This friendly was a chance to give some of the young players a chance ahead of the Gold Cup next month. The front three played extremely well. Most of the attack came from the right, be it McKinze Gaines or Reggie Cannon in the first half. It was a Cannon cross to the far point which setup Amon to score early in the match. Haji Wright scored on a far post cross as well, this one from McKinze Gaines. The right winger scored a goal of his own via a set piece header. It was one he very much deserved. He defiantly played his way into the conversation of who makes the Gold Cup roster. Pulisic is the clear first choice on the right wing, but behind him it's anyone guess. Juan Pablo Torres played very well in his number ten role. He dropped deep picking up possession urging his teammates on. He too deserves a serious look.
The stats may not show it, but Trinidad controlled most of this game. However, with that said they didn't offer much in their final third. In the 61st minute we brought on Kellyn Acosta and Cristian Roldan changing the formation from a 4-2-3-1 to a 4-3-3 in hopes we would begin to control the midfield. The moves paid off as from that point on the U.S. took control of the match. Weston McKennie broke the deadlock with just over 15 minutes left in the match. He had his initial shot from just outside the box blocked, but the deflection feel right back to him and he blasted home the opener. Seven minutes later the Schalke man doubled the scoring. Acosta played the ball to McKennie who took two touched and banged home his second after to Soca Warriors defense were slow to close him down.
This is our first chance to see the U.S. take on some real world class talent. This roster may not be filled with the best 23 players the U.S. has to offer, but it has what tbuc believes to be his best eleven with the addition of fringe players. If we take a realistic look at the Confederations Cup versus the Gold Cup, it is much more likely the U.S. will play more games in the latter tournament, therefore, it was best to allow the bench players fight for their places in the CONCACAF tournament. With that, let's take a look at the roster...
Ethan Horvath has been the starter in net for the majority of this cycle and he keeps his place here. Zack Steffen did not make this roster, but that decision was made so he could get minutes in the Gold Cup rather than ride the bench here. The two backups are Sean Johnson and Brad Guzan. Johnson has been a starter in the MLS for eleven seasons now and in that time proved he is one of the best options for the national team. Even at 36, Brad Guzan is still considered one of the top keepers in America. He is well past his best, but has late career success in the MLS before recently making the switch to Swiss side, Young Boys.
In the middle of the defense, we see a familiar pair of John Brooks and Cameron Carter-Vickers. Both center backs are getting first team minutes in two of the top leagues in the world. We've seen Justen Glad and Auston Trusty getting looks with the first team lately, but they'll take part in the Gold Cup, rather then sit the bench here. In there place is both Tim Parker and Matt Besler. Parker has been a fringe player for a few years now, but at 28-years old, his best years are behind him. However, he could get a chance to prove himself here in a big way if one of the starters need a break. Matt Besler was a starter for the U.S. at the 2014 World Cup, but at 34-years old, tbuc still believes his time is not over yet. In 12 MLS appearances his season he has an 'average rating' of 7.09. On the right, with DeAndre Yedlin out, Tyler Adams will start at right back. Backing him up will be Josh Emmanuel. With such stiff competition in this tournament, Adams's strong defensive abilities could be needed in the midfield late in a match, so there's a strong possibility Emmanuel sees the pitch as well. At left back we see the two names we've seen all cycle. Robinson will be the starter with Villafana the backup. At 31-years old and 28 caps, the Seattle Sounders full back doesn't have much to prove. Including him here gives a chance to some of the younger players to play in the Gold Cup.
In the middle we see the very familiar names of Weston McKennie, Michael Bradley, Kellyn Acosta, and Emerson Hyndman. Efrain Alvarez makes the roster and will play in the number ten role. Although he just celebrated his 19th birthday one day ago, he has nine caps and four goals to his name in a U.S. shirt. His early success has shown he's ready for a chance against stronger competition. His name is still being linked to some top clubs around the world.
On the wings we see the starters Christian Pulisic and Jack Harrison. Darlington Nagbe made the roster over Kenny Saief. Nagbe started as a number ten against Costa Rica in our final World Cup qualifier in March. His goal and assist showed he the ability to play their as well as the wing. On the right it's Duane Holmes. He beats out the likes of Paul Arriola and Joel Sonora this time around. He had a strong finish to the English Championship season with Derby while Arriola is off to a slow start in the MLS.
