Group of DEATH!

We knew a tough group was expected from the draw, but even with that considered, this draw hurts. The USA get just about the worst draw possible, especially with the nearly 9000 miles we will need to travel. We must get 3 points against Ghana if we're going to have any chance of advancing. However, we faced steep odds in 2002 and ended up in the round of 8, so who knows, anything can happen! Go USA! 

Photo courtesy of USSOCCER.COM

Starting lineups

Here we go, Will the USMNT continue it's best year ever?

US Soccer roster

The newest roster for the 2 friendliest in Europe against Scotland and Austria has been announced, and is as follows

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION - Detailed Roster
GOALKEEPERS (3) : Bill Hamid (D.C. United), Tim Howard (Everton), Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire)
DEFENDERS (7) : DaMarcus Beasley (Puebla), John Brooks (Hertha Berlin), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders FC), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy), Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest), Michael Orozco (Puebla)
MIDFIELDERS (7) : Alejandro Bedoya (Nantes), Michael Bradley (Roma), Mix Diskerud (Rosenborg), Fabian Johnson (Hoffenheim), Jermaine Jones (Schalke), Sacha Kljestan (Anderlecht), Brek Shea (Stoke City)
FORWARDS (6) : Jozy Altidore (Sunderland), Terrence Boyd (Rapid Vienna), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Aron Johannsson (AZ Alkmaar), Eddie Johnson (Seattle Sounders FC), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)

Roster courtesy of USSoccer.com. 

Impressions and details to follow...

Roster Update

4 players out, one player in heading to Panama next week. Matt Besler, Tim Howard, Landon Donovan, and Jermaine Jones are out, and Sean Johnson is in. With four starters against Jamaica out, the next starting XI should be interesting. 

Grades Summation

Kansas City Star

I will continue to update this with more grades I find for the match. U.S.A finished a perfect 5-0 at home in the Hex after tonight's win!

MLS Soccer

ESPN FC

Goal.com

NY Times

USA 2 Jamaica 0

Credit USA Today Sports

It was a hideous first half, but the U.S.A. defeats Jamaica in Kansas City with a much improved second half effort. The first half was filled with sloppy play, lackadaisical effort, and an overall lack of intensity that resulted in a 45 minute snooze-fest.

Thankfully, the second half was superior. Landon Donovan was replaced by Graham Zusi who, in front of the fans that watch him play for Sporting Kansas City in MLS, delivered a fantastic 45 minutes and earns a well-deserved man of the match award. With this win. the U.S. has 19 points in the Hex, enough to guarantee finishing in first even if they lose in Panama in a couple of days. Without a doubt, this has been a great qualifying campaign for Klinsmann's crew.  And now, the grades.

Tim Howard - 5.5
He didn't face too much opposition, but when he got some action, he did not look very sure of himself. He should have given up an easy goal early, but thankfully Brad Evans cleared it away off the goal line. Overall, a shaky night for the captain.

DeMarcus Beasley- 7
No horrendous mistakes, and quite a few nice tackles. Had a few passes that could have been delivered better, but overall he helped USA earn a clean sheet.

Matt Besler - 7.5
I thought he really had a great night. He was almost always in the right position, and was just a nuisance for Jamaica's 3 forwards all night. He was my choice for best player for the U.S after 45 minutes.

Geoff Cameron - 7
Like Besler, had a very solid night. Had a few more errant passes than Besler though.

Brad Evans - 7.5
Had a terrific night as well, most importantly had the play of the first half with his terrific clear off the goal line to save a goal for the U.S.

Mix Diskerud - 5.5
Way too many errant passes on the night. Was unable to control the game like he did in the Gold Cup. The uptick in talent for this Qualifier showed that Diskerud has some more development to go.

Jermaine Jones - 6
I know a lot of people think this should be a lower number, but his defense was big in the first half. His passing was off, but his job was to play defensive midfielder, and I thought he handled that job very well.

Landon Donovan - 4.5
Yep, my worst player tonight. He just didn't have it tonight. Turnovers, poor passes (including one back-pass to Besler that Besler was shocked to receive, it could have been a disaster) and a miss of a golden chance in the first half all led to his removal at the break.

Alejandro Bedoya - 5
This was his chance to prove he should belong ahead of Zusi on the depth chart, and he failed to do it. Like the rest of the midfield, his errant passes in the first half were the main reason the U.S team's performance was sub-par. he seemed to do better after the break, and he got the assist on Zusi's goal. Still doesn't make up for his terrible first half.

