I called in a pretty strong side again this time. We’re playing two very strong nations this time around including a team we could match up against in next year's Copa America. Therefore, I wanted a strong side to see how we’d look against them. Horvath, who is our starting keeper now, was an automatic call. I called in Yarbrough and Steffan over Hamid. There is a next gen player who is just 21-years old and deserves a call, but didn’t want to take him away from his club team who are playing in the MLS Playoffs right now. There are six other players I was looking to bring in, but their sides are all still playing, so thought better of it. One is Omar Gonzalez, who is still one of best center backs. Instead I bring back Cameron Carter-Vickers. Last time I brought in Erik Palmer-Brown, who I thought played well, but FC Dallas are also in the MLS playoffs. We see Tim Ream in the squad for the first time since the World Cup. He’s off to a strong start with Fulham in the Championship. We do have one new face at the back and that is Tommy Redding. After just two starts last season, the 21-year old lined up in the middle of the defense 35 times this season for Orlando City. With Miazga out injured and Gonzalez and Palmer-Brown needed by their clubs, Redding will get his chance. At full back, Castillo is brought in for the first time since the World Cup. We also see Jorge Villafana and Timmy Chandler as well. Kellyn Acosta, who was not apart of the squad in Russia, is brought in for the second time in arrow. He is replacing DeAndre Yedlin who is out through injury. In the middle of the pitch we see five familiar faces. On the wings, we are without Paul Arriola and Darlington Nagbe (MLS Playoffs). Instead we see regulars Christian Pulisic and Fabian Johnson. We also see newly capped Jack Harrison, and a new, but old face in Juan Agudelo. I called Agudelo up once before in 2017 where he played in a World Cup qualifier and he picked up an assist against Canada. Up front we see the same three usual faces.
View attachment 55254 View attachment 55253 Tommy Redding - 21 y.o. - Orlando City - Center Back This is our third set of friendlies since the conclusion of the 2018 World Cup and again we have a youngster looking to make his senior team debut. This time around we have another center back playing in the MLS. 21-year old Tommy Redding was born in California, but grew up on the east coast just outside of Orlando, Florida. At the age of 15 Redding joined the prolific IMG Academy where he played for one year before joining Chicago Magic who play in the top youth league. After a standout season in the youth system with Chicago, he signed a contract with Orlando City, who at the time were in the USL (U.S. 2nd Division) in 2014. The following year Orlando City joined the MLS as an expansion team and that season Redding made two appearances. Redding bursted onto the scene in 2016. He made 18 appearances while missing part of the season through injury. On the international level Redding has played a key role all the up to the U20 team. He played in both the 2015 and 2017 U20 World Cup. At the club level in 2017, Redding was relegated to the bench and only played in four matched. He regained his role as a starter this season as he started 31 matches.
It was a great performance by us away from home. Chile is a team we could very likely lineup against in next years Copa America assuming we both make it out of the group stage. Both teams had three shots, two on target in the first half. Both of Horvath’s saves were pretty routine. Bravo made one routine and a good save on Jozy Altidore. Fabian Johnson put in a delicious cross toward Altidore making a near post run. He headed it down, but Bravo was able to palm it away. McKennie hit the bar as well for us in the first 45. The second half was pretty balanced as well. Chile had more possession in the final third, but settled for long distance shots. In the final 10 minutes we switched our tactics up and played attacking football rather than on the counter and it paid off. Juan Agudelo played a diagonal ball over the top to Jack Harrison who was through on goal. He gathered, took two touches and blasted one into the upper 90 to the far post. We had a chance to make it 2-0 in the closing minutes. Danny Williams played a long ball over the top for Harrison to run onto down the left flank. He played a cross into Bobby Wood who was free at the near post, but he guided it wide from just a few yards out.
After a great display against Chile, this match was very disappointing. Our center backs really struggled in this one. Brooks let Seydou Doumbia get on the wrong side of him for the first goal. The Ivory Coast had a chance to score two or three more in the first half as well. We were poor in the middle pitch. McKennie lost the ball a few times too many. Agudelo was soft in possession and lost the ball too many time in the final third to add to the list of disappointment. The score was 2-0 just seconds into the second half. Zaha put in a deep cross over Carter-Vickers head and Doumbia bagged his second with his head. We finally settled in after it was too late. We scored a consolation goal through Danny Williams in the 58’. Harrison centered a pass to Hyndman at the top of the box, who laid it off to Williams. He hit it first time from about 25 yards out. The Marseille midfielder hit it sweetly into the right corner of the net. Not the way we wanted to end the calendar year.
