A late goal at the University of Phoenix by Ricardo Clark was the difference in the USMNT’s match against Venezuela. Although the USMNT had the majority of the possession, they did not create enough chance to constantly challenge the Venezuela defense.
The Clark goal will probably hide the fact that this was a pretty dismal display from the USMNT, and in the future they need to create more. The positive was the amount of pressure the entire US squad put on the Venezuela players for the entire match allowing their opposition to create little without having to park the bus.
Player ratings after the jump
Bill Hamid 6.5- The DC United’s first cap for the USMNT was solid. Hamid was not asked to do much but did an excellent job with a fine punch to clear the ball out of the box in the first half.
AJ DeLaGarza 6.5- Playing right back, the LA Galaxy defender rarely put a toe out of line, and defensively DeLaGarza did his part. He still needs to work on going forward and numerous times had too many touches and struggled crossing the ball.
Michael Parkhurst 7.5- The USMNT defense has been riddled with errors in the past but not today because of Parkhurst’s play. The defender was a big reason for Venezuela’s inability to pressure the US, and he was never out of position.
Geoff Cameron 8.5- Out of all the US players on the pitch tonight Cameron looks like the most ready to play with the USMNT’s A team. Defensively, he was sound like the rest of the US back line, but what separated the Dynamo player was his ability on the ball. His head was always up looking to play the ball forward, and when he did pass it was on the money to a US player ready to attack in space.
Heath Pearce 6.5 - Same story as DeLaGarza. Pearce did his part defensively but offered little going forward. However, left back has been a problem position and the Chivas USA player did better than the previous USMNT players who have played on the left.
Jermaine Jones 6.5- It was a very confusing night from the German-American. Jones would look like the best player on the pitch at times and then he would turn the ball over putting the US in a tough spot. The Schalke player needs to work on his consistency; that being said, his corner to set up the games only set piece was spot on.
Jeff Larentowicz 6.5- The Colorado Rapids player did not do much wrong, but he was not spectacular either. He did cleaned up the US midfield and pressured Venezuela well. The problem for Larentowicz is he did not prove he was better than the US’ center defensive mids playing in Europe.
Graham Zusi 6- The winger looked like he was on his way to an excellent game in the first 25 minutes, then Jurgen Klinsmann decided to have his wide players switch sides and the game went downhill from there for Zusi. Nothing from Zusi’s play suggests he could play with the usual USMNT.
Benny Feilhaber 7- Playing in the hole just behind the striker Feilbaber was problematic for the Venezuela defenders. He did well setting up his teammates in the attacking third. He needs to be more selfish in the future and a few times he chose to pass when shooting was the better option.
Brek Shea 5- A little harsh? Yes, however Shea is a starter on the USMNT A team and he was not in control of the game like he should be. Immediately, when he received the ball he would pass it and as a winger with the amount of talent he has should be dribbling past the opposition. In a situation like this, it was not good enough from Shea.
Teal Bunbury 5- The game was not impressive for Bunbury and he missed a few chances that should have been at least on target. Another player who did not do enough to suggest he is an option for regular minutes with the USMNT.
SUBS
Chris Wondolowski 7.5- Wondo was easily the best forward for the USMNT. Had an excellent back-heel to set up a Burnbury miss, created a shot from nothing, and had a header that the Venezuela keeper made a fantastic save on.
Zach Loyd 8- All things considered, Loyd probably had the best game for a left back wearing the US kit over the past couple years. Going forward he looked dangerous and had two excellent crosses that his teammates could not finish. Loyd should start against Panama.
Ricardo Clark 7- The hero for the USMNT and for Klinsmann, he scored the winning goal late on. His play in the midfield was decent, and it was nice to see him have some succes after his play in World Cup 2010.
CJ Sapong 6- Did not have to much time to impress, but did win some aerial changes. Would like to see him and Wondo get the start over Bunbury.
Brad Evans N/A- The Venezuela players spent more time complaining than Evans did playing when the Sounders player was on the field.
Jones did more work than anybody on the field and I would love to see how his passing stats stacked up against his fellow teammates. Notwithstanding a few misplaced passes, one being a dangerous midfield give-away, Jones was the best player on the field that night for either side and his score should reflect that fact. Ricardo’s lone contribution to he game was his converting an uncontested header near the six yard box (woohoo! no go back to the bench). The more difficult task was done by Jones who provided consistent quality service from corners kicks all night. Burnbury’s rating seems a little low. While Cameron impressed too, he did so against a defensive minded Venezuela team who didn’t really challenge our defense as a whole. Solid performance but 8.5 seems one point too high.