By FRANCO PANIZO
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – The U.S. men's national team is full of new faces now a days, but Jurgen Klinsmann can thank the familiar ones for his first victory as U.S. head coach.
The Americans won their first game in the Klinsmann era by beating Honduras 1-0 in front of 21,170 fans on a rainy and windy Saturday night at Sun Life Stadium.
Clint Dempsey scored the lone goal in the first half with a left-footed effort, and Tim Howard came up with a plethora of quality saves to give the United States its first victory since defeating Panama in the Gold Cup semifinals.
"Important was that we got the three points because obviously this team is hungry for success," said Klinsmann. "They want to do well and get the results done right."
Playing in a 4-1-3-2 formation, the Americans began the game by passing sloppily and giving up a number of chances to a Honduras attack that was orchestrated by Roger Espinoza.
The visitors took advantage of the U.S. team's slow start and nearly jumped out in front in the 19th minute when Jerry Bengston got behind Michael Orozco Fiscal and brought down a pass over the top. Howard came to the rescue for the Americans though, as he blocked the ensuing shot.
Getting help from fullback Timmy Chandler and Brek Shea's runs down the left flank, the United States eventually settled and started to dictate the tempo in a game that saw eight yellow cards handed out.
"It took us a little bit to get into a higher pace," said Klinsmann. "The first 20 minutes was a bit too static movement wise, but also because Honduras did a good job there, kind of pushing high up. Then after 20, 25 minutes, we took over and we created a lot more chances."
The United States broke the deadlock in the 36th minute. Following a corner kick that was played short by Steve Cherundolo, Shea whipped in a low cross from the right flank. Orozco Fiscal redirected the path of the ball to Dempsey, who finished with his left foot to score his 23rd goal wit the U.S. team.
"I didn't know if it was going to come through. I got a little bit lucky," said Dempsey. "I tried to take it with my right foot, saw that it was going to get blocked so I pulled it back to just try and place it with my left foot. I couldn't have hit it any better."
Honduras almost equalized a minute later when Orozco Fiscal was beaten by a ball played over the top, but the visitors' poor finishing continued as Costly shot wide.
The Americans' defensive effort improved in the second half following the insertion of Oguchi Onyewu, who replaced the injured Orozco Fiscal. Onyewu, who had not played since a pre-Gold Cup match against Spain, helped tighten things up in the back with his physical style of play and aerial presence.
That sturdy defending helped the Americans keep the ball for longer periods, which ultimately resulted in more chances.
At the center of those chances was Dempsey. Four minutes after the intermission, Dempsey made a dummy run that allowed the ball to find a wide open Danny Williams, who played and started in his first game for the United States. Williams' shot was gobbled up by Donis Escobar, who made five saves on the night.
Dempsey looked to have put the game away in the 84th minute when he rose up to meet a Jonathan Spector cross and headed past Escobar. Jamaican referee Courtney Campbell waved it off, though.
"I don't know what the call was on that," said Dempsey. "I rose up to the ball before the other player did, and I thought it was a clean goal. But I guess you kind of get used to a little bit of those decisions dealing with some of the refs in CONCACAF."
Dempsey's disallowed goal wasn't the only opportunity the Americans had to double their lead. In the second half alone, Shea, Onyewu and substitute DaMarcus Beasley all wasted good looks on goal.
Honduras also had clear opportunities to equalize that it missed, including a shot from 15 yards out by Costly that went wide left.
"Over the course of 90 minutes, it's always going to happen when you have some lapses or bad giveaways," said Jozy Altidore, who played in front of around 300 family members and friends. "Throughout the game, we picked it up and we did enough for the win."
The United States next faces Ecuador at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J. on Tuesday, Oct. 11.
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What do you think of the United States' win over Honduras? Who impressed/disappointed you? Did you like the way the U.S. team played?
Share your thoughts below.
Yeah he’s not quite that bad, but he certainly shouldn’t see the field ever again.
