top players.

The U.S. just doesn't seem to have a realistic view of itself or rather, they are completely mistaken for what is the proper way to go from a mid-tier country (their usual status) to one that can consistently challenge for major titles. Where is that outside the box thinking that brought them Klinsmann? This is all semantics since Arena is still the winningest head coach in USMNT history but Klinsmann is second (55-27-16) since he took over on July 29, 2011. He led the team to a program-record 12-game winning streak in 2013 and their 16 wins overall and .761 winning percentage in 2013 are an all-time record for a calendar year. They also advanced out of an extremely difficult group at the 2014 World Cup before losing to a far superior Belgium squad in the round of 16. Things seemed to have turned stale this year though as they finished a disappointing fourth in the Copa America on their home soil (losing a knockout game to Jamaica, come on) and they lost a heartbreaker 2-1 to Mexico in World Cup qualifying on November 11 in Columbus, Ohio.

The weird part is that the men's national team has never been more popular and therefore also more scrutinized in the United States than it is today. This is of course a good thing. With such easy access to games from all over the world constantly (featuring many of our brightest stars), we are much more knowledgeable when it comes to the beautiful game. Of course, the sad truth is that the men's team will probably never be an upper-echelon program simply because most of our best athletes play other sports (football, basketball, baseball, hockey, etc) that pay better and bring far more fame at least in the states. Non-soccer fans never quite understand why the USMNT isn't better but that is the main reason why. As technical director, Klinsmann made sweeping changes to the U.S. youth national teams and the fruits of that are already being seen with an amazing prospect like Christian Pulisic who rightfully got the hell out of the U.S. to test himself at a very high level (Borussia Dortmund).

Arena is just a placeholder, a lame duck coach that is said to only be around through the 2018 World Cup. I know we are all starting to get worried about even reaching that point but keep in mind that Mexico had to go all the way to a playoff (vs. New Zealand) to reach the 2014 World Cup and CONCACAF is still filled with numerous awful teams so the U.S. should bounce back in March when they finally reconvene to face Honduras on March 24 and go to Panama on March 27. The U.S. under-23 men's head coach and former U.S. star midfielder Tab Ramos is apparently a candidate further down the road for this job but he's not ready for it yet.

Even before Klinsmann took over, I've felt for a long time that the U.S. men's national team should have a non-American in charge in order to reach our ultimate potential. I believe it's the exact opposite thinking for the U.S. women's national team since they are the gold standard in their sport so why mess with their immense success? He gave us a certain amount of credibility globally that is suddenly gone and will never be replaced by the likes of Arena, Ramos or any other U.S. lifer that has yet to experience the highest levels of competition that the sport has to offer. I know that many bandwagon fans wanted to see this happen but I'm pretty sure this will be your classic case of buyer's remorse when the U.S. fails to really grow at all in the next few years. Honestly, getting to the 2018 World Cup won't be much of an achievement if they bow out in the group stage.

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At This Point, Qualifying For the World Cup is a Formality; It's Time For The U.S. Men To Take The Next Step

Let me be clear: tonight is rightfully a time of celebration after the U.S. men's national team beat Mexico 2-0 in a World Cup qualifier at Columbus Crew Stadium. Coupled with Panama's 2-2 tie with Honduras, the Americans have reached the World Cup for the seventh consecutive time and 10th overall. That got me to thinking: it's about time that we started striving for more.

Being a Top-3 team in CONCACAF is not that difficult (Costa Rica also clinched a spot) and heaven forbid the U.S. comes in fourth, then they get to wipe the floor with a patsy from Oceania. What I'm trying to say is that now that we know what Jurgen Klinsmann (25-9-6) is all about, why don't we start demanding greater success at the World Cup? I'm sick of the U.S. struggling to get through the group stage then bowing out to an average team (hello Ghana in 2010). It's silly to think they can win the World Cup next summer in Brazil but why not make an unlikely run to the semifinals?

