Three Points Is Three Points

After the Trinidad and Tobago-United States match was completed, Alexi Lalas was asked in post-game wrap-up about the poor play despite the win. He said, "Doesn't matter." That sums it up for me.

Obviously, the US did not play well. The first half in particular, it looked like T&T might actually be the better side. They were more cohesive in the midfield and strung passes together better than the Americans. They also would have taken the lead if not for wonderful play from Tim Howard and a chip that hit the crossbar. The second half was better if not overwhelming. But one terrific strike from Ricardo Clark, just as he was scheduled to head to the bench, made the difference. From that point the United States played out the victory, if not totally comfortably.

Any list of players that played well tonight has to start with Tim Howard. He made key stops and was terrific all night. Similiarly, Landon Donovan, who is on the verge of no longer being underappreciated, set up Clark's goal and was dangerous all night going forward. Even Bornstein, who ARF rightfully suggested sending to Sasha Kljestan purgatory, was acceptable tonight. The backline held up decently with Demerit's continued absence. Or at least, there were no clearances directly down the center of the pitch. It's not a high standard.

Any list of players that played poorly has to start with Dempsey, who was horrific. John Harkes openly called him out several times during the broadcast, speculated he was coasting on his one goal against El Salvador (out of three great chances) from last match, then wondered if he might be sick. That's a possible (though charitable with no evidence) explanation. Dempsey gave the ball away easily all night, was lazy defensively and generally created little. He was then moved up front, where at least he didn't have to defend, before finally coming off. If ARF was bold enough to say that perhaps Bradley should be an automatic in the starting eleven, which is an thought worth considering, my suggestion is that perhaps Dempsey shouldn't be so automatic if this is his current form. No matter where he plays his club football. Otherwise Davies was a touch off tonight as well, though given his previous play it's hard to hold one match against him.

It's job well done for the US this week, even if it wasn't really that well done. But they did get all six necessary points and now sit atop the table. Unfortunately they are still nowhere near secure in the race to avoid the playoff, despite getting some help from El Salvador tonight, who defeated Costa Rica at home. On the missed opportunity front, El Salvador must be kicking themselves for their lost World Cup chances. They've played decently against the rest of the group (beat Costa Rica and Mexico at home, draw with US), but managed only one point against Trinidad and Tobago, drawing at home and losing on the road. If they'd managed a home win, they'd have ten points and be in the mix. If they'd found all six points against the group's worst team, they'd be tied for third with Honduras. Anyway, the current table with two matches to play is:

United States: 16 points
Mexico: 15 points
Honduras: 13 points
Costa Rica: 12 points

However, things are not as rosy for the United States as they look, even though they just have to avoid finishing fourth. Costa Rica hosts T&T next, and Mexico hosts El Salvador; both teams will certainly expect to win. Meanwhile, the Americans must travel to Honduras, where no one in the group has won. A loss there and the table could look like this:

Mexico: 18 points
Honduras: 16 points
United States: 16 points
Costa Rica: 15 points

Honduras would actually qualify for South Africa with that win due to their goal difference advantage over both the US and Costa Rica. Mexico would also qualify. The US would then need a home draw against Costa Rica to avoid a potentially disasterous playoff with a South American side. Like against Argentina, who fell to Paraguay today and are now in the playoff spot in fifth place in CONMEBOL. But it could have been even worse without the six points this week; the Americans could have needed a home win, or with a truly awful week could have relegated themselves to the playoff in advance of that match. So mission accomplished for the moment. Now comes a difficult match against Honduras, with a win taking the drama out of the match with Costa Rica. A final match without drama sounds pretty good.

Changes in Store for USA Against Trinidad?

Despite another victory at home, the US remains in a rather precarious situation in the CONCACAF hexagonal for a World Cup spot. After a few shaky performances and some changes in personnel, I expect Bob Bradley to make a number of changes ahead of tomorrows match in Port of Spain against the Soca Warriors. What might we see?

-An entirely different backline. Part of this is good. Oguchi Onyewu returns after a yellow card suspension. The bad is Jonathan Bornstein has played himself into the Land of the Lost: population DaMarcus Beasley and Sacha Kljestan. Actually, that was probably one of the better things that could have happened, because it clarifies at least who shouldn't be playing and it didn't end up costing the US the game. With Jay DeMerit injured, it's likely that Chad Marshall will remain in the center and Carlos Bocanegra will shift to the left again. My unending clamoring for Jonathan Spector on the left wasn't helped by his average showing, which knowing Bradley will likely precipitate the desire to start Steve Cherundolo. I wonder how many people are now dying to see Edgar Castillo at left back, even though like every other left back in the US player pool he's not the best defender, though he is supposed to be an excellent attacking back.

-Changes in center midfield? It's possible that we could see a new central midfield pairing. Bradley and Feilhaber didn't play poorly, and the duo showed the ability to make some nice plays, but they got stretched and didn't control the tempo, particularly in the second half when slowing the game down with the lead would have been preferred. Dad will probably be tempted to play son with Rico Clark, a more defensive duo that suits the US tendencies on the road. That idea is partly based on the belief that Clark knows to sit behind Bradley when he surges forward box to box, whereas Feilhaber and Bradley can get caught high with no protection. Of course that's what Feilhaber is supposed to do, attack, so let me suggest something here that no one has really given thought to, or at least had the cojones to say aloud: maybe Michael Bradley's spot in the team shouldn't be so automatic. This is not to say he isn't one of the best options in the middle at this moment, but maybe a more defensive player like Clark should play with Feilhaber, and when other players get healthy, like Mo Edu and Jermaine Jones, Bradley's automatic place should be more in danger. At the least, competition for a spot will help keep everyone sharp. Still, Bradley is a gamer, he performs in the Bundesliga, and most importantly he's fairly consistent, so you know what you'll get from him, whereas Clark is much more volatile and offers less going forward, and Feilhaber has less defensive quality (though that part of his game is underrated in my mind) and he can disappear and be ineffective.

-More Jose Francisco Torres. Torres has always done well on the ball, and the youngster seems to have a strong backing from US fans. He finally saw the field Saturday, had some nice touches, and he had that one great run and header that would usually end up a goal more often than not. His problem is largely one of positioning, or rather finding the right spot for him in the lineup. He could start in the middle with Bradley, providing a calmer possession player in the middle than Feilhaber or Clark. Coach Bradley seems to like trying him on the left, but the wings are the purview of Donovan and Dempsey in the starting lineup. Nonetheless, I'm another one of those people who'd like to see more of him, and he may well come on as a substitute again.

-Stuart Holden is solidifying his roster spot. Anyone who has watched MLS the past three years or the USA Men's U-20s and Olympic teams has known for a while that it was only a matter of time before Holden started getting looks on the full Men's National Team, and he is certainly taking advantage of his opportunities. He brings a lot of energy, the ability to play on the wing or center midfield, and can actually hit a good cross and take free kicks. As a second half energy sub, especially against the speedy, athletic wingers on T&T, the US could do a lot worse than Holden.

-The same starting strikers. I will scream bloody murder if Brian Ching or anyone other than Altidore and Davies starts up top. That is all.