USA 2 - 1 Jamaica

That was not the comfortable win I predicted.  Jamaica did exactly what they did against Mexico, ceding possession and looking for counters and set piece opportunities.  Their cause seemed doomed after they lost their spectacular goalie to injury (his hand was kicked as he tried to stop a rebound shot) and his replacement looked poor on a free kick that Altidore curled under the crossbar to put the US ahead just before the half.  But Jamaica leveled on a corner:  Jordan Morris allowed his mark to run past him and get a clean finish from short range at the far post.  The Jamaican keeper made two or three great saves and they rode their luck for a half hour, and then Morris redeemed himself by one-timing a loose ball hard and high and on frame, getting a slight deflection to take it past the keeper.  Four minutes later, extra time finished and the US had another Gold Cup.  It was certainly deserved.

Arena has done what I hoped he'd do.  The US is unbeaten in the 14 games since he took over, including a qualifier at Azteca and the six Gold Cup games.  The players are expressing themselves and seem looser (sometimes too loose).  They're learning to play within the system and they're creating chances.  Everyone knows where he stands and what's expected of him.

Villafana frustrates me no end.  The commentators kept praising his defense, but I'm not so sure about that; and until late in the game, it seemed he hit the first defender with every cross.  Nagbe was good at keeping the ball, but kept running into trouble and wound up passing backwards.  Gonzalez seemed solid; Besler gave the ball away a couple times.  Bradley wasn't putting his free kicks in the right spot, though to be fair Jamaica defended them well.  Dempsey improves the team a lot.  He missed getting his 58th by an inch or two when their keeper got fingertips on a header and pushed it onto the post.

I'm sure they'll improve.  Pulisic and other Europe-based players weren't on the team, but they'll be on hand for the World Cup.

Jamaica and Szczesny

I fully expected Mexico to dismiss Jamaica on Sunday.  But Andre Blake had other ideas, and Mexico ran out of ideas late on, so the one bit of poor goalkeeping all game did el Tri in.  It was a fine free kick, decent pace, over the wall, and just under the bar, but the Mexican keeper didn't even move, and it was a yard and a half inside the post.  Blake would have tipped it over.  Anyway, this makes me happy, because I think the US matches up better with Jamaica (yes, I do remember the last Gold Cup).  I predict a 3-1 US win tonight.  Dempsey sets a new record (PK), and Altidore and Nagbe are the other scorers.  Since no one reads this blog, I can be bold.


I was sure that Szczesny would be Arsenal's goalkeeper of the future, taking over after next year's apprenticeship under Cech.  But he's earned an even better apprenticeship under one of the greatest keepers of all time, Gigi Buffon, for an even bigger club, Juventus.  Full credit to him for making the most of the faith Roma placed in him.  His decisionmaking is improving, he's courageous, he's a leader, and physically he's got all the tools.  I expect him to take his place between the sticks as Juve's #1 in 2018 and establish himself as world class for 8 to 9 years.  Since Juve is my #2 favorite club, this feels like I'm not really losing him.  Gotta say, 10M pounds seems cheap for Italy's gold glove winner.

Preseason Rambling

Transfer season is annoying to me.  When these twentysomething millionaire players and the billionaire owners reach an agreement, they can announce it and then I'll start thinking about it.  I'd love it if Alexis and Ozil and AOC extended their contracts, but I don't control that.  I'll be rooting for the guys wearing the red and white shirts, whoever they are, when the games are played. Lacazette will be an asset for sure, and Kolasinac looks very good.

Remember the British Core?  It seems as though Gibbs, Wilshere, and Jenkinson are as good as gone.  Ox is a wantaway.  Walcott will be around only because no one else is coming in for him.  Ramsey is the only one who's still important to us.  And the newer Brit Calum Chambers could be sold too.  Newest Brit Rob Holding will be with us for some time, I hope.

The two Australian games were extended training sessions.  Bayern and Chelsea were a bit more serious.  I saw very little of these games, but what I saw was not impressive.  I take the Charity Shield seriously, and I hope the team does too; but it's EPL that will be the focus.  Wenger will probably throw his youngsters at Europa League competition and he won't be too sorry if they bow out early.  But I would really like us to win that thing.