RECAP: Very encouraging stuff in the first match. Johnson, who has been the regular starter on the left winger, is now in his 30’s and will likely be well past his prime at the beginning of the 2022 World Cup. Jack Harrison has now played in four matches for the U.S. and played well. Emerson Hyndman now has 16 caps for the U.S. (14 under me) and is only 22-years old. He seems to be our best option in the deep lying playmakers role. He’s been a real standout for us and could have a long career for the United States in the middle of the park. Since the conclusion of the World Cup, John Brook has really struggled in the middle of the defense. We are going through a bit of a transition period at that position and he was supposed to be the new leader. It’s going to be interesting to see which center backs can separate themselves from the rest. Tim Ream and Matt Besler are on the wrong side of 30 and Palmer-Brown and Carter-Vickers may not be ready quite yet for top flight international football. Omar Gonzalez just turned 30, but may be our best option until our youngsters prove themselves. Matt Miazga seems to be the closest of the young group.
We only have one friendly match during this break and it’s against one of the best sides in the world. This will be a real test as we prepare for the Copa America tournament coming up in a few months. No surprises on the 23-man roster. In net we have our best three options. There are two youngsters on the verge on cracking into the senior team, but they will have to continue to wait. Left back continues to be our weakness position. Castillo started during the 2018 World Cup and at 32 years old, he’s still you best option. His backup this time around is Kellyn Acosta. In the middle of the defense we again see John Brooks even though he’s struggled on the international level since World Cup concluded. Gonzalez is our second choice center back, so naturally he gets a call. Joining those two will be Matt Miazga and Erik Palmer-Brown. In the middle we see similar names. Our leader Michael Bradley is joined by the regulars, Weston McKennie, Danny Williams, and Emerson Hyndman. Wil Trapp gets the call for the first time since being named to the preliminary World Cup squad last year. On the wings it’s Christian Pulisic, Fabian Johnson, Darlington Nagbe, and Paul Arriola. We have a handful of talented youngster waiting for a chance, but with Pulisic and Johnson continuing to be successful in the Bundasliga and Nagbe and Arriola dominating the MLS, it’s hard to keep any of those guys out of the squad. The usual three are up front again. Bobby Wood has had a very strong season in Germany this year. His 14 goals in the Bundasliga is good enough for third in the league. Aron Johannsson has spend most of the season on the sideline with injury, but when he’s healthy he’s too much of a talent to keep out of the team.
A big blow losing Pulisic, but Jack Harrison is a quality talent. He's only 22-years old, but has already logged 92 appearances for NYCFC. The English born winger scored his first international goal last November in our 1-0 win over Chile.
Argentina showed why they are rating as one of the best in the world. Di Maria was a major threat on the flank. Yedlin was caught playing a little to tight to his center back on the first goal. With Higuain and Dybala lined up in the middle, can you blame him? The second came on a corner kick. Dybala beat his marker to the near post and headed it home. The third came from another Di Maria cross which Higuain tapped in for his second. The U.S. did have a have a few chances in the first 45. Yedlin had space on the right and put in a perfect cross to Wood, which he could only direct right at the keeper. Danny Williams played a gorgeous little through ball for Wood to run onto, but he hit it weakly and the shot was palmed around the post. Williams had a chance of his own from distance, but it was tipped over the bar. Argentina seemed to take their foot off the peddle in the second half as they didn’t create that many chances. We did find the back of the net ourselves through Bobby Wood. Second half sub Wil Trapp played a long diagonal ball from the center circle down right for the pacy Paul Arriola to run onto. He took two touches and played a low ball to the near post for Wood to redirect in.
Costa Rica is the only real threat in our group. Panama always seem to be tricky, but as long as we came out on the front foot we should be okay. Expectation will be high as we are the current cup holders from 2017.
