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Netherlands vs. USA: Winners and Losers from International Friendly

Joe TanseyJun 5, 2015

The United States men's national soccer team pulled off an unthinkable comeback at the Amsterdam Arena on Friday to defeat the Netherlands, 4-3, in a friendly contest. 

The Yanks were down, 3-1, entering the 70th minute, but they did not quit and found the back of the net on three more occasions. John Brooks, Danny Williams and Bobby Wood struck for the Yanks.

Williams and Wood scored their respective goals in the 89th and 90th minutes. 

With the victory, Jurgen Klinsmann's men took a major step forward in their progress ahead of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, which begins on July 7. The loss for Guus Hiddink's side showcased plenty of concerns entering a major match in a week's time. 

Continue on to see who our winners and losers were from Friday's friendly. 

Winner: Brad Guzan

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Say what you want about the Americans' finishing in the final third, but they would not have had a chance to score if Brad Guzan didn't make a few massive denials. 

The No. 1 goalkeeper, who found himself benched at Aston Villa for the final month of the English Premier League season, made seven saves against the deadly Dutch attack. 

One of his crucial stops came right after the third USMNT goal, when he denied Luuk de Jong near the right side of the goal. 

While some may argue Guzan had a bad game because he conceded three goals, he can't be blamed for the poor marking on the first two Dutch strikes and the deflection off Memphis Depay in the 53rd minute. 

Losers: The Dutch Defense

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Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink

The Dutch defense committed a cavalcade of mistakes on Friday. 

The Oranje were opened up throughout the first 20 minutes, but they weathered the storm thanks to poor early finishing by Gyasi Zardes and Brek Shea. 

Things got worse for Guus Hiddink's men in the 70th minute, when they conceded the first of three late goals to a center-back in John Brooks, who made a darting run into space on the left side of the box. 

One specific player can't be blamed for the horrendous effort in front of goal, which is worse for the Oranje with a major Euro qualifier ahead against Latvia on June 12. 

If they fail to defend well in that match, we could see the end of Hiddink's second term as manager. 

Winner: Klaas-Jan Huntelaar

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Klaas-Jan Huntelaar produced two clinical finishes in front of the American goal for the hosts before they lost control of the game. 

In the 27th minute, Huntelaar headed in a splendid cross from Memphis Depay to beat Brad Guzan for the first time on the night. 

Four minutes into the second half, the forward pounced again in a similar fashion after he found a gap between the USMNT center-backs. 

He almost put in a third strike in the 53rd minute, but his shot deflected off Depay's head, and the winger eventually earned credit for the goal. 

With the pressure on Robin van Persie to score his 50th international strike, Huntelaar rose to the occasion and made sure the Dutch had a second viable threat in the final third. 

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Winner/Loser: John Brooks

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John Brooks had an up-and-down day as his poor positioning led to both of Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's goals, but he redeemed himself with an impressive run in the buildup to his second international goal. 

On both headers from Huntelaar, Brooks moved too far forward and created a good amount of space for the striker to creep in and find the back of the net. 

Instead of giving up on a move forward after playing the ball over to the feet of Michael Bradley, Brooks extended his run into the box after witnessing a major lapse in marking by the Dutch. 

The center-back's 70th-minute strike handed the Yanks a small bit of hope entering the final stage of the contest. 

Winner: Bobby Wood

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When the team released the initial roster for the friendlies against the Netherlands and Germany, a massive amount of skepticism met Bobby Wood's inclusion. 

Wood proved the critics wrong with his second-half shift in place of starting forward Aron Johannsson, who had a rough day at the office. 

The 22-year-old has not been productive at the club level throughout his career, but he has stood out in Jurgen Klinsmann's eyes during his time in the national team camp. 

Wood finally repaid his coach for his faith by slotting in the game-winning goal in the 90th minute.

Now the challenge for Wood will be to maintain the positive action in attack entering the Germany match. He may not be able to make a late charge at the Gold Cup roster, but he has a chance to leave another worthy impression in Klinsmann's mind on Wednesday in Cologne. 

Winner: Gyasi Zardes

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Long before the USMNT struck for three late goals, Gyasi Zardes set the tone in the final third for the visitors. 

The LA Galaxy man created a scoring chance in the 16th minute, but his attempt was weak and went right into the body of Jasper Cillessen. 

Instead of putting his head down and moping over the missed opportunity, Zardes continued to work hard in the final third. He finally broke through in the 34th minute, when he linked up with a Fabian Johnson cross at the far post for his first career international goal. 

It's a maiden goal for the national team that is likely to live long in the memory for Zardes, who said, per MLSSoccer.com: "All I was thinking was make contact and put it on frame. I knew [the defender] was going to let it go, and I just gave it my all to run behind him."

Given his recent form with the USMNT, Zardes secured himself a spot on the Gold Cup roster with his performance in Amsterdam on Friday.

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90

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