Ratings:
Altidore: 7
Dempsey: 8
Shea: 7
Edu: 6
Beckerman: 6
Williams: 6
Chandler: 7
Boca: 6
Fiscal: 4
Dolo: 6
Howard: 9
Subs:
Gooch: 7
Bradley: 5/6
Beasley: Surprisingly 7
Agudelo: 6
Spector: 6/7
Altidore had one of his best games in a while. A lot more hustle out of him. Dempsey was his usual self, although he still gets too cute sometimes which stops some plays in their tracks. Shea is getting better and better, and I loved that he was staying wide as opposed to constantly cutting inside. Worked pretty well with Chandler. Edu had some errant passes, but for the most he was on target and created a couple of dangerous chances. He made some nice tackles on the defensive side of the ball as well. Beckerman was similar. He wasn’t dangerous on offense, but that’s not his job. Defensively he was alright, but a little too aggressive. Williams showed flashes, but he was played out of position and you could definitely tell. He has some technical skill which is nice, but he is more suited as a DM with the occasional venture forward so he can use his skill on the ball. Chandler was very solid, but I’m still hoping he takes over the right back spot and Lichaj gets healthy to take over the left. Chandler was very active on offense, but the lack of a left foot doesn’t help him out. Still created chances though. Boca was alright. He did not play up to his usual self, especially squandering possession in the defensive half with some poor passes. Fiscal was garbage, giving it away constantly and losing in the air constantly. Just not good. Dolo was alright. He seemed a little slow today, but even the best players don’t play great every game. He did what he had to do, but he normally is more active, especially on offense.
As for our subs. I’m glad Onyewu got the chance to play again. It looks like he’s returning to his old form, pre injury. He still isn’t a distributor per se, but what he lacks in ball skills, he makes for with defensive positing, power, and aerial prowess. Bradley looked a little lost. He seemed to have his first instinct correct, but then he would make a mistake. It doesn’t help when you get called in to a rain soaked field, but I thought he would do better. The biggest surprise to me was Beasley. I was not happy with his call up, but he was active and fast. He proved me wrong, that’s for sure. As of now, if his form continues, he would be a great late sub to attack tired defenders. Agudelo was his normal self, being very aggressive and attacking at every opportunity. Didn’t quite get the service he wanted, but it was late in the game and keeping possession was more of a priority. Spector came on for 10-15 minutes or so and I thought he was very solid. His distribution was on point with every touch minus one. He set up the disallowed goal and put his wingers in dangerous positions down the line. I wonder how he would do given a chance in the midfield.
We’re gonna run into the problem of having too many midfielders. With the additions of Williams, Johnson and now Beasley our midfield selections are going to be tougher and tougher. Holden will come back and our midfield will be too crowded won’t be much place for Adu and Feilhaber, unfortunately. Also we can’t forget about Lichaj as a defender.
Well said
Clint’s goal was pure class, played well all night, delievered. Nice to have the most skilled player on the pitch wearing the red, white and blue.
It’s yout time Clint!!! Yes
I agree, and I love Michael vs. other commentators who only ever see the bad from him…weak
but I am really hoping Coach will reach out to him, bring him into the middle of it all with that energy to inspire and support that Klinsmann has, and then let’s see what happens
The game was amazing but bad reffering i mean they missed many calls and called Clints 2nd goal off for no reason.
Agree with the line up. I like Dempsey in the middle and close to goal, Shea and Williams actually playing wide as wingers. I think that we have lacked for wide play since the World Cup and Shea allows to really use the width of the field. Williams is probably keeping LD’s spot warm for him but at 22 he could really be important for this program.
Yup, that’s pretty spot on. However, I’m not sure Chandler will be leaving in the January transfer window, but you never know. Orozco has now overstayed his welcome. The whole playing from the back thing is funny to me because he lost the ball with bad passes quite a few times.
I really hope to see more of Spector, preferably in the midfield. From the few minutes he played, you could definitely see his touch on the ball. Very good distribution including the called off goal.
I disagree that Edu looked poor. There was one particular pass that I had no idea what he was doing, but besides that, he was making solid passes and stopping a lot of Honduras’ forward movement. Overall, Beckerman did fine as well, but Edu was certainly superior. Beckerman just looked too aggressive to me. I get the whole bulldog in front of the back line, but there were a lot of times where his pressure was more like knock the guy over and hope the ref doesn’t call a foul. I’d much prefer to see Bradley with Edu, even though I’d rather not see another DM, but that seems to be all we have on this roster as of now.