Finally, up front Bobby Wood is the easy first name called in. Even without getting first team minutes, Josh Sargent is in the team. However, it's likely he will be the third option behind Aron Johannsson who has a real chance to prove himself here. He's had success in the Bundesliga and Serie A, but seems to forget to pack his shooting boots when he comes home to American. It looks like tbuc is willing to give him one more chance.
And now the Gold Cup roster. There were a few surprises and names we haven’t mentioned before on this 23 man roster. In net we see the second and third choice keepers, Zack Steffen and Bill Hamid. It is likely both will get a chance. We already know Horvath and Steffen are the clear top two options, but Hamid has been in great club form and deserves a chance to prove he’s the third option for the U.S. after all. With some injuries to MLS regulars and potential call ups, Brady Scott will get his chances. He was the starter for the B Team at the Copa America last year and for the U23 team at the Olympics.
In the middle of the defense it’s three names we should know in Matt Miazga, Justen Glad, and Auston Trusty. The fourth is a new one, Kortne Ford. He’s been a first choice center back for three straight seasons and has broken out this year with a 7.00 ‘average rating’ in 21 starts for the Colorado Rapids. On the right we do see DeAndre Yedlin after all. He was set to miss the group stages of the Confederations Cup, but could be ready in time for the start of the Gold Cup. If not, Keegan Rosenberry will be the man. He has two caps to his name and has been one of the best full backs in the MLS for the past few seasons. On the left it’s 19-year old George Bello and 20-year old Greg Trujillo. Bello has been a regular starter for the Vancouver Whitecaps for three seasons now, but hasn’t really progress. However, at his age just getting minutes is impressive. Trujillo is a rookie in the MLS this term. Trujillo is a rotation player for his MLS club, but has played extremely well in his 12 starts. It’s be interesting to see which player gets the most minutes in this tournament.
In the midfielder we see Gianluca Busio back in the team. He shined for the Liverpool U23 side this year scoring 14 goals and assisted on 11 others. However, his success there hasn’t transferred to the international stage. Regardless, he’s still a quality talent with tons of potential. Wil Trapp finds his way back in the team. He has one cap under tbuc which came back in October 2019. He has been one of the top midfielders in the MLS for several years, but with the talent ahead of him on the depth charts he just hasn’t had the opportunity to prove himself. Cristian Roldan is the best player on the team at this position. He has nine caps under tbuc and is the first name in if one of the first teamers are unavailable. He will be vital if the U.S. want to be successful here without their best 11. Russell Canouse is in the same boat as Trapp. A mid-20’s midfielder having a great MLS career. Unfortunately that just isn’t good enough to make this national team. Lastly, Keaton Park has been called in. He has deserved a chance for a while now and it’s finally his time. He’s spent the majority of his young career with the Benfica B Team, but managed nine starts in the Portuguese Premiera Liga this past season. But, with quality ahead of him for a side with regularly play in the Champions League, his future may be elsewhere. That is not a knock on his game, however, as he is only 23 and has national team ability.
On the wing we see first teamer Kenny Saief. He will be the starter on the left. Behind him will be LAFC’s Sebastian Lletget. On the right is where we see two surprises. Orrin McKinze Gaines and Handwalla Bwana are in the team. McKinze Gaines now has a year in the Bundesliga under his belt and played superbly in the U23 friendly just a few years ago. He has more potential than any of the other options and with his recent success he deservs a chance on this stage. Bwana is another young prospect. He’s had back to back strong MLS campaigns and can play both on the wing and as a number ten. That versatility will be needed with such short rest between matches.
Finally, at the striker position, Jozy Altidore will lead the line. He is in third and 14 goals shy of both Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan on the all time scoring list. Although it seems unlikely he’s reach the top, this is his chance to get a little closer. Behind him is Jordan Morris and Timothy Weah. Weah has bags of potential, but playing at PSG it is near impossible for any youngster to get a real chance. He was stuck on the reserves team again this season and lacks any sort of match fitness. Morris has been one of the best striker in the MLS for the last couple seasons, and who knows? If Weah and Sargent are still not getting minutes at club level, Morris could just make the World Cup team.
Absolutely devastating. We held on for the entire match until the seventh minute of added time. This is after the fourth official held up the board showing five. Our front three were poor throughout the match and didn't create a since real chance, but our defense held strong and Horvath come up this two class saves. It's wasn't until the 97th minutes when Germany beat us on the counter and scored a goal, which they probably did deserve. Now we must put this game behind us and fight hard against the Ivory Coast and Australia.
