Team USA sang loud in Music City

USA vs. MEXICO

Tuesday, September 11, 2018

Nissan Stadium, Nashville, Tenn.

1 by 1 Team US

Claudio Villalobos/Futbol en La Piel

Attendance: 40,194

Before a very nice and noisy crowd in Music City, Team USA played chasing the ball most of the first half and was probably fortunate not have been scored against.  Weston McKennie’s good performance against Brazil was missed and because of that the US lost control of ball for longer periods. At the same time what it was supposed to be another drawback-losing Weston to injury- worked out the opposite way as Julian Green came in to substitute and his play helped the team improved ball possession and presence in the middle of the field. The second half seemed to have been developing the same way until Zaldivar was sent off due to his violent fault against Trapp. It did not take long for US to capitalize as Robinson provided a great run and assist for Adams to open the score. The United States overall seems satisfied a after these tough games –Brazil and Mexico- especially because of the experience this young squad has gained. Victories against Mexico have never been easy and Team US  would take anyway they come.

 

At Nissan Stadium in Nashville, this is how we saw Team USA one by one:

Zack Steffen (1): Great save against Edson Alvarez’s header 15 minutes into the game. He did not have much to do at all in the second half especially after Mexico played underhanded.

Matt Miazga (3):  Matt started the game very nervous and soon enough was awarded a yellow card for a few hard fouls and later on his taunting might have been the cause of Zaldivar rough foul against Trapp.

Wil Trapp (20): He was trapped in the middle of the field like the rest of his teammates in the first half. Trapp’s composure after the US scored proofed to be a big factor for the victory.

Tyler Adams (4):  Tyler had to stay back longer than he wanted due to Abella’s game. He took advantage of a great assist from Robinson to score the only goal.

Cameron Carter-Vickers (5): Cameron has serious problems defending Mexico’s attacks and stopping Zaldivar’s effort. Things got much easier when the Mexican was sent off.

Eric Lichaj (15): Eric was switched to left back very early due to Abella’s ability to come up the field. Eric managed to settle things down in the second half.

Shaq Moore (19): Shaq’s game was pretty much non-existent the first half, lots of effort but not much to show for until replaced.

Weston McKennie (8):  Weston was not the same player that shone against Brazil and his team missed his game until he was replaced due to injury.

Gyasi Zandes (9): He tried to keep ball possession away from Mexico early. Gyasi played a very good game until he was substituted.

Tim Weah (11): Tim played a very tactical game. He had not much to show for in terms of his contribution with ball on his feet but his running and physical presence was a great factor.

Kellyn Acosta (23):  Kellyn’s game was missing for most of the first half until 41 minutes he took a good shot outside the box to Gonzalez’ hands. Kellyn did not develop to his usual game but his effort was good enough to complicate Mexico’s game.

 

Substitutions:

Cristian Roldan (10): Cristian did not play long enough to make a difference.

Marky Delgado (25): End of the game substitution.

Antonee Robinson (17):  He provided a better possibility for the US to bring ball forward. He was finally able to make a great run and assist Adams for the score. There isn’t probably another player who has learned more from these two games than Antonee.

DeAndre Yedlin (2): DeAndre came in to refresh the team and help preserve the victory.

Julian Green (16): Came in at 40^th minute and had last US shot before half time. Julian’s presence provided the US with much needed momentum. He showed a lot more of what expected from him in this game.

Bobby Wood (7): Bobby came in to try to secure the win and he accomplished just pushing Mexico farther back.

 

Coach Dave Sarachan: Coach Sarachan took advantage of these two games to allow his young face tough rivals that have provided plenty of learning and coachable moments. Dave’s experience in games against Mexico showed especially when he was able to read the game correctly and made the necessary changes. Robinson and Green answered the coach’s trust rather nicely when they came into the pitch and helped the team bring some level back to a game that was being controlled almost entirely by Mexico.

“We are pleased we got a result, we talked about how important it was to come away with something in this two game series that we have in September and for all the reasons you can imagine, playing here against Mexico on 09/11, it was an important night in many fronts. From a soccer perspective overall again, I was pretty pleased in terms of the effort, the collective way we made it hard on Mexico to create a lot of chances. I thought the first half once again it could have been a little better in terms of our use of the ball and been a little dangerous obviously. Second half I thought we had a good start when they had a red card and  allowed us a little bit more room for sure, I thought the guys that we interjected in the game gave us a lot and that is really important in terms of moving forward having some depth. I was pleased, really pleased with the goal, I thought it was a well orchestrated goal and a good finish.”

Dave knows better than anyone else than moving forward this US young team will need to provide much longer periods of play like the ones they enjoyed after Mexico was playing a man down but against full squads. It was a good victory for the coach especially for his long history playing against the Mexican national team.

#TeamUSA #USMNT