Yes but I would rather edu play were beckerman was and put torres where edu was.
bradley was also poor with passing but the field had a lot to do with it.
torres is very good at moving forward and sending forward seeking passes. holden would be better too.
beckerman was slow tonight.
“do you know what a plethora is?”
played much better when dempsey pushed up and played more of a 4-4-2. Still wasnt impressed even though we won, build up was passive, it looked like they were passing just for the sake of passing. Orozco cant cut it time to try someone else. Beckerman and edu didnt look good, got outclassed by roger epsinoza. I think our best formation going forward is a 4-1-3-2 and i would like to see this next game.
XI:
jozy dempsey
shea edu williams
bradley
chandler boca onyewu cherundolo
howard
Orozco sucks!!!
Glad to see Gooch & Beasley back.
Foul. Still a bad call though.
Oh wait was the offsides call a foul? I was watching in Spanish so I couldn’t tell 😐
Really though, should’ve been more than 1-0. Dempsey’s 2nd goal was about a YARD onside, Shea and Gooch blew easy opportunities, and there should’ve been a penalty for the US right at the end. But we won anyway 😀
I think your assessment is pretty spot on.
Couldn’t disagree more, not only does he has a great touch on the ball but he has an intelligence of when to move quick and when to slow it down and back it up. He is really growing as a player and adding to his game.
I agree that Edu looked poor.
I just saw on Ives twitter that he mentioned:
“Wanted to see Beckerman matched up with Bradley, but yes, Bradley and Edu should start together. #SettleDown”
Edu had the poor match, not Beckerman. Beckerman did exactly what he was supposed to do, distributed the ball, made himself available for defenders to get out of a jam and got stuck in on a lot of tackles.
Beckerman/Bradley for me next match & even then, I counted several lost balls from Bradley in his brief time on the pitch.
Personally, with our core slowly being developed, I’d like to see Torres/Beckerman again with the other 1st-teamers.
so you were drunk by the second half is what you’re saying?
Edu looked good. He and Torres play differently though. Edu was sharp in possession and won the balls that Beckerman missed.
With all due respect, I’m not sure how you can even remotely equate “how many goals did Orozco” give up as if that’s a defense of his poor play.
The kid was out of his depth. If not for Howard and Honduras poor finishing, there could have been 2-3 goals given up.
I didn’t make the Bornstein comparison but I think it’s plain silly to insinuate Orozco isn’t a weak link, ala Bornstein.
Was pretty invisible from my eyes. Whether he is second guessing or if he is just slower in his decision making, it manifests itself in too many back passes and really nothing dangerous.
Looks like he’s a good kid, too. Positive attitude, a lot of effort, smiles and a nice gesture to the fans when he was subbed off.
I saw someone who gives off the vibe he was really happy to be here and I think that’s a great addition.
All of that and I didnt even mention his obvious talent.
I didn’t see many good things from Bradley tonight. Looked like he was second guessing the first option everytime.
Salgado in reply to John D.
You make a good point re: Dempsey. Aguedelo could sub on for Jozy late in the game. Where would you play Donovan? Right wing???
*with his right.
The biggest revelation in the early Klinnsman era is Brek Shea. His size and pace causes problems for the opposing defense that other players in the pool can not provide. I especially liked his interaction with Chandler this evening.
Speaking of Chandler, he seemed more comfortable cutting in and releasing the ball with his right foot tonight. Although he is on the left side, I don’t want him to just force himself into left-footed crosses when he can make more dangerous passes cutting back and passing with his left.
I’d like to see Geoff Cameron get a shot at CB, can’t be worse than Orozco has shown. Not as bad as the Castillo experiment but he just can’t seize the position. Hopefully the next match isn’t a monsoon so we can actually see if the bad passes behind runs were because of the conditions or just bad timing.
I couldn’t disagree more with moving Dempsey out wide. I think leaving him as the back forward or CAM is the most effective position for him with the Nats. He is one of the few Nats with the technical skills to be effective in that role.
Tough to say. They can fill roles on the team but do not have a starting position anywhere. Benny has more quality, can play, but am uncertain about where he fits in out MF. Its pretty full in there right now.
