USMNT Watch: Wondo Strikes Twice, Guzan Earns Massive Result in Relegation Race

Two United States men's national team players on different ends of the world-football spectrum earned major results this weekend with their respective sides. 

Chris Wondolowski, who is normally a target of plenty of criticism, helped the San Jose Earthquakes earn a stunning result in Seattle on Saturday night, while Brad Guzan's Aston Villa earned a massive result in the English Premier League relegation battle. 

Elsewhere across the globe, we witnessed plenty of USMNT regulars earn 90 minutes of playing time this weekend in the Bundesliga, Championship and Ligue 1. 

Our weekly USMNT watch begins in the Pacific Northwest with Wondolowski's first two goals of the Major League Soccer season.

Wondolowski's San Jose Defeats Dempsey's Seattle

Wondolowski and the Earthquakes survived a Victor Bernardez red card and left Seattle with a 3-2 victory in the second week of the MLS season. 

The 32-year-old forward scored his first strike in the 13th minute after he coolly pulled down a cross from Marvell Wynne in the penalty area. 

He played his trademark role of poacher on his second goal in the 48th minute, as he took advantage of a defensive lapse by Brad Evans, who is being used as a center-back to start the season.

Clint Dempsey opened the scoring at CenturyLink Field, as he headed home his third goal of the young season 18 seconds into the game. The strike was the sixth-fastest in league history, per ESPN's Paul Carr: 

Maurice Edu was involved in a controversial penalty call in Philadelphia's 3-3 draw with Real Salt Lake. Neither Kyle Beckerman nor Nick Rimando had their best game for the Claret and Cobalt at Rio Tinto Stadium.

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Michael Bradley played 90 minutes in Toronto's 2-0 defeat to Columbus, who benefited from a strong performance put in by Wil Trapp. 

Matt Hedges, Graham Zusi and Benny Feilhaber all earned starts in the clash between FC Dallas and Sporting Kansas City.

Gyasi Zardes' goal in the second half of LA's 2-2 draw with Portland was the highlight of Sunday's action in MLS. Mix Diskerud, Omar Gonzalez and Lee Nguyen all started for their respective sides. 

Guzan and Aston Villa Earn Miraculous Result

Guzan was able to watch from his goal in awe as the Villans powered four first-half goals past Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. 

The 4-0 victory was the seventh of the season for Aston Villa, who sit three points above the relegation zone in 16th place. 

Guzan's workload was kept to a minimum on Saturday afternoon, as he made two saves in the crucial win. 

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Geoff Cameron entered Stoke City's 1-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion at the half for Erik Pieters, while Tim Howard and Everton earned a key 3-0 victory at home over Newcastle United. 

Down in the Championship, Tim Ream, Eric Lichaj and Jonathan Spector all played 90 minutes for their respective sides. 

At Reading, USMNT U-20 forward Andrija Novakovich made his debut for the Royals, who benched some of their starters in preparation for their FA Cup replay against Bradford City on Monday. Danny Williams was one of the players who received the day off. 

Green Returns to Hamburg's Matchday Squad

Julian Green caught some headlines on Saturday, when he was listed as a part of Hamburg's bench for the club's 3-0 defeat at Hoffenheim. 

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The young midfielder did not make an appearance, but this seems like a step forward in his progress at the club after he was sent down to the U-23 team earlier this year. 

John Brooks helped Hertha Berlin earn a key 2-2 draw at home with Schalke on Saturday, while Timothy Chandler's Eintracht Frankfurt clobbered Paderborn 4-0. 

Fabian Johnson, who has been in solid form lately, came on in the 80th minute of Borussia Monchenglabach's 2-0 win over Hannover. 

Garza Makes Brief Appearance 

The USMNT defensive corps received a positive sign on Friday night, when Greg Garza appeared for the final 10 minutes of Club Tijuana's 3-1 win over Veracruz.

Garza was sidelined with an injury over the last two weeks. And now that he has returned to the Xolos setup, he should be in line for another USMNT call-up for the Denmark and Switzerland friendlies. 

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Joe Corona played the first 80 minutes of the match for Xolos before he was replaced by Garza. 

Edgar Castillo featured in the entire match for Atlas against Monterrey, while Michael Orozco and Herculez Gomez both started for Puebla. 

News and Notes

Alejandro Bedoya played 90 minutes for Nantes in their 2-1 victory over Evian Thonon Gallard. Nantes are now up to eighth place in the Ligue 1 table. 

Aron Johannsson featured in AZ Alkmaar's 3-1 loss to Vitesse Arnhem on Friday. The consistent playing time at the club level should see him receive a USMNT call-up in the coming weeks.

Rubio Rubin did not play in Utrecht's loss to Cambuur on Saturday. He has played 14 minutes of league action in the last month. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.