The U.S. call in their “B Team” for the Copa America. There is a good mixture of youth and veterans on the fringe of making the full senior team. The Gold Cup, in July, is the priority for the United States, so this tournament will be a good measure for the borderline players hoping to crack into the first team sooner rather than later. We do see a couple players who were apart of the World Cup team last year who look to show the manager they still have what it takes to compete on the international level. Matt Belser who was apart of the 2014 and 2018 World Cup team is the most capped player on the roster with 52. On the other end there are nine players who are uncapped. Let’s break down the roster. In net we’ve known since the conclusion of the 2018 World Cup that Ethan Horvath is the U.S. number one. Bill Hamid and William Yarbrough are the second and third best options, but who is the second choice is remains unknown. We will see during the tournament. The third keeper to make the squad is the son of the former U.S. coach, Jurgen Klinsmann. 22 year old Jonathan Klinsmann was the starter for the U.S. U20 team at the 2017 World Cup. Last season, Klinsmann started 34 matches for the Hertha Berlin second team. He’s followed that up again as the starter for Hertha II, but has also made four starts in the Bundesliga for the senior team this season. In the middle of the defense we see World Cup veterans Matt Besler and Tim Ream. Belser has made a record 278 appearances for Sporting KC in his 11 seasons with the club. He will be the leader at the back. Ream, who left for England as a youngster, has been a regular in the English second division for six seasons for both Bolton and Fulham. He is excellent with the ball at his feet which will be key for this squad which likes to play the ball out from the back. Matt Hedges, who is constantly one the best center backs in the MLS, looks to add to his seven U.S. caps. He was on the fridge of making the World Cup roster as he was apart of the March 2018 friendlies, but just missed out. This is a great chance for him to prove himself. The other two players brought in are both youngster. We’ve seen Cameron Carter-Vickers before. Tommy Redding was called up for the U.S friendlies last November, but is yet to make his senior team debut. At left back we see two youngsters. 23 year old Kellyn Acosta seems to be the frontrunner to be the starting left back in the near future. He is a very versatile player who can play both full back positions as well as a central midfielder. Backing him up will be the Minnesota United man, Brandon Vincent. He has had a strong start to the 2019 MLS season and has also logged minutes as a center back as well. At 25 he’s entering his prime. Vincent has excellent physical stats with a bit of pace. On the right we have veteran Eric Lichaj who has spent the last six seasons as a regular in the English second division with Nottingham Forest and now Sheffield Wednesday. The 30 year old also has 32 appearance to his name in the Premier League with Aston Villa before joining Forest. His backup will be Shaq Moore. He left the U.S. for Spain in 2015 at the age of 18. After competing in the lower leagues for three seasons, he joined Levante B where he spend two season and failed to record a cap for the senior team in La Liga. He was sold to second division side Cadiz where he’s really begin to establish himself (14 apps and 7.28 rating) this season. In the middle we see six players called in. Wil Trapp has made a handful of appearances recently. Both Dax McCarty and Joe Corona are two veterans who have the talent to play with the senior team, but with the new youth intake coming into the central midfield, they’ve constantly been overlooked. McCarthy was a leader for the New York Red Bulls for several year before joining the Chicago Fire where he’s continued to have success. Corona, who has 20 U.S. caps, has spend his entire career playing top flight football with Tijuana in Liga MX. He’s been a leader for his side for many years. He has excellent mental stats and should lineup as our advanced playmaker throughout this tournament. The other three players called in are Keaton Parks, Cristian Roldan, and Marlon Hairston who have a total of one cap between them. Hairston is the elder statesmen of the group. He’s been a regular for the Colorado Rapids of the MLS for three seasons now. Like Acosta, he can play as a full back or in the middle of the pitch. At 25 he’s entering the prime of his career. Roldan has one senior team cap, which came in the 2017 Gold Cup. He’s only 23, but has been a MLS regular for four seasons now. For Parks, some could argue that his call up could be a little premature. He left the U.S. at 18 and joined Portuguese second division side, Varzim. After two season, Portuguese giants, Benfica, came in and bought him. He’s spend the last two season with their B team still searching for minutes with the first team. He has excellent mental and physical stats and is definitely one for the future. On the wings we see Juan Pablo Torres and Jack Harrison called back in. Torres may be only 19 years old, but he’s taken the Belgium Pro League by storm since join Lokeren. Harrison has the talent to play with the senior team, but is stuck behind the likes of Pulisic, Johnson, and Nagbe. One name that may jump out is Julian Green! He make his senior team debut back in 2014 and became an instant hero by scoring against Belgium in the quarterfinals of the 2014 World Cup. He’s faded away since only recording four caps since. This season Green is finally getting first team minutes in the Bundesliga recording 24 appearances (21 off the bench) for Stuttgart. Finally, German born Devante Parker gets his first call up. He’s played for Germany at the youth level, but has never been capped for the senior team. He’s spent his entire career at Mainz, but only made two Bundesliga appearance in eight years. Now that his side was relegated to the second division at the end of the last season, the 23 year old has been a regular starter on the right wing. And up front we have Terrence Boyd, Christian Ramirez, Jeremy Edwards, and Haji Wright. Boyd has had several call ups to the senior team, but never made a real impact. Last season he help his club team, Darmstadt, gain promotion to the Bundesliga. He’s followed that up by making 13 starts in the top league in Germany. The rest of the names are searching for their first U.S. cap. Ramirez is a bit of a late bloomer as he’s 28 years old. He joined Minnesota United in 2015 and spend three season with the side scoring 51 goal in the U.S. second division. In 2016 Minnesota joined the MLS as an extension team and Ramirez has continued to bag goals scoring 31 goals in two years. This is his third season in the MLS and he found the back of the net 9 times in 13 matches. Edwards was drafted by D.C. United before last season. He’s a physical beast with excellent heading ability. Playing a formation with just one striker, he should fit in perfectly. Lastly, 21 year old Haji Wright gets his first call up. He’s been a top prospect in the U.S. ranks for many years. He signed his first professional contract at 16 with second division New York Cosmos. After just one season German giants, Schalke came calling. He’s spend the last two seasons with Sandhausen in the 2. Bundesliga.