Mexico is a dumpster fire that looks destined for a date with New Zealand in the playoff after tonight's loss which was preceded by them firing their coach last weekend. To complete qualifying, the U.S. will meet Jamaica (Oct. 11) and Panama (Oct. 15) but this evening's results took all the intrigue out of them (which is what we were hoping for).

It was scoreless at halftime but the U.S. made it 1-0 on Eddie Johnson's powerful header (from Landon Donovan's cross) in the 49th minute then fittingly Donovan iced it in the 78th minute with a redirection from Mix Diskerud. Clint Dempsey had a chance to leave it at 3-0 but his last-second penalty kick missed the net.

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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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U.S. Men Survive In Mexico To Get What They Need: A 0-0 Draw

Tonight's game at Estadio Azteca had many things that I hate about soccer (no goals, few scoring chances, tons of fouls, plenty of diving) that won't help it appeal to new audiences but I certainly can't complain about the final result: the U.S. men's national team tied Mexico 0-0. Coupled with Friday's 1-0 win over Costa Rica in the blizzard in Denver, four points in two matches is exactly what the Americans needed.

It was only the second time that the U.S. has earned a point in Mexico during World Cup qualifying, the last time was another scoreless draw on Nov. 2, 1997. The draw in the USA’s third of 10 matches in the final round of 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying moved the Americans to 1-1-1 (4 points) in the Hexagonal and into a three-way tie for second place with Honduras and Costa Rica behind Panama (1-0-2, 5 points) at the top of the table. Mexico (0-0-3, 3 points) is in fifth place and Jamaica (0-1-2, 2 points) sits in sixth. The top three finishers qualify directly to the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

In other results tonight Panama blanked Honduras 2-0 at Estadio Rommel Fernandez in Panama City and Costa Rica moved up from last place with a 2-0 victory against Jamaica at Estadio Nacional in San Jose, Costa Rica.

Mexico outshot the U.S. 17-1 and had 13 more corner kicks (15-2) as the Americans played in an Italian style defensive shell that for once, I totally understood and agreed with. Backup goalkeeper Brad Guzan picked up his second straight clean sheet with a few solid saves but truthfully, Mexico wasted all their chances including headers that somehow went over the net or wide from a few yards away.

Center backs Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler along with fullbacks Geoff Cameron and DeMarcus Beasley were the real stars as they did their best to stay composed despite the fact that they had to play defense basically the entire match. I can't remember one decent U.S. chance that didn't come off a set piece or corner kick.

Their next 2014 World Cup qualifying games are June 7 in Jamaica and then June 11 vs. Panama in Seattle. Hopefully by then, Landon Donovan, Tim Howard, Carlos Bocanegra (maybe?), Steve Cherundolo, Timmy Chandler, Fabian Johnson etc. are in form, healthy and in the lineup or at least on the U.S. bench. There are only so many games like this where you can get a result with the MLS All-Star team. Before that, Jurgen Kliinsmann's squad hosts two quality European teams: Belgium on May 29 in Cleveland and his home country-Germany-on June 2 in Washington DC.

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U.S. Men's Roster Set For Costa Rica & Mexico, With A Couple Big Names Left Off

The U.S. men's next World Cup qualifiers are Friday against Costa Rica in Colorado and next Tuesday in Mexico City against Mexico. Today, U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann named his 23-man roster which is notable since Tim Howard (back), Steve Cherundolo (knee) and Timmy Chandler (hamstring) are among the eight regulars who were left off due to various injuries and illness.

Friday's match is at sold-out Dick's Sporting Good Park, it is the second game of the Hexagonal will be broadcast live on ESPN (10 p.m. EST). Tuesday (10:30 p.m. EST, ESPN) is at Estadio Azteca, a place where the U.S. has never won a World Cup qualifier although they finally grabbed a win there last summer.

