By FRANCO PANIZO
Just when it looked like the U.S. men's national team was destined for another scoreless game, a familiar face came up with the timeliest of goals.
Substitute Ricardo Clark powered home a header deep into stoppage time on Saturday night, giving the United States a 1-0 victory over Venezuela at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona in its opening match of 2012.
The goal, Clark's third for the U.S. team, gave the Americans the victory in a game it dominated for large stretches. The United States stymied Venezuela's attack and created a handful of good chances on offense, but it was unable to find the back of the net due to a combination of poor finishing and superb goalkeeping.
Even with it being the superior side, Jurgen Klinsmann's side seemed ready to settle for a tie against the South Americans. Minutes prior to Clark's goal, substitute Chris Wondolowski's header was denied by Venezuela goalkeeper Leonardo Morales, who was arguably his team's best player on the night.
Defensively, the Americans were stout. Bill Hamid, who earned a cleansheet in what was his first cap, went largely untested while the starting back four of A.J. DeLaGarza, Michael Parkhurst, Geoff Cameron and Heath Pearce negated Alejandro Moreno and the rest of Venezuela's offense.
It was offensively where the United States had the majority of its problems. Playing in a 4-2-3-1 formation for much of the game, the U.S. team created chances but was unable to capitalize. Teal Bunbury, captain Jermaine Jones and Brek Shea all failed to convert despite being put in good positions.
Morales also added to the United States' finishing woes, making a pair of eye-opening saves, including on a Shea header in the first half following a cross from debutant Graham Zusi.
Shea was also unable to score midway through the first half. Benny Feilhaber played Shea through on goal with a through ball, but Shea's ensuing shot rolled wide of the far post.
The misses may have aggravated the Americans, but their frustration turned into joy just before the final whistle. Jones whipped in a corner kick from the right side, and Clark got free of his mark to thunder it home and give the United States the win.
The Americans will now head to Panama City, where they will take on Panama in a friendly on Wednesday to conclude Klinsmann's first January camp.
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What do you think of the United States' 1-0 win over Venezuela? Who impressed/disappointed you? Who did you think was the best American player?
Share your thoughts below.
Thank goodness Tim Ream was not in there….The defense was so much better. DLG, Parkhurst, and Cameron were fantastic.
uh, yep…lol
You are crazy…Your post must have been painful. AJ shut down his side of the field just like he usually does for LA….No Surprise. He also seemed to have more responsibility in attack than he does with LA.
BB,
Benny had all those roles for the US at one point but I never said he was consistently good at them. There is a reason he went from being a sure fire starter and Gold Cup golazo hero to being a 45-20 minute guy.
The other vets were/are better players than Benny. I imagine that is why they were called in earlier and he wasn’t.
Benny has always been inconsistent with the USMNT, his biggest downfall. By the time Bradley left to pursue better career opportunities in the Middle East, Benny was a USMNT afterthought.
Part of it was his club situation. When he finaly moved to MLS he was hurt which meant he wasn’t on the Gold Cup roster.
He and Clark were called back into the team about the same time which seems just about right to me. They are both good players but at this point are probably being looked at to provide depth in case of injury or player unavailability.
Both of them should consider themselves lucky they got called in at all.
JK’s opinion of MLS seems to be MLS players need to train longer and harder and guess what, all the serious USMNT candidates are following his suggestions. He has called up lots of MLS players and if they could beat out his European or Mexican guys in practice I have no doubt he’d play them.
Ream, Rimando, Wondo, Agudelo, Rogers and Donovan were on Bradley’s 2011 Gold Cup Squad. Donovan was the only starter and Agudelo, Wondo and Ream put some time in. Fave Bornstein was in Mexico by then in case you were wondering.
Seems to me JK is a minor upgrade over Bradley as he would probably start Shea, Donovan and Beckerman.
Are you advocating an MLS quota system or the equivalent? JK works for the USMNT not MLS. The interests of the two parties are not always in perfect harmony.
Whatever Klinsman’s reasoning, I have to say Jones was an excellent captain, communicator and leader by example.
Someone has a man crush
if Benny is all those things you say, then where has he been? with Coach insisting his best were always called up and played?
“What exactly did JK need to find out 7 games ago about Benny that he and everyone at US soccer did not already know?”
see above, and more, why call in Clint, or Boca, or any vet for that matter under your reasoning
and Klinnsman hardly hides his opinion of MLS.
“Coach’s biased opinions vs. MLS players. ”
JK does not seem to mind that Shea and Beckerman, who seem be regular starters at this point, are MLS. He has regularly brought Hamid, Rogers, Lawrentowicz and Ream into the squad, though you could argue others are more deserving.
What exactly did JK need to find out 7 games ago about Benny that he and everyone at US soccer did not already know?
He has been a full time starter,a 20 minute instant offense sub and the “steady the midfield in the second half possession guy”.
“Dempsey’s heir is Shea. Both as young players liked to dazzle, had some finishing ability. ”
Shea is from Texas. Shea is portrayed as somewhat different as an individual. Shea is an American.
