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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