USA vs. Brazil: Ranking the Players by Game Performance

The United States couldn't keep up with Brazil, losing to the South American powerhouse, 4-1, in a friendly on Wednesday night. However, the team had its share of opportunities and solid performances.

The problem was, Brazil had some truly lovely goals and superstar efforts that the United States simply could not match.

With that in mind, I've chosen five players of interest from each side and given them a grade. These players don't necessarily represent the 10 best players from the match, but rather, the 10 most relevant players to discuss after the friendly.

Brazil

Marcelo

In my opinion, Marcelo was the man of the match. Early on, he stifled several attempts by Landon Donovan to dribble past him on the wing, he regularly joined the attack on the left flank, scored a goal and assisted on another to Alexandre Pato. His presence was felt from beginning to end in this one.

Grade: A

Rafael

In the second half, goalkeeper Rafael was a beast. He turned away several very promising opportunities by the United States and bailed out a Brazilian defense that looked a bit shaky at times, namely when the United States was able to sustain its attack.

Grade: A-

Neymar

His impact was clearly felt in this one. He easily scored on a penalty kick, found Thiago Silva's head off a corner for a goal, set up Marcelo's tally with a lovely pass near the baseline and should have had another assist on a pass to Alexandre Pato, who hit the bar with his shot. He and Marcelo were simply too much for the United States to handle on the left side.

Grade: A-

Thiago Silva

As mentioned above, he put in Brazil's second goal of the match with his header off Neymar's corner. Silva is the rock in Brazil's (sometimes shaky) defense, and he proved it again with a solid showing against the United States.

Grade: B

Hulk

Frankly, I was expecting to see a bit more out of Hulk, especially with all of the hype surrounding his probable move to Chelsea. However, he did play a nifty pass to Neymar to set up Marcelo's goal. That being said, while you could see how scary he can be on the right wing when cutting in on his left foot, he wasn't ever a major factor in this match.

Grade: C

United States

Fabian Johnson

This man is the real deal. I'm not sure if he was the "best left-back in the Bundesliga for Hoffenheim in the latter part of the season," as Jurgen Klinsmann said (via Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated), but he was excellent against Brazil. His run and subsequent assist from the baseline on Gomez's goal was a thing of beauty, and he did a solid job throughout containing Hulk. His willingness to join the attack from the left-back position is fun to watch.

Grade: B+

Hercules Gomez

Nobody worked harder on Wednesday night than Gomez. He scored the United States' lone goal, and proved that he is a worthy candidate to steal some playing time away from Jozy Altidore. I came away very impressed with the seldom-used striker.

Grade: B+

Michael Bradley

His through ball to Fabian Johnson on the Gomez goal was stunning, and he had a perfect header swatted away remarkably by goalie Rafael. Bradley is coming into his own.

Grade: B

Landon Donovan

Were it not for several perfect crosses on corners and set pieces, Donovan's impact in this game would have been fairly minimal. He couldn't solve Marcelo on the wing and was fairly quiet throughout.

Grade: C

Clint Dempsey

He only played for 30 minutes or so, but his impact was obvious. The United States attack just felt more energized with him in the game. He nearly put in a goal that was kicked away at the last moment, chipped a beautiful lob to Gomez that set up two goal-scoring chances and made his presence known. Plus, it was fun to see him and Donovan on the pitch together.

Grade: B

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