“We know we have a big task ahead of us, and we are confident our group will get the job done,” said Klinsmann in a press release. “Obviously there are many players out with injuries, and that means the next person in line has a chance to step up. Getting points at home in World Cup qualifying is huge, and we are looking forward to having an awesome crowd supporting us in Denver on Friday night.”

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION (World Cup qualifying Caps/Goals)
GOALKEEPERS (3): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa - 5/3 SO), Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire – 0/0), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake – 0/0)
DEFENDERS (6): Tony Beltran (Real Salt Lake – 0/0), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City – 0/0), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City – 6/0), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy – 1/0), Clarence Goodson (Brondby – 5/0), Justin Morrow (San Jose Earthquakes – 0/0)
MIDFIELDERS (9): DaMarcus Beasley (Puebla – 26/6), Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake – 2/0), Michael Bradley (Roma – 20/5), Joe Corona (Club Tijuana – 1/0), Maurice Edu (Bursaspor – 10/0), Jermaine Jones (Schalke 04 – 6/0), Sacha Kljestan (Anderlecht – 13/0), Brek Shea (Stoke City – 2/0), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City – 4/0)
FORWARDS (5): Jozy Altidore (AZ Alkmaar – 18/6), Terrence Boyd (Rapid Vienna – 2/0), Clint Dempsey (Tottenham Hotspur – 27/11), Herculez Gomez (Santos – 6/2), Eddie Johnson (Seattle Sounders FC – 12/10)

The five other Americans that won't be there are Edgar Castillo (facial fractures), Fabian Johnson (hip), Jonathan Spector (ankle), Jose Torres (hamstring) and Danny Williams (illness). Klinsmann and his team won't make excuses, they have more than enough talent remaining to still get some positive results. Friday's game, since it is at home plus they are coming off the 2-1 loss to Honduras means that they need a win pretty badly. I don't expect them to win in Mexico, especially without Howard so it might be the first time in my life that I root for a draw. That would be a solid result for the U.S. First things first, they need to beat Costa Rica and get some confidence back after their awful showing in Honduras (February 6).

UPDATE 3/19: Midfielder Brad Davis was added to the roster.

UPDATE 3/20: With Carlos Bocanegra not on the roster, Klinsmann had to pick a new captain for these two qualifiers. His choice of Dempsey is fine by me, why not go with the best player who must have the respect of his teammates?

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Oh Crap, Looks Like Tim Howard Will Miss Some World Cup Qualifiers

Facing two vital World Cup qualifiers against Costa Rica (March 22 in Colorado) and Mexico (March 26 in Mexico City) in two weeks, the U.S. men's soccer team received some very bad news. Goalkeeper Tim Howard picked up two broken bones in his back playing for Everton so he's expected to be out for the rest of March.

That means that backup goalkeeper Brad Guzan would start in his first World Cup qualifiers in four years for the Americans. The good news is that Guzan has been the starter lately for Aston Villa so he should be ready.

Howard was hurt Feb. 26 in an FA Cup win over Oldham and missed last weekend's Premier League game against Reading. That ended his streak of consecutive league matches at 210, two shy of the Everton record set by goalkeeper Neville Southall from 1987-93.

Everton manager David Moyes said Howard will miss Saturday's FA Cup quarterfinal against Wigan and the March 16 match league match versus Manchester City, but could return March 30 against Stoke.

"We are not sure how long Tim will be out for because, obviously with a goalkeeper, he has to dive around and hit the ground," Moyes said Friday, according to the team's website. "If everything goes well, he misses next week's game, as well, and then because of the international break he might be close after the rest because that would be four weeks."

Howard is getting up there in age (34) although goalkeepers can play at a much higher level in later years than most field players. He is still one of the best goalkeepers in the world; he started all their games at the 2010 World Cup and the previous seven World Cup qualifiers for Brazil 2014.