Very disappointing. This tournament isn’t a high priority by any means, but I thought we shouldn’t have had a problem against Venezuela. Our defense was poor from the kickoff and gave up two fairly soft goals. The first came against the run of play. It started with a simple longball down the right side to the striker, Salomon Rondon. Left back, Kellyn Acosta was caught too high up the pitch and center back, Matt Besler was late getting over, giving plenty of time for the West Brom man to put in a cross to his striking partner, Adalberto Penaranda who out jumped Cameron Carter-Vickers for the goal. The second was a simple diagonal ball over the top for Penaranda who out jumped our right back, Shaq Moore for his second. We finally found the back of the net in the 62nd minutes. It was a beautiful team goal with four passes right on the edge of the box. It started with a little one-two between Cristian Roldan and Terrence Boyd. Roldan then played it to Corona who slipped in Harrison for his first international goal. To add insult to injury, Christian Ramirez was subbed off in the first half through injury and he will miss the rest of the tournament with a sprained ankle ligament.
Group B: Matchday 2 View attachment 53127 This one was all Ecuador. The dominated from the opening kickoff and scored after just 16 minutes. They controlled the middle of the pitch and eventually got their first when the ball found Juan Cazares at the top of the box. He played a nice, easy though ball past Carter-Vickers to the feet of Lazio striker Felipe Caicedo who beat Hamid at his near post. 16 minutes later Ecuador got their second. It started with a free kick from just outside the right side of the box. The kick was squared to Juan Cazares at the top of the box and he took one touch and blasted it into the bottom right corner. They had a great chance at a third, but Bill Hamid bailed out the struggled Carter-Vickers with a class save. We did have a few chances, but poor crosses and efforts from distances never really threatened.
Some big news involving an American across the pond. Colorado native, Ethan Horvath seems to be on the verge of joining English giants, Arsenal. The 24 year old keeper has been exceptional for Club Brugge. He just completed his second season as their first choice shot stopper and has recorded 24 clean sheets in 60 starts. This season he helped his Belgium side reach the First Knockout Round of the Europa League by recording four clean sheets in six matches during the Group Stages. He’s been linked to a move to the Premier League all off season as his named was link to the likes of Chelsea and Tottenham as well as Arsenal. On the international level, he’s been the United States first choice since the conclusion of the World Cup just under a year ago.
Can’t fault the boys in this one. We were the better side in this one. We dominated the beginning stages of this match and Edwards scored a much deserved goal. Keaton Parks played the ball out wide to Harrison, who but in a cross to Edwards. He brought it down with his left foot and smashed it home from a very tight angle. Things fell apart when Shaq Moore made a horrible tackle from behind and received a straight red. We did a great job keeping possession, but were outnumbered in the final third and couldn’t create anything. Eventually, Paraguay would equalize on the counter from a poor pass from Keaton Parks. After the South American side were reduced to 10 men we were in control once again. Julian Green had a one on one with the keeper, but hit it right at the shot stopper. Paraguay would get their second through Roma striker Walter Gonzalez which sealed the victory.