Edu was poor. Very frustrating to watch, I think Bradley would’ve been a better fit for that box to box role in the middle. Also, Danny Williams looked good, but I think he’s a better fit as a 6 or 8 center mid. He’s a very technical player but he just doesn’t have that pop that one expects from a winger. Our Olympic team is looking very intriguing right now though. Guys like Diskerud, Shea, Williams, Gatt, Gyau, Chandler etc are all Olympic age. Can’t wait for that qualifying to start.
What game did you watch? Orozco got beat handily multiple times and had no chance in the air. Every game he has played so far has been subpar. The Bornstein comment is spot on. If he keeps getting starts then Klinsmann just has a soft spot. Given the possibility that Gonzalez and John could play for other countries I’d give them a shot soon.
Chandler kept cutting the ball back to his right foot – not one left foot serve that I saw. Good player – bad spot.
Definite positives tonight but we are still far from polished. 4-3-3 system exposes our sometimes poor tecnique/decisions, but it also rewards our athleticism. Players like Shea and Altidore can really benefit from the system.
Anyone think we don’t need Adu or Feilhaber anymore?
It is true, the whole back line was weak and had it not been for Howard, Honduras would not have been held scoreless. I do think any of the negative comments made about Orozco could also be applied in varying degrees to other defenders. Klinsmann needs to inject some younger blood back there and the sooner the better. What we saw tonight with a very good Honduras team is that World Cup qualifying for the USMNT is not going to be a cakewalk, there are some dam good Concacaf teams and it is going to be a battle.
I was impressed with Danny Williams skills even though
he played out of his normal position; same with Chandler. Very anxious to also see Fabin Johnson.
We made way too many passes BEHIND players that killed the attack or gave the ball away.
Shea was impressive, but a bit off tonight. I’d like to see Jozy paired with Agudelo up top (a la two forward system used in Confederations Cup) with Shea and Dempsey on the wings and Williams and Bradley in the center of the field.
Players are starting to look comfortable on the ball and we are seeing some possession we never saw from the previous teams.
Things are starting to look up for the squad.
Great job. Could have easily been 3-0. Wish we had torres instead of edu.
These players aren’t Sunday players. They are professionals that should perform as such. Honduras missed more chances than the US did and on another day this could have been a loss if you want to be objective. I still believe that we have the right coach and he will get this sorted out.
Yeah, love Chandler, but needs to be played on the right. He can play left, looked great tonight, also interacted much better with Shea. But he plays right at the club level and would be much more dangerous from the right side. I am also wondering whether Chandler could be moved to midfield. He spent half the night anyway in the top third of the field. And as the Orozco experiment is now over (I assume), then Klinsmann can bring in for tryouts some of the MLS defenders (Gonzales, John, etc.) that some of the fans have been screaming for and try Chandler as a right midfielder, the position Williams was playing tonight. And Williams could move to center or left, which he plays at Hoffenheim and where he feels more comfortable. I will not be surprised if Chandler gets bought by a big club for sizable fee in the January transfer window.
Quite a few if the Honduran forwards had finish their chances.
Danny impressed
Shea impressed (except for that woeful miss)same for Gooch
Dempsey, Howard, and Altidore all played extremely well.
do you guys ever check out the comments on Yahoo soccer? some dudes over there are probably related to bradley and still complain over his dismissal…pretty dumb
i think Klinsmann is keeping his word on Orozco, hes letting the kid get his shot, but Orozco is shooting his chances down. Williams looked good at times, being its his first time with the MNT. The next game should be a better snap shot of a game to see how they gel.
With all due respecct, what are you talking about?
How many goals was Orozco responsible for? The defense looked shakier when Gooch was in.
Disappointing that we missed some wide open goals. There were a lot of positives, we know who played bad. I think Boca did ok, but he could have played better. He had far too many awful passes out of the back that went straight to the other team.
Brek Shea is just fantastic. And Chandler is here to stay, whether RB or LB. Can’t believe though that Gooch and Shea missed those sitters. I guess the easiest ones are the hardest to put away…score line could have easily been 4-0. But a win is a win, and Klinsmann needed it.
i like this danny williams kid. good player
If Orozco starts again on Tuesday then it’s official, he’s the new Bornstein.