"He has two fractures, but they are not bones that are supporting anything," Moyes said. "It is off the spine. They are not weight-bearing. It just needs a bit of healing time. It is not like a pure fracture where you need to wait to look at it. It is a question of whether he can cope with the pain. The bones will heal themselves, but it's not good."

Midfielder Landon Donovan won't start training with the LA Galaxy until later this month so he won't be ready for these upcoming matches. Midfielder Clint Dempsey has been out since February 21 at Tottenham dealing with a calf injury and fullback Steve Cherundolo could miss a month at Hannover (Germany) with a shoulder injury.

None of this makes me feel better, I was already expecting the U.S. to not win at Mexico. They really need a win vs. Costa Rica to get some confidence back after the 2-1 loss at Honduras in February to open this last round of qualifying (the Hexagonal).

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U.S. Men Jump 5 Places To No. 27 In Latest FIFA Rankings

Here is a little something to tide us over while we eagerly await the U.S. men's friendly in Russia next Wednesday (10 a.m., ESPN2 & ESPN3.com), their last game of 2012. The latest FIFA rankings were released today and the Americans find themselves situated at No. 27, up five spots from the last time.

The top five are Spain, Germany, Argentina, Portugal and Italy. England, Netherlands, Colombia, Russia and Croatia round out the Top 10. Uruguay dropped four spots to No. 11 while 2014 World Cup host Brazil is No. 13.

CONCACAF rival Mexico is No. 14 while the top African team is Ivory Coast (15) and the top Asian squad is Japan (24). What does this all mean? Absolutely nothing but it's fun to see where all the top teams are at this quiet point in international soccer.

Just going by the rankings, the U.S. men should have their hands full in Krasnodar next week. Russia is one of the best European countries yet nobody seems to talk about them as an elite power. I guess we'll be able to decide for ourselves if they are legitimate or not.

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In Case You Forgot, Tim Howard Is Still Playing At A Ridiculously High Level For Club & Country

It's been a whirlwind week for U.S. men's goalkeeper Tim Howard. He was an integral part of the 1-0 U.S. win in Mexico last Wednesday, their first ever victory there in 75 years. Today, his 2012-13 club season in England with Everton got off to an excellent start as they beat Manchester United 1-0.

Facing arguably the English Premier League's most fearsome strikers-Wayne Rooney, Danny Welbeck and Robin van Persie (who replaced Welbeck in the 68th minute)-Howard was up to the task as he earned a clean sheet against one of the world's top clubs. He made four saves including a punch on a Rooney header in the first half and a nice run off his line to stuff Shinji Kagawa in the second half.

The easiest thing to do is freak out (positively or negatively) about the first result in a season. Keep in mind, the EPL schedule lasts 38 matches. With that said, some good signs for the Toffees: it was the first time United had failed to win their opening fixture since 2008 but it was the first victory in five seasons for Everton in their opener. Plus, they had won only twice at home against United in 17 years.

Up next, Howard and Everton visit Aston Villa on Saturday morning (10 a.m. ET).

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The Streak Is Over, After 75 Years The U.S. Men Finally Win (1-0) In Mexico

It only took 75 years and 25 matches but the U.S. men finally ended the worst streak associated with their national team: they shocked Mexico 1-0 tonight at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City in a friendly between the two bitter rivals.

Thanks to substitute Michael Orozo Fiscal's goal in the 80th minute (his first international goal), the U.S. were able to put 0-23-1 (all-time record in Mexico) and 0-19-1 (at Estadio Azteca) behind them. Oh and they were outscored 81-14 in those matches. Nearly a year to the day after Jurgen Klinsmann's debut with the Americans-a 1-1 tie vs. Mexico in Philadelphia-they picked up their most meaningful victory in years; I'd rank it even above the 1-0 win in Italy (their first against them) in February since they rarely meet the Italians.