Starting in the 70th minute, I did debate about pushing forward. We had one sub left and I wanted to bring on Alvarez in place of Michael Bradley, but figured the smart move would be to stick with the three in the middle and hold out for a point. Looking back, now all I can think about is what would have happened? Realistically, with the quality Germany has, they very easily could've taken over the middle of the pitch if we only had two players between the defense and the attack.
Here is the result from the other match in our group...
This is a good result for us as neither side were able to pick up three points and both teams are yet to play the Germans.
Great bounce back win after the heartbreaker against Germany. Australia did play well and had a great chance just 20 second in, but the ball was hit right at Horvath. It was that kind of night for the Socceroos. They created chances, but Horvath was up for it tonight. Seven shots on target, seven saves. They were the better side in the opening 45, but most of their attempts were from distance. The U.S. scored the opener from a poor mistake from their opponents. Harrison intercepted a poor pass in Australia's half and a few touches later put in a perfect cross to Bobby Wood who looped it over the keeper and into the net. The second half was much more balanced as each side had a few opportunities. Finally, in added time Wood put the game away on the counter. Harrison used his pace to bust down the left side of the pitch, put in a ball over top of the defense which was chested down by Wood and he blasted it into the top corner.
Here is the result from the other match in Group A...
Germany are through and a win by the U.S. in the next match means we'll join them.
We're off to the semi-finals! We dominated the match, but were wasteful. A flip flop from what we saw in our last match. We has 12 shots in the first half and only one was on target. Credit to Harrison, who was great on the left, putting in his fair share of dangerous cross, but every ball we won in the box seemed to sail well over the bar. Finally we found the breakthrough after bringing off an ineffective Bobby Wood. In the final minutes Johannsson scored his first goal in a U.S. shirt since July of 2015. That's a six year drought finally coming to an end off a header in the 90th minutes via a far post cross on a corner kick.
The other match in Group A...
Germany win the group with seven point and the U.S. finish second on six points. Brazil have qualified for the semis while France are level with New Zealand.
B Team or not, that was an extremely poor performance. I did say when the roster was announced that Cristian Roldan would be vital, but with the way the rest of the team played we probably couldn't even beat your local Sunday league team. The majority of our offense seemed to come through long balls to Jozy Altidore and when he won the ball he failed to hold possession for more than half a second. The wingers really never got involved, expect for a few good run down the left from Kenny Saief. Where we lacked the most was on set pieces. All three of their goal came off a corner kicks. Poor marking led to two easy goals and a save on a header fell right to a Panamanian player to tap in what was their second goal.
After the abysmal display the U.S. showed in the Gold Cup earlier today, Group B concluded their match here in the Confederations Cup. Brazil won all three of their matches with no problem and that is who the U.S. will face. Neymar had four goals and four assists in Brazil's three group stage matches. Tyler Adams will have his hands full in that match. France will face Germany in the other match.
A nice bounce back win after the rough first match in the tournament. This one was one way traffic from the start. The first goal came from a cutting Sebastian Lletget. Kenny Saief found the LAFC winger just outside the box who took on touch and blasted it into the net. 22 minutes later Lletget played in a far post cross to Orrin McKinze Gaines who was pulled down as he attempted to head the ball on goal. The ref pointed the spot before Jozy Altidore stepped up and scored his first of the match. One minute later Curacao scored from a free kick to make things interesting before the first half whistle. The U.S. put the game away in the second half. Altidore bagged his second from a Greg Trujilo cross before an own goal gave us our fourth.
We are level on points and goal differential with Honduras. However, with more goals scored we are second in the group. A draw against Los Catrachos in our final group match will be enough to get through.
We held our own in the opening 45 before Brazil took over in the second half. Our defense held strong blocking a couple of shots and forcing Brazil into firing from distance. Our opponents pace was too much for us to handle in the second 45. Neymar bagged his first off a near post cross. His first shot was brilliantly saved, but the ball fell right back to the PSG winger and he tapped it in. After switching from a balanced to a positive tactic Neymar scored number two. He picked up the ball just inside the U.S. half, danced around John Brooks, and rolled the ball into the bottom right corner. His former club teammate, Lucas Moura, scored the third. It was a simple cross to the Tottenham man who blasted in passed a helpless Horvath.