Other than that I see little similarity.
He may evolve but Shea is not as prolific a goalscorer as Clint was at the same point in their careers.
And their style is different.
Shea, who is more of a true winger than Dempsey ever was, is most dangerous making those runs down the wing, cutting into the middle and then going for goal.
Right now Shea is about size, speed, power and some skill. He is very direct about going for goal.
Clint is now and always has been about scoring in any number of ways. He has developed the skill, power, strength and smarts to usually be in the right place at the right time and to be able to take advantage of it. For example he is excellent in the air something I’m not sure you can say about Shea. Frankly, he has always defied being categorized.
If you want to compare Shea as a player to someone he is more like Donovan than Clint.
I thought this was his 1st poor showing. I have been impressed with him overall. He does show potential. But last night was not nearly as good a performance as before.
Swing and a miss.
That has nothing to do with being the Captain of the USMNT.
Getting banned 8 games in the Bundesliga 1 got him invited to camp in the first place…to be given the captaincy armband.
joke
Mr. bum
Missed what? The I Voice wrote a lot but this business about height and athleticism was the simplest to respond to.
5’11” is too short to play center back? And what athletic deficit is it that prevents Parkhurst from playing centerback at the level you require?
Whoever it is that Parkhurst (if he plays against Panama) might face might be a better soccer player and a better athlete than Michael but it is a team game. It’s not about having a back four that is man for man, superior to their opponents. It’s about how you play as a unit.
In soccer, teams that are not as good man for man often beat teams with superior talent.
It seems you guys don’t like Parkhurst because you feel he is not athletic enough or tall enough to play center back against a more athletic team like the Panamanians.
“And as a defender I am leery of saying someone “dominates” when they play a finesse positioning game. Try “being in the right spot” when we run into a good team. Panama last year is a classic example of what happens if the US tries to play a weakened finesse team against top class athletes. They will run us off the park.”
Okay you don’t like “finesse players”. You look down on good positioning (would you rather have defenders who were out of position when you play a good team? You want to beat teams physically. That sometimes works but so does finesse. This is not the NFL.
I guess we’ll see when we play Panama.
He was made the captain because he is like the only person on the team who is on the A team and experienced with playing at a high club level in Bundesliga 1.
+1
Captain’s armband should be earned.
“If your criteria for measuring centerbacks were actually relevant, then all JK would need is a tape measure and a few drills to determine the US centerbacks.”
he said a lot more than that. funny that you missed it.
I agree. Parkhurt against Tejada? Perez? Ream got muscled out of the stadium trying to guard them.
I did like Parkhurst’s game last night.
We were down to only 7 players?
I was at the game. still can’t believe Coach made Jones the CAPTAIN of the team! No way he has earned that HONOR–no way–and it is an honor. Don’t care how he played, nor Klinnsman’s reported reason for doing it.
Yes, Jones played well. Good for him and the USMNT. Wondo was unlucky, and the Venezuelan Keeper played outstanding. Benny did what many of us knew he’d do if given the chance. The fact Klinnsman just now is finally looking at him speaks volumes to me about Coach’s biased opinions vs. MLS players. He was wrong to ignore Benny for so long. We’ll see if he overcomes his own ego to make the right choices.
I am unconvinced.
Glad we won
what??? they are both good, and no way is Gonzo overrated…he is Underrated!
exactly…we’ll see.
Bingo
agree with you about Zusi and Jeff L. Only thing I would say is he didnt really standout in a good way OR bad way which can be good i guess. I thought he played solid but most of the time he had the ball he was making negative passes, but maybe that is his role, just not make mistakes and settle the game, play the ball to the back whenever possible. I wanted to attach rocketpacks to Zusi’s boots so he could get some giddy-up, the guy is painfully slow…..Also people keep talking about how impressed they are with the D shutting down Venezuela, but the more impressive part to me was the composure and distribution the back line gave. Cameron and Parkhurst both made a couple impressive runs upfield also. This was the thing that stuck out most to me was not so many long balls from the back.
Zusi had a terrible match. I thought his boots were made of cement because the guy runs so slow. Also made terrible decisions, taking on 2 and 3 defenders more than once when a simple 1-2 pass would have worked. His set pieces were ok, but provided no service off his side the whole match and often was too slow with his decision making. Poor showing.
MLS. It not “the MLS”. You haven’t really supported your statement that Wondo did not contribute.
Why would you demean these players by calling it Camp Cupcake? Thumbs down.
To rate sapong one star is off. He played well and demanded defenders on him giving room up top. Bunberry I think is over rated and I’ll say that as an SKC supporter. Would like to see Sapong at center forward and Zusi not on the right wing as he looks out of position there because he is. Zusi is an engine midfielder. A barking chasing dog type if you will. I think Sapong has the most potential of the SKC group.
In the first half Benny was one of the best players on the pitch. Hands down. Did you see the through ball to Shea that he pushed just wide? Pure class.