Gold Cup: Costa Rica 0 - 2 USA

Finally it gets serious.  After a sloppy, unimpressive group stage (still good enough for a first place finish), we looked pretty bad against an overmatched El Salvador, who bit off more than they could chew, as it were, and the US progressed in the quarters.  The semi against CR was a well played contest, with both teams looking reasonably sharp.  CR's injury woes put them at a severe disadvantage, and the US took the game to them.  The crosses coming in from Villafana and Arriola could have been better, but for the most part it was only disciplined defense that kept the score respectable.  If we play this well against Mexico on Wednesday (I think everyone expects them to progress against Jamaica tomorrow), we have a good chance to hoist the trophy.

Confederations Cup

It's been pretty entertaining in Russia in this World Cup tune-up tournament.  The pre-tournament favorites all advanced to the semis.  Of the makeweights, Australia (Asia) gave a good account of themselves, drawing with Chile, but the rest did no better than expected.  Host Russia looked poor, New Zealand was hapless, and Cameroun did not impress.  Mexico sent a strong team and looked good even in their 1-4 semifinal loss to Germany, in which they went down two goals in the first seven minutes.  They had plenty of possession and made several good scoring chances, but their only goal was a very late long-range strike.  The other semi was just as much fun despite 120 scoreless minutes from Portugal and Chile.  The woodwork was hit but neither keeper was beaten until "kicks from the spot", and then only Rui Patricio was, as Chile executed Portugal with maximum efficiency, 3-0.  That's right, Claudio Bravo saved all three kicks.  They weren't great, but they weren't terrible either.  He read which way they were going, went early, and got two hands on the three strikes.  Alexis got Chile's third kick.  The final will be a replay of the 1-1 group game between the tournament's youngest team (Germany) and its oldest.  I'll be hoping for a Chilean win.

Mexico 1 - 1 USA

I admit I was expecting Mexico to win this game.  Were Klinsmann still at the helm, they would have.  But Arena organized these guys superbly, and boy did they deliver on defense.  Two excellent strikes in the first half set the stage for a high-energy affair that was a good spectacle.  Guzan always makes me nervous, but he was fine tonight.  I was surprised DaMarcus Beasley was still playing anywhere, let alone on the national team, but I don't follow MLS closely.  He was good!  The team selection worked really well.  Pulisic seemed like more of a decoy than anything else; he was the danger man the Mexicans had to follow around and mark out.  It's no surprise that Mexico had most of the ball and most of the chances.  They couldn't put them away, though, and the result was just about fair.

The other two games in the group are on Tuesday.  I'm hoping for a draw between Panama and Honduras.  Costa Rica should beat T&T easily.  It's looking pretty good:  we play Costa Rica and Panama at home, and I like our chances for three points at Honduras and T&T.  Confidence should be flowing through the team now.  They were quite good today.  Mexico had 76% possession, but just one (of ten) shot on goal--Vela's equalizer.  We had two (of seven).  Had Mexico finished a bit better, they'd have won, but they didn't, so they deserved just the point.  If we play like this anywhere but Azteca, we'll win.

Well done, guys!

USA 2 - 0 Trinidad and Tobago

T&T were game but in the end did not bring enough to the party.  They had two or three great chances--Kenwyne Jones crashed a header off the bar in the first half for their best--but we had more, and wunderkind Christian Pulisic scored twice in the second half--both very nice finishes too--to put this one to bed.  I was annoyed at some of the casual play from our guys (though I bet Bruce Arena was more annoyed).  I'd have liked to see more urgency from them in this must-win game.  But they got the job done.

Other than Pulisic, it's hard to pick a standout player in this game.  Bradley was steady, Nagbe frequently threatening.  Dempsey played well.  Altidore got outmuscled a couple times and didn't hold the ball up well.  They'll probably be more switched on for Sunday's game at Estadio Azteca.  They'll have to be, if it isn't going to be embarrassing again.

It's hard to see Panama, Honduras, or T&T finishing above the US.  We're in third now (pending the later games, both scoreless at the half hour as I type), and I think that's where we'll finish in the hex.  That means a trip to Russia, where I hope Bruce can at least duplicate the 2002 success.