Well. After a pretty good first half, it was a complete collapse to say the least in the second 45. We had two great chances in the opening ten minutes, the first from Darlington Nagbe who had a shot from the top of the box, but it was a little too close to Hugo Lloris and he palmed it away. McKennie had a chance from about 25 yards out when he was in plenty of space, but his attempt went just wide. To continue that trend, Kellyn Acosta hit the bar on a free kick which had the keeper beat. When you have three good chance and no goals against a team as good as France, you have to expect the worst. And in the second half the worst did happen. Similar to what happened against Brazil, France were just too quick for the U.S. to handle. It all started with a counter attack, far post cross to an unmarked Pavard and it was 1-0. After that the flood gates opened. Mbappe seems to get behind the U.S. defense with ease and a few though balls later it was four.
This was a reality check for the Americans as they've been great against their CONCACAF foes, but after facing a squad filled with world class talent, they were no where near their level. At this point I would say the goal is to just get though the group stage and from there hope we aren't paired with Brazil, France, or anyone at that level at the World Cup.
After 165 caps and 25 goals, Michael Bradley steps down as his nation's captain after becoming all time leader in appearance in a U.S. shirt after the match against France. There are four players that come to mind to replace the midfielder. The first option is John Brooks who is the leader in the defense and took part in the 2014 World Cup. With previous World Cup experience and eight years playing regularly in the Bundesliga, he knows what it take to play at the top level. Another defender, DeAndre Yedlin has 74 caps to his name, which is more than any of the other options. This issue with the pacy right back is his injury history. He has missed a handful of U.S. matches while on the self. The next option would be Weston McKennie, however, this one may be a little premature. He has the most caps of any other player this cycle. But, he's only 22 and has a lot to learn before he can leader a team in the World Cup. The same could be said about Christian Pulisic, who is the same age, but he's been a first teamer for Dortmund for five years and has plenty of Champions League experience, where he's played against the best in the World. Whoever takes the arm band from Bradley has massive shoes to fill.
The win sees us through to the Quarter Finals of the Gold Cup. Cristian Roldan had another very impressive performance as he is making his case on why he should be on the World Cup roster. The U.S. did made some changes to the starting 11 in this one. Handwalla Bwana made his U.S. debut today and awarded his nation the opening goal off a cross from the left by Sebastian Lleget. Bwana is a natural number ten, but his ability to play on the right was the reason why he made the Gold Cup roster. He's had a successful MLS career up to this point and could play his way into the World Cup team if he continues to made a real impact in this tournament. Roldan was subbed off early to give Keaton Parks another chance to prove his worth. Unfortunately for him he failed to made his presents felt in this one. With the depth in the middle, his chance may have to wait until next cycle.
Up next we have a rematch of the 2020 Nations League Finals as the U.S. will face Canada.
Defending Champions Jamaica were knocked out early after losing to both Mexico and Costa Rica. Both of those nations should have no problems getting past Haiti and El Salvador in the Quaters. The U.S. have played Canada once this cycle and the U.S. beat their neighboring country 2-1 in that match. Even with a B Team, the U.S. are favorites to reach the Semi's. The Panama-Trinidad match should be the closest. Both teams lost in the Quarter Finals two years ago. Trinidad are looking to reach the Semi Finals for the first time since 2000.
The B Team are off to the Semi-Finals. It was a breakout game for Handwalla Bwana. He played on the right wing in our last match and played well there. This time around he played his natural central attacking midfield position and excelled. The Seattle Sounders man scored the first goal of the match. Roldan was in possession near the top right corner of the box dragging a midfielder and defender out of position. That freed up the middle where Roldan found Bwana with a square pass. Two touches later he hit a curler around the keepers hand and into the back of the net from roughly 20 yards out. Timmy Weah made his first appearance since July 2019 and capped of his performance with a goal. It came off the counter attack started with Bwana playing a long ball down to the left to Kenny Saief. After a 30 yard run down the flank he put in a prefect cross to Weah who knocked it in with his right foot.
Gold Cup Quater Final scores...
The U.S. will face Mexico while Panama are up against Costa Rica.
Coming in Mexico were the favorites and after the U.S. fell behind after ten minutes to the best team in the confederation, the B Team were in a hole. Mexico's goal started from a free kick, which came off the wall and bounced right back to Miguel Layun. He quickly switched play out to the right to the Bayern Munich winger, Hirving Lozano, who was in plenty of space and he then put in a peach of a cross to the far post for Diego Lainez to head home. The U.S. didn't take long to get back in the match. It started with short goal kick and the U.S. eventually get the ball out to McKinze Gaines who used his pace to skip past the full back and played in a cross aimed for the edge of the six yard box. Jozy Altidore out leaped the two center backs and headed it off the inside of the post and into the goal. 1-1. In the 64th minutes the U.S. took the lead through McKinze Gaines on another cross. Lletget picked up the ball on the left and made a nice sideways run to the top of the box before putting in a looping cross to his teammate and McKinze Gaines finished it off with his right foot. The defense held strong and the American's are off to the Finals for the third start time.