June 29, 2019 The roster is set for the Gold Cup. Outside of the World Cup, this is the most prestigious tournament the United States partake in. We are the favorites along with Mexico and Costa Rica, however, with this tournament taking place on U.S. soil the expectation are very high. We do see a few notable absences from the U.S. roster. There is no DeAndre Yedlin, Edgar Castillo, or Aron Johannsson. Here’s a detailed look at the roster: Looking over the roster and starting in net, we have three young keeper. Horvath, who is still tied up in some transfer drama, will be the starter. His club has accepted offers from Arsenal, West Brom, and Southampton, however, rumor is Horvath is holding out for a bid from French side Monaco before he makes a decision on his future. Behind him we’ll see Luke Vazquez and Zack Steffan. Vazquez was drafted by Houston last season and record 12 clean sheets in 28 starts. As for Steffan, this is his third year as a starter in the MLS and he’s already recorded six shutouts in 14 games. In the middle of the defense we see the regular John Brooks called in. Omar Gonzalez is now in his second season with Houston after making the switch from Liga MX side Pachuca. He’s been one of the best center backs in the MLS since joining. Matt Miazga, who could be on his way back to the Premier League, will likely start on the bench. He was sold to Feyenoord just last year after spending two seasons out on loan away from Chelsea. After an excellent season in the Eredivisie, Burnley have come in with an offer. Finally, Erik Palmer-Brown is back in the team. The 22-year old just finished a loan spell with Greek Superleague side AEK Athens. To the left we see Jorge Villafana who was apart of the World Cup side. Kellyn Acosta joins the team after the B team were eliminated from the Copa America. Edgar Castillo has been the regular starter on the left, but has been left out of this side. At 32 years of age, it may be time to look for someone younger to replace the Monterrey man. On the right we see DeAndre Yedlin missing from the roster. After 11 starts in the Premier League with Newcastle last year, he only found the pitch once this term. Until he can find some regular minutes with the first team, the U.S. seem to be looking at other alternative. Tyler Adams will be that guy this time around. He’s just 20-years old, but has 49 caps with the U20 side to his name. The New York Red Bulls full back was steller in this years U20 World Cup. In the midfield we see the usual number of five players called in. To no one's surprise we see the likes of Michael Bradley, Weston McKennie, Emerson Hyndman, and Danny Williams called in. Bradley has been the leader of this team and is just two caps shy of tying Landon Donovan for second most U.S. caps of all time. McKennie spend this season out on loan with Hertha Berlin and managed five goals in 25 starts in the Bundesliga. He’s quickly becoming one of our best options in the middle of the pitch. Hyndman just completed his first season with Ligue 1 side Rennes. It’s very exciting to see him finally establishing himself as a first team regular with a club playing in one of the best leagues in the world after six years in England didn’t work out. Williams also spent this past season in Ligue 1 after leaving England once his club was relegated. He helped his side, Marseille, qualify for the Europa League this coming season. The final name called in was Keaton Parks. He was on the B Team who competed in the Copa America. Parks was one of the few bright spots in that side and is deserving of a chance with the senior team. He’s been stuck with the Benfica reserves, but is being linked with a move to the LA Galaxy and 2. Bundesliga side Bochum. On the wings we see the usual four names. Christian Pulisic only managed one start in the Bundesliga this year. After being plagued with injury problems he found himself stuck behind Andriy Yarmolenko on the depth chart who tore up the German top division scoring 15 goal in 33 starts. Rumor is Real Madrid has major interest in our 20-year old winger with PSG having minor interest. Fabian Johnson is called in as well. He had yet another strong season in the Bundesliga helping his side qualify for Champions League football next year. Darlington Nagbe and Paul Arriola will be the our options off the bench. Nagbe has five goal and four assists in 18 games this MLS campaign. Arriola helped his side win the MLS last year and has followed that up with seven goals and three assists in 18 games this year. Upfront we see Jozy Altidore and Bobby Wood called in. Altidore is dealing with a broken toe and has missed a handful of games in the MLS this year, but he’s a veteran in this side and we know what we get with him. Wood had a strong season in the Bundesliga scoring 15 goals, but failed to score in the final eight games of the season. Let’s hope he can end his cold streak with the U.S. The final name is Jordan Morris. He had a breakout season last year with Seattle winning the MLS Golden Boot with 20 goals. He has six in 14 this campaign.
Horvath is on his way to north London as his transfer to Arsenal has been completed. Club Brugge accepted bids from Premier League sides Arsenal, West Brom, and Southampton before Horvath chose to become a Gunner. The Colorado native did hold out for a move to French side Monaco, but with a managerial change on the south coast, it was an easy choice for Horvath. The club finished third in the Premier League last season, which mean they will be competing on club football's biggest stage, the Champions League. Now that Petr Cech announced his retirement, the American keeper will be competing with Colombian international David Ospina for first team minutes in goal.