The funny part about such an important strike is that it came as a direct result from three substitutes: Brek Shea started the play with a run down the left side. He played it into Terrence Boyd in the box who cleverly back-heeled to Fiscal. The defender had made a run forward and he was able to touch it in before the Mexican defense cleared it out.


It's surprising that Mexico agreed to have this friendly at Estadio Azteca since they usually save its mystique and crazy home-field advantage for World Cup qualifiers. From a U.S. perspective, this couldn't have gone any better since not only did they finally earn a win at what had been a house of horrors, but they did it without many of their biggest stars. Now, when they go back next summer in a qualifier with a full squad, they will have that much more confidence in themselves.

This was a game that Mexico let slip away since they dominated possession and had numerous chances offensively. Conversely, the U.S. struggled to string together any passes and therefore they defended almost the entire 94 (4 minutes of added time) minutes. That made for a brutal game to watch, until about the 80th minute or so. The two center backs in the makeshift U.S. backline really stood out: Maurice Edu (he's normally a midfielder) and Geoff Cameron, who was probably the most consistent U.S. player from start to finish.

The first half was devoid of any real notable action as Mexico had the ball but couldn't do anything productive with it. Things opened up in the second half as the U.S. legs looked a little wobbly in the thin air. Cameron headed a cross away from the U.S. box in the 56th minute then Jesus Zavala headed another chance over in the next minute.

The only real chances before Orozco Fiscal's goal were a free kick by Herculez Gomez then Kyle Beckerman's slide tackle which made the ball go barely over the Mexican net. It would have been one of the flukiest goals in the history of U.S. soccer.

It was not Mexico's night as Andres Guardado curled a free kick around the U.S. goal in the 65th minute but the best chance of the match for them came in the 76th minute when Chicharito missed the net on a wide open header.

Of course no special win for the United States would be complete without a pair of absurd saves by Tim Howard. He was able to stop Javier Hernandez's deflected shot in the 85th minute by going from one post to the other. Even more impressive, he stuffed Chicharito on a header in the 89th minute that the Manchester United striker normally buries.

From here, the U.S. goes back into qualifying mode as they travel to Kingston, Jamaica on Friday, September 7 then host Usain Bolt's boys on Tuesday, September 11 (should be a great scene that day) in Columbus, Ohio. The U.S. is 1-0-1 after its first two matches, a 3-1 win vs. Antigua and Barbuda then a 1-1 tie with Guatemala. Four points (two wins) should be expected even though Jamaica also sports a 1-0-1 mark.

It has taken some time, as can be expected, but Klinsmann is really starting to take hold of this team. He improved to 8-5-3 in his U.S. head coaching career while the Italy and Mexico wins show the potential this country has in men's soccer. Outsiders have always felt like the U.S. was a sleeping giant and at last, they are proving that to be true.

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A Squad Lacking Experience & Some Stars Will Try To Be 1st U.S. Men's Team To Win In Mexico

The U.S. men's national team hasn't played in Mexico since 1984 and they have never won there so needless to say, they will have their hands full on Wednesday (8 p.m., ET; ESPN2, ESPN3.com) at Estadio Azteca.

Making things much more difficult (if possible) is the fact that many of its brightest stars (Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley, Jozy Altidore, etc.) won't make the trip since their club seasons in Europe are just getting underway. I have no clue why this important friendly was scheduled now but there is no use fretting about that at this point.

“We’re excited about the opportunity to bring this group together and challenge Mexico for a win,” said Klinsmann in a press release. “For every game, we always look at who is in the best form, who is fit and who is ready to go. We have a lot of veteran players and also some new, hungry guys who deserve a chance. Every player in the pool looks forward to an amazing opportunity like this, the chance to take on Mexico in such an historic stadium like Estadio Azteca. With the World Cup qualifiers coming up next month, we can start preparing these players mentally and physically for Jamaica.”

