Olympic Demons Exorcised and USA routs El Salvador

Photo credit: US Soccer

Sixteen months ago, the El Salvador U-23 team tied Team USA 3-3 in Olympic qualifying and in so doing eliminated one of the more talented U23-level squad the Americans have had in at least two cycles. Last night that fateful game was avenged by three special players: Brek Shea, Joe Corona and Mix Diskerud, as the United States routed El Salvador by 5-1.

Another special statement was sent out by Landon Donovan, who proved once again why he is the best soccer player this nation has ever had. Another goal and another 4 assists for the US number 10. Not bad. And now we can assume that he will start alongside Dempsey, Altidore, Bradley and the rest of the gang come September's meeting with Mexico in Columbus for World Cup Qualifying.

Overall we have to credit the midfield for yesterday's win, as well as the constant forays by Michael Parkhurst and good positioning for Goodson on his goal. Still, Beasley was at fault for the Salvadoran PK and Goodson, despite the goal, was at times slow to react. At forward Wondolowski lacked the "nastiness" needed to score but this was ameliorated by Eddie Johnson within 14 seconds of the Seattle Sounders' forward entrance to the game.

Joe Corona and Mix Diskerud were especially impressive throughout the match. They rarely lost the ball and constantly set up dangerous plays. Add to this a goal a piece and we can credit a nearly-perfect game by the two midfielders. They are quickly rising to the top of the pecking order in the senior "A" squad when injuries occur to usual starters like Bradley or Jermaine Jones. At their young age, we can definitely count on them for some time to come, especially given their willingness to learn defensive duties.

Player ratings:

Rimando.........6.5

Beasley...........5.5

Goodson.........6

Besler..............6

Parkhurst.........6.5

Corona...........7.5

Torres.............6

Diskerud..........7

Donovan..........8

Wondolowski..4.5

Subs: Johnson (7.5), Orozco (NR), Shea (6)

Shea scores and USA wins group in Gold Cup play

Photo credit: Getty Images

Brek Shea partly silenced some of his doubters when he scored the game-winning goal in last night's USA vs Costa Rica match. The Stoke City player was guilty of turnovers and a poor showing versus Cuba in the previous game but versus the Ticos he took a brilliant pass from Landon Donovan in a breakaway and put the ball past the goalkeeper. In so doing, the Americans got all 9 points from the group stage, got their all-time highest win streak for a national team (8), and set up a favorable quarterfinal versus El Salvador for this upcoming weekend.

The game versus Costa Rica turned out to be as expected, much more physical and difficult than lesser opponents like Cuba and Belize. Costa Rica put up a back line of 5 defenders and flooded the midfield, frustrating Holden and Diskerud, who was reversed from his usual attacking position to cover the defensive midfield. This took some of the bite out of the US attack and Holden was unable to provide the same sort of service for the attackers that had previously occurred. 

Last night's game served as a showcase for what this "B"-side team is capable of in the later rounds of the Gold Cup as the competition becomes more complicated. Clearly, missing pieces like Michael Bradley and Clint Dempsey could have made a difference in a game that lacked clarity at times and a bit more bite from the Americans. Even so, Donovan, Holden and Diskerud carried the midfield admirably and were rewarded with a just win.

Wondolowski had a more difficult time versus Costa Rica mostly because the space in front of him was shut down by the opposing defense and the service from Diskerud and Holden was limited. A more physical player like Altidore might have had a better chance versus the Ticos but that is pure conjecture at this point.

The back line stood up well in the match. Few balls got through and those that did were quickly shut down by Goodson and Orozco. On the flanks, Beasley and Parkhurst had plenty of time and space for forays into opposing territory and serve good passes into the middle. The goalie, Sean Johnson, was especially interesting both negatively and positively. During a stint of 3 corners by the Ticos in the second half he did not get to the ball in the 6-yard box, a must for any goalkeeper. Instead, his teammates cleared the area of danger. However, Johnson did make several crucial saves, including the one that eroded Costa Rica's best chance and also served as a trigger for the game-winning goal.

It is clear that Klinsmann intends to give some of the younger players like Brek Shea quite a bit of slack for missed opportunities as a way to encourage professional growth. Shea has had an up-and-down career due mostly to injuries with Dallas and Stoke. Hopefully this will served to give him more confidence as he fights for minutes at Stoke City in the Premier League.

Player ratings:

Johnson.........7

Parkhurst.......6

Goodson........6.5

Orozco.........6

Beasley..........6.5

Torres...........5

Donovan........7

Holden..........6.5

Diskerud.......6

Bedoya.........5.5

Wondolowski.....5

Subs: Shea (7), Gomez (5), Corona (6)

American Scandinavia

Whether just playing friendlies during the winter break (northern parts of Scandinavia lose sunlight completely) or sharing players, Scandinavian countries have become intimately tied to American soccer. Yesterday's friendly at Los Angeles' HDC between the US and Sweden proved to be an important test for the youngsters and some of the veterans from both domestic leagues. Sacha Kljestan showed how he's one of the top players in the US with a superb hat trick that will undoubtedly catapult him to a transfer to Scotish side Celtic.
Denmark is another country that likes to take winter breaks in the US and play friendlies outside of FIFA. But there is another side to the Scandinavian love affair with US soccer. . .
A good portion of youngsters, be it recent college graduates or standout MLSers, end up in leagues from Denmark to Sweden to Norway. Why is this? Partly because these players will undoubtedly earn more at these modest teams than they would in the MLS. Leagues such as Sweeden's can also act as a window for certain players to begin to make their mark in Europe. One such player is Charlie Davies: he has been playing with Hammarby since 2007, scoring 19 goals. Other players included in this list are former New England defender standout Michael Parkhurst who recently signed with Nordsjaelland, 2009 College draft top pick Marcus Tracy (Aalborg, Denmark), Danny Califf (Midtjylland, Denmark), Troy Perkins (Vålerenga, Norway), Ryan Raybuld (Gefle, Norway), Clarence Goodson (IK Start, Norway) Lee Nguyen and Will John (Randers, Denmark), Tally Hall (Esberg, Denmark), plus a few others throughout Scandinavia.
Many out there argue that Scandinavian leagues turn out to be "black holes" for our players. I can't say I agree. There's more of a chance to grow in Europe than there is in a USL side or MLS bench. In the end, if growing in soccer knowledge isn't enough then it is the financial side that can push our players to these Nordic leagues. Who can argue with that? In the meantime, Scandinavia, send us some of your players this way. Ljungberg is a nice start.