Another big move for an U.S. international see’s 23-year old center back Matt Miazga head to Premier League side Burnley. Miazga has always been a high rated prospect since his days with the New York Red Bulls. He left the U.S. on January 1, 2016, at 20-years old for Chelsea, but never broke into their first team. After two season on loan with Vitesse in the Eredivisie, Chelsea sold him to Feyenoord for $4.3 million. After just one season in Rotterdam, Miazga was sent back to the Premier League as his club team cashed in by selling the New Jersey native to Burnley for $10.25 million. Miazga is listed as a rotation player, but he’ll have to compete with James Tarkowski, Ben Mee, and Maya Yoshida for first team minutes.
That was a wild match. We dominated the first half, yet found ourselves a goal down. Fabian Johnson had a great chance from a Pulisic cross, but a driving save denied him. Brooks had chance on a corner kick, but his headed was cleared off the line with another diving stop. The Soca Warriors had zero shots on target in the first 45 minutes, yet found themselves 1-0 up thanks to an own goal off a corner kick. Horvath came out and attempted a diving punch, instead it hit off Timmy Chandler and into an empty net. We finally leveled the scoring from a deep Emerson Hyndman cross to the far post, which Pulisic netted on the volley from just a few yards out. We left it late, but were able to get the winner through the games second own goal. Keaton Parks played a long ball over the top for Nagbe to run onto down the right side. He played a low, hard cross in for Wood, but it was the center back who slid in and redirected it passed his own keeper. Worryingly, the games was very open from that point on. Horvath made two fairly routine saves and Parks and Wood missed two good chances. Overall, I thought we played very well minus the score line. Timmy Chandler did a superb job pushing forward and put in a few dangerous balls in the box. McKennie and Parks, after he was subbed in, were great creating chances when we were searching for that late winner. I was a little disappointed in Bobby Wood. He’s a big physical forward, but only two of his six shots came from inside the box. I’d like him be more of a presence inside the penalty area.
After a first half red card, I’m happy to come out of this one with a point. We got on the score sheet first thanks to a great run down to left by Fabian Johnson. He put in a near post cross and Bobby Wood was able to out jump his marker and beat Keylor Navas at his near post. Less than 10 minutes after the goal, our leader Michael Bradley picked up his second yellow on a pretty soft tackle. It was disappointing to see him forced off, but we tightened up and switched to a back three after bringing on Matt Miazga and forced Johnson to sit deeper. Costa Rica got there goal off a corner kick. The ensuing kick was pulled back to top of the box and NYCFC striker, Ari Lassiter, hit an absolute rocket into the top left corner of the net. Neither side had much of a chance after that. Our only real chance at a winner came from second half sub Jordan Morris on the counter attack. Bobby Wood collected the ball from just inside his own half, he turned and played a ball over the top to Morris. The ball forced the Seattle Sounders striker out wide. He continued his diagonal run into the box and had a go at Navas’s far post, but the Real Madrid keeper was able to get his mitts to him.
Group A: Matchday 3 View attachment 52650 After a stale first half, things got crazy in the second 45. The U.S. dominated the match, but Panama where the side to break the deadlock with their first shot in the match. It was a poor goal if you ask Ethan Horvath who did give up a soft one. After that it felt like the majority of the match told place in Panama’s final third. We had a few excellent chances, but with nine men sitting back in defense it seemed like all of our shots were blocked or their keeper made a top class diving stop. We finally recorded our breakthrough in the 79th minute through Keaton Parks. What a time to score your first international goal. It came off a corner which Matt Miazga won at the far post, but only managed to hit the post. Lucky for us Jamie de Garcia, currently playing in the second division in Mexico, was on the ground when the rebound fell to Parks who knocked it into the open net. I have to give a lot of credit to de Garcia who really did made some top class saves. Horvath made up for his howler in the 92nd minute. Panama’s right winger put in a low cross through the box to the Vladimir Hood at the far post, who just needed to tap it home for a winner, but Horvath was able to scramble over and made an incredible diving stop.
As you can see by the final standings in Group A, it was very tight. Even if we lost the match against Panama we still would’ve advanced. Costa Rica lost to Trinidad & Tobago in their final match of the group stage and steak into the quarterfinals. Mexico had no problem in Group B and win their group with no problem. Guillermo Ochoa recorded three clean sheets for El Tri in the process. Jamaica grabbed second place, although they lost their star place, Leon Bailey, in the opening match. Canada scored 12 goals in their three group stage matches in route to winning Group C. El Salvador and Haiti both advance out of the group as well.
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