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (3): Tim Howard (Everton), Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS (6): Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Steven Beithasour (San Jose Earthquakes), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Edgar Castillo (Club Tijuana), Michael Orozco Fiscal (San Luis), Fabian Johnson (Hoffenheim)
MIDFIELDERS (9): DaMarcus Beasley (Puebla), Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Joe Corona (Club Tijuana), Maurice Edu (Rangers), Jermaine Jones (Schalke 04), Jose Torres (Pachuca), Brek Shea (FC Dallas), Danny Williams (Hoffenheim), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
FORWARDS (4): Terrence Boyd (Rapid Vienna), Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy), Herculez Gomez (Santos), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)

There are nine players currently competing in MLS and on top of that, the twist that a whopping six Americans are employed by Mexican clubs. Eight U.S. players were on the roster last time these rivals met on August 10, 2011 in Philadelphia (a 1-1 tie that was Klinsmann's debut). Besler and Beithasour are the two guys that are seeking their first caps with the U.S.

With such a young and inexperienced group, Klinsmann will count on Howard, Beasley, Edu, Jones, Donovan and Gomez to provide even more leadership than normal. In terms of guys that should step up more, be sure to pay attention to how Cameron, Johnson, Torres, Williams and Boyd perform on Wednesday. They have already played for the U.S. and they are on the fringe when the squad is at full strength therefore they'll need to prove their worth when they have bigger roles.

Here is Mexico's roster
Goalkeepers: Guillermo Ochoa (Ajaccio, France), Alefredo Talavera (Toluca)
Defenders: Francisco Javier Rodriguez (Stuttgart, Germany), Hector Moreno (Espanyol), Severo Meza (Monterrey), Hugo Ayala (UANL Tigres), Jorge Torres Nilo (UANL Tigres), Enrique Perez (Morelia), Adrian Aldrete (Club America)
Midfielders: Jesus Zavala (Monterrey), Manuel Viniegra (UANL Tigres), Edgar Gerardo Lugo (Santos Laguna), Pablo Barrera (Cruz Azul), Andres Guardado (Valencia, Spain), Angel Reyna (Monterrey)
Forwards: Elias Hernandez (UANL Tigres), Aldo de Nigris (Monterrey), Javier Hernandez (Manchester United, England)

Striker Giovani Dos Santos and defender Carlos Salcido, two of Mexico's best players, won't be there since they played for their country at the recently completed London Olympics. Still, with Guardado and especially Chicarito (the best player on either team), it's clear that Mexico isn't using this exhibition just to evaluate its younger players. They always want to beat their most bitter rival.

Any kind of positive result for the U.S., a tie or at least a competitive game would give them some real momentum heading into their 2014 World Cup qualifying games in September with Jamaica (Sept. 7 in Kingston; Sept. 11 in Columbus, Ohio).

UPDATE 8/13: The U.S. added San Jose Earthquakes forward Alan Gordon to the roster so they now are carrying 23 players. He would also be seeking his first cap.

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U.S. Men Vs. Mexico In Mexico City On August 15

We already knew that the U.S. men were playing Mexico on August 15 but the plot thickened the other day when it was announced the site: Mexico City.

It's the first time the two rivals have faced each other in an exhibition in Mexico for almost 28 years. Don't ask me how that's remotely possible.

No worries, the U.S. has never won in Mexico dating back to 1934. Mexico is 23-0-1 against the United States on its home turf. Mexico won 2-1 in 2005 and 2-1 in 2009 during World Cup qualifying. Overall, the U.S. is 15-32-12 against Mexico.

The last time the U.S. played a friendly (an oxymoron) in Mexico, they lost 2-1 on October 17, 1984.

Needless to say this will be a great test for Jurgen Klinsmann's team before they start up World Cup qualifying again in September. They won't find a tougher environment than Azteca Stadium in Mexico City and like it or not, Mexico is one of the top teams in the world these days. I don't usually advocate ties but if the U.S. could gain a draw in Mexico, it would be a very impressive result since they've struggled there in such monumental fashion.

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