Here is the other semi-finals result...
The U.S. will face Panama in the Gold Cup Final for the second time since 2013. The American's won the last match 1-0 courtesy of a Brek Shea 69th minute winner in that one.
CHAMPIONS!! We do it again. This time with the B Team. As for the game, there were 14 shots on target, but not many of them forced either keeper into some highlight reel saves. Panama scored the opener off a pretty soft penalty. It came from a simple cross into the box to the striker sandwiched between the center backs, and the referee pointed to the spot without anyone going to ground. Tony Taylor stepped up and hit one into the bottom right corner. Jozy Altidore leveled it right before the half. Wil Trapp played it to the striker making a run off the center back. Jozy turned, took two touches, and hit one off the keepers hand and into the side netting. Both sides has a few chances to win it in the second 45. A far post cross forced Steffen into a brilliant save when the winger blasted it right at the keeper and Panama had to settle for a corner. Saief hit the bar on a free kick. Altdore was there to pounce on the rebound, but he was offsides. Steffen was bailed out by the bar himself at the end as well. The U.S. saved it for literally the very end to win it. After Jordan Morris was subbed on and the U.S. switched their formation running with two striker, Altidore picked up the ball on the left and put in a cross which looked to be over hit. But, with his back to goal, Morris was able to turn and hit it on the volley into the roof of the night. Sense in Los Angeles, California!
Three rising stars in Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, and Tyler Adams are proving to be important players for the U.S. national team.
The U.S. have now won a CONCACAF Nations League and two Gold Cups this World Cup cycle and look to establish themselves after the failures leading up to 2018. After Michael Bradley stepped down as the U.S. captan there really isn't much left from four years ago. We still see Bradley and Jozy Altidore called in as regulars, but other leaders like Tim Howard, Clint Dempsey, Fabian Johnson, and Matt Besler are no longer around. Johnson was called in once, but after failing to made the B Team roster for the 2021 Gold Cup, you'd have to think his time is over. Besler is still considered a strong candidate for 2022, but with John Brooks and Cameron Carter-Vickers establishing themselves as the top pairing in the middle of the defense, his time may be up. Matt Miazga and Auston Trusty both played well at the Gold Cup this year, so you'd think they would deserve a roster spot over the 34 year old. If you look strictly at the Gold Cup, Nations League, and World Cup qualifiers this cycle, that's excluding the meaningless friendlies and Confederations Cup, the U.S. have won 21 of the 25 matches they've played. That is good enough to climb them up eight spots to 14th in the latest FIFA World Rankings. To put that in perspective, that is the highest they've been since they were 13th in 2014 when they last qualified for the World Cup.
Losing to Brazil 3-0 and then France 5-0 to close out the Confederations Cup was a reality check, but the American's have a strong core group of players getting minutes in top leagues in Europe now. That is something the 2014 team couldn't say. Christian Pulisic, at 22-years old, is proving he very well could be the best ever American to play this game. The sky is the limit for him and with the intimidating force of Weston McKennie in the midfield paired up with Kellyn Acosta, who just made a move to Premier League side, Watford, this team should set the bar higher then just getting through the Group Stage in 2022.
As many fans are getting anxious for the World Cup, here is a look at the remaining schedule thus far for 2021:
September and October will bring a close to league play in the Nations League, which could mean November will be reserved for friendlies.
As an American it's always exciting to see your own making big moves in Europe. It will put a massive smile on anyones face stateside when they hear three more U.S. internationals will be playing Premier League football this season. Weston McKennie leaves the Bundesliga for Newcastle for $30 and was immediately slotted into the starting 11. Kellyn Acosta is another being sold to the EPL and he has started in four of Watford's five Premier League matches. Those two could make a very strong pairing for the U.S. with the World Cup right around the corner. The other players who will be getting minutes in top flight football in English is Jack Harrison. We all knew he would be getting a loan move away from Manchester City, and after two seasons in the Championship, he will be playing for newly promoted Birmingham this term. The left winger has started all five EPL matches for his new side. One last player I'd like to mention is Efrain Alvarez. He's been linked with a big move for the last two season and just landed a move to Belgium giants Anderlecht. The move means he will be playing Champions League football this season.
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