The U.S. men's national team plays its second game in a week, and second of 2011 in Panama City tonight against CONCACAF foe Panama (8:30pm, Galavision/ESPN3.com).
The United States is coming off a 1-0 victory against Venezuela, but tonight should offer a much tougher test as the Americans face the Panama side that beat the Americans in the Gold Cup group stages before losing a 1-0 decision in the Gold Cup semifinals.
Jurgen Klinsmann will look to keep testing the new faces he has brought into camp, such as Geoff Cameron, A.J. De La Garza and Bill Hamid, while also taking looks at players who have had previous runs with the national team, like Benny Feilhaber, Heath Pearce and Jermaine Jones.
Here is my Fox Soccer preview on tonight's match, which talks about Ricardo Clark, who gets the start tonight.
SBI will be providing live commentary on tonight's match so please feel free to follow along here. As always, you are welcome to share your own thoughts and opinions in the comments section below.
Enjoy the action (Commentary is after the jump):
Gotta Agree…it was a straight Red for me. The SBI commnetators did not think so though. wonder if we voted and pulled the USA crests off of the players what people would think?
I really wanted to see Cameron, but that was a straight Red.
By the way, this play was an indication of how poorly the US D played the direct ball tonight.
He had a couple, in one was reference to the ‘fan’ who dresses as Captain America…he said hello to him in the American Outlaws section as he had received a ‘Twitter’ from him.
The other reference was not to the group but the fans in general who he classified as ‘American outlaws’ in what used to be called ‘Sams Army’…it was a general comment about the fans not the ‘supporter group’
LOL
haha it was a b squad for both teams. There were maybe two players who’ll start for the team come qualifying. Even then we may not be Barca or Madrid, but ive us some credit
Delagarza practically pulled the arm into his own face. It was a pretty obvious intentional foul. I can’t imagine Delagarza himself would even argue the call
I’d be fine with Clark getting called back in if he learns how to trap the ball.
YOu’d think the Gold Cup would have taught us all that
…a true equal opportunity basher.
maybe in name, but its not quite the same formation in practice
note to self, never again watch USA friendlies AFTER a Barcelona-Real Madrid game.
For once I agree with T-Rex Twellman. Shea looks tired. He ends a rest, he”ll be fine.
Shea was not good tonight, and hasn’t been in the kit for a spell now
We can politely disagree, no problem. I don’t think either team did themselves any favors. The US definitely wasn’t as poised as they were a few days ago. As much as I think Benny goes down too easy for international matches, I think he might have added some poise to the central midfield that was lacking with Clark. Too many times Clark and Jones were crowding each other limiting outlets to pressure.
On to Italy!
Elephant in the room:
Shea is very good but is not a star much less a superstar on the itl level, USA hype machine be damned.
Stop selling me lies that fail to vibe with what I see before my eyes.
Can we at LEAST pick players with larger resumes of excellent performances before we anoint them as saviors of US soccer. Its an unreasonable burden we’re putting on some of these guys (see Ream for example)
Oh and by we I mean the US soccer media and bloggers
The last three posts brought to you by Guinness Extra Stout
..ITLL GET YA DRUNK
Insisting on playiing Bunbury stifled things over and over again. Weird he gets so much run from Coach when he apparently displays so little of what Coach professes to be searching for. I don’t get it!
on the other hand, American grit well on display again, an old stand by that got a victory somehow anyway.
Nick Rimando…the guy has been awesome for years
Wow you really have to be a USMNT fan to suffer through that game. Can I get the 2 hrs back from watching both teams play poor soccer. At least we did learn something that most of these players did not make significant impression over 2 games to push the starters. Jones, Hamid and Shea I’m sure will look better when the A players come into the fold come Feb 29th in Italy.
Perez was looking part as an FCD striker;
Dangerous yet inefficient
WTF does Parkhurst bring to the table? All I see is him hoofing the ball out of bounds when hes not fumbling every touch in a vain attempt to actually possess the ball.
He should send John and gonzalez a thank you card for even being allowed on the field.
I tuned in just as Cameron was shown red…as such i’ll refrain from comment on his performance but i do wonder if maybe he should send John/Omar a quick thank you note as well..?
Isn’t that a USMNT Supporter’s Group? I don’t think he was talking about Charlie Manson or anything…
Maybe I’m just not as sensitive. And of all people, Jones can take care of himself. It was a tame, B-team friendly with a comparatively low amount of shoving, and as I said Panama was technically better, so more US fouls make sense. You don’t think the US outplayed Panama tonight do you?
Magic Jack uses a 4-4-2.
Great, innit?
You can’t be watching the same game; Clark and Jones taken down from behind multiple times in the first half, Zusi knocked down off the ball on a breakaway, and the list goes on. Calling the game tight is one thing, but calling fouls biased towards one team is another. Fouls US 14, Panama 5.
The officiating was horrible, but typical.
Sorry, disagree. It wasn’t a dirty game, or very physical, and the US players were just outplayed most of the time. I’ve seen some horrible officiating, that wasn’t, just a pretty tame friendly that we were lucky to win.
Okay so fun fact….. head ref was Mexican and all other refs were Panamanian. How is that even legal?
Nick, man of match. Parkhurst had trouble with the highline, let both players and ball get by him.
Dude that was horrible officiating. Like Panamanian players kicking the ball out of bounds and then being given goalkicks… or the blatant fouling by them not called.
Well… there it is…. iffy result, but a result nontheless…
Doesn’t look to me like a badly called game. US often out-skilled or out of position physically, so they are fouling. Other than that, it’s being called more tightly than normal, but players have to adjust. Panama just a better team technically tonight.
I want an investigation. This is flat out cheating.
Is this the same awful Venezuela C team we should have destroyed like 5-0?
Sapong is making things happen out of very little. Not BIG things, but more than what Bunbury was…
Ven 1 Mex 0 hhaaaa!!!!
Mexico sucks!HHAAAA
The ref is scared to call a foul against Panama