When JK took over the biggest flaw with a shaky defense. This is very serious because the US has never been prolific when it comes to scoring but it could always at least defend.
Things seem to be getting better with the defense. When you are re building a program, scoring is the usually the last last thing to come around, especially, when you are talking about the B/C team that has never played a game together before.
The fact is, under the circumstances, it is a positive that this makeshift team could put together an offensive display that created enough chances to score two or three goals.
yea, definitely didnt play 10 last night. more of a box to box marauding midfielder
I thought they were solid but I didn’t see some perfect cross or sublime defending where I’m like, these dudes will hold up or even excel in a game with Italy’s A side.
My college coach used to say that every team needs an @$$. The other team is trying to score on you too. You need some lunchpail guys and Jones is pretty darned good at lunchpail including playing the ball forward. Every team of nice guys I’ve played with has been mediocre.
And my experience is also that when someone is taking a shot they usually got one earlier. I’m sure he had a reason and this is not gangsterism, steroid, rape, or real thuggery, it’s a tough soccer player crossing the line a little.
I’m far more concerned about the constant cards and what that means for sporting and tactical purposes, than I am going to moralize about whether he should be stomping the guy’s foot.
The Galavision commentators agree with you. They said that they liked the US lineup much more with Wondo at forward. Also, that there Venezuela committed numerous penalty fouls per corner kick that went unpunished. If Wondo hadn’t been held or dragged down each time, he would have been on the scoreboard.
Guys like Parkhurst and Cameron really have to make the most of their opportunities this year. They’ll be around 28 at the next World Cup. No one wants a first-time World Cup team member at 32. Some of the younger guys can have a few weaker games because they have more time to prove themselves with their clubs.
And if Jones can’t control games like last night, that’d be sad with his experience and age.
agree no attack down the right although the ball was there most of the first half
“Altidore would have never tried that Bunbury cutback to left footed dipping strike from 25 yards in a million years”
Did you watch the Gold Cup?
I didn’t feel like any of the backs had to work that hard defensively. Which is why a lot of the differentiation in critique is based on the perception of how well they went forward.
And as a defender I am leery of saying someone “dominates” when they play a finesse positioning game. Try “being in the right spot” when we run into a good team. Panama last year is a classic example of what happens if the US tries to play a weakened finesse team against top class athletes. They will run us off the park.
The issue is we play pretty soccer in a lot of these Klinsi games and the goals tap is not flowing. The pretty and the effective aren’t lining up over and over.
Jones starts and plays 90 minutes for an elite Bundesliga team. He’s the only one that can play holding mid when Bradley is out or when the US deploys two DMs
Zusi looked good to me. The criticism of him is off base. He was really combining and passing well with Jones and Feilhaber. He played really aggressive as well and had a lot of movement off the ball. At one point he controlled a line drive crushed into his chest in the box fairly easily.
Benny Feilhaber is the name.
Altidore would have never tried that Bunbury cutback to left footed dipping strike from 25 yards in a million years. Bunbury was criticized for checking back deep when Shea wasn’t really looking for him. Shea was just going left like he always does. It must be said that the overall movement and aggression of Bunbury and Agudelo is something you never see from Jozy.
The Jones criticism was weird. His passing, runs, and dribbling were great. He played great balls all over the field.
Pessimist.
I thought Parkhurst and DeLaGarza were great for most of the game.
I was at the game and watching AJ De La Garza was painful. He was one of the USA’s biggest problems. I like him a lot for the Galaxy but he seemed to be behind the pace of international play all night. We had plenty of chances with balls being played through the right side but he continually failed to put in crosses. We need outside backs who can create a step and then give service to the box which he could not do last night.
“A good performance against a team that didn’t test us at all. Not much to learn there. ”
Except that here was a team that was overmatched, away from home and playing a FRIENDLY and they were a few seconds from tieng a superior team and might even have won the game.
Play your hardest, never underestimate anyone and play until the final whistle. If that in not a valuable lesson I don’t know what is.
It seems you have not watched a lot of international football.
Much of what Venezuela did was SOP for a side that realises it can’t play with a technically superior side so it does what it can.
That may actually have been the most educational thing for the new guys to experience. It’s really just another day at the office teams in Venezuela’s situation.
“One thing that annoyed me; could the announcers stop saying how great the US is playing when they haven’t even scored a goal? ”
It is entirely possible to be playing great and not score a goal.
Venezuela could have won last night’s game and not have played great. Don’t confuse a favorable result with how well your team played. The two sometimes have nothing to do with each other.
That is the nature of the game.
Damm here I was thinking Argentina had a player named after a great AMC car!
I was hoping they had Pacer and Gremlin in the same lineup.
On my second look of the first 45 minutes, the USA got almost no attack from the right side. AJ and Zusi had a lot of the ball but most was just fighting for possession after poor touches.
An what will you do if Clark becomes a regular call up? Organize protests? Go to love USNT fans.
Frankly, I was more impressed with Cameron and Parkhurst. There performance show a much better depth at the CB position than Orozco Fiscal.