Aron Johannsson - 6
He was actually the best passer for the U.S in the first half, not something one sees out of a striker. He had a couple golden chances to score in the first, but lost his nerve at the crucial moment. However, he was the lone exciting player in the first half and showed that he deserves to start again in Panama in a couple of days.

Jozy Altidore - 5
His goal was simply a gift of terrible defense, and overall this was a major off-night. Like a majority of players tonight, his passing was off and he had some pretty poor turnovers. Hope to see a better performance in Panama.

Subs:

Graham Zusi - 8.5
My man of the match, he injected some much needed creativity and explosiveness replacing Donovan to start the second half. Created many chances and earned his game winning goal.. A special game in front of the fans that know him so well.

Edgar Castillo - 6.5
He was very energetic going forward, but seemed to do so with a bit too much gusto leaving his space open and available to the counter attack after replacing DeMarcus Beasley. Still, he was rewarded with an easy assist to Altidore for the final goal of the night.

Sacha Klejstan - 6.5
He had less than 20 minutes to show what he could do, and he almost scored a goal on a nice pass from Zusi. Also set up some chances for teammates. In my opinion, he showed that he deserves to start over Diskerud in Panama.

Jurgen Klinsmann - 8
Klinsmann's big mistake was running a 4-4-2, this game showed that the US is clearly most comfortable playing the 4-2-3-1 that they've played for most of the Hex. However, all 3 of his subs worked beautifully, as they ended up being the 3 best non-defensive players on the night. The big question: why didn't Zusi start?

Starting XI

 

Starting XI announced, Klinsmann does go with a 4-4-2, even still my only wrong prediction was choosing Zusi over Johannsson. Match starts at 6:30 pm EST, GO USA!

Roster update

Eddie Johnson's injury at training yesterday  officially knocked him off the roster, and THREE players have been called in: Brad Davis, Chris Wondolowski, and Clarence Goodson. As for my starting XI guess, with Johnson's injury, I expect Bedoya to start. I expect the other players called in to be backups.

Best Starting XI?

With 4 regular starters officially out for the Jamaica match, significant changes are to be expected in the Starting XI. Klinnsmann may even change the formation to a 4-4-2 in response. However, for this educated guess, I will go with the assumption that the U.S will continue to use the 4-2-3-1 that has been favored so far in the Hex.

Made at www.americansoccernow.com

What I've done is take the normal starting XI but replaced the four injured players (Cameron for Gonzalez, Diskerud for Bradley, Eddie Johnson for Clint Dempsey, and Graham Zusi for Fabian Johnson). What do you think?  UPDATE Eddie Johnson limped off the pitch with an injury during training. If he can't go, I predict Alejandro Bedoya to replace him in the starting XI)

Gonzalez out, Orozco in

Omar Gonzalez withdrew from the World Cup Qualifiers yesterday on account of a hamstring injury. Michael Orozco was called as a replacement. We'll see how this impacts this Friday's Starting XI, as it was assumed that Gonzalez would again start next to Matt Besler. My money's on Geoff Cameron getting the nod at Center-Back...

Photo credit: Soccerbyives.net

Links

I want this blog to be the one place for USMNT news, and this is how: I'll collect a bunch of links in posts to help you keep up to date. With the roster announcement today, here's a variety of sources discussing the news.







US Soccer

Jurgen Klinsmann Interview

Stars and Stripes FC

Washington Post

Image via sbnation.com

WC Qualifiers Roster

The roster for the final two U.S.A. World Cup Qualifiers has been announced. Without further ado, the 20-man roster is...

Goalkeepers: Tim Howard, Brad Guzan, Nick Rimando

Defenders: DaMarcus Beasley, Matt Besler, Geoff Cameron, Brad Evans, Omar Gonzalez, Edgar Castillo

Midfielders: Kyle Beckerman, Alejandro Bedoya, Mix Diskerud, Graham Zusi, Sacha Kljestan, Jermaine Jones

Forwards: Jozy Altidore, Terrence Boyd, Landon Donovan, Eddie Johnson, Aron Johannsson

 Best guess at Starting XI coming later...

Photo courtesy of www.ussoccer.com

Welcome!

Welcome to Old Glory FC, a one stop shop of all things USMNT. I've been searching everywhere for one site that provides all the news and information about the US Men's National team and, after failing to find the perfect site, I've decided to make it myself. Here at Old Glory FC, in addition to my own personal content (roster/injury updates, player ratings for matches, predicted/actual Starting XI's, etc.) I will also link to a ton of articles written by authors on other websites, allowing this blog to contain the most comprehensive coverage of the US Men's National Team anywhere! I'm looking forward to your comments, and thanks for checking me out!