Analyzing, Grading and Learning from the USA's Performance vs. Mexico

Matt BernsteinJun 7, 2018

The US National Team played Mexico to a draw with a roster that was missing some big contributors. Although, both teams were missing their top players (Dempsey and Chicharito), Mexico brought out a slightly better squad.

In the end, however, the rivals finished even at one a piece. The following slides will try to make sense of tonight's heated draw.

Grades- Goalkeeping & Defense

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Tim Howard- B

The American keeper had a solid night against the few shots he faced, and there was absolutely nothing he could do against Oribe Peralta's spectacular goal. Howard's leadership continues to shine through as he directs the young back line.

Steve Cherundolo- C-

Cherundolo doesn't make this grade for his performance tonight. The Hannover captain nearly cost the Americans the game by raising his arm to Mexican Mid, Sinha, during an early scuffle.

Luckily, the referee deciding not to pull out a read, and instead, gave Cherundolo yellow. However, Cherundolo was a strong back-line anchor as usual.

Michael Orozco Fiscal- C

Not a bad grade for a guy who I was shocked to see on the roster and much less beating out Tim Ream for a spot in the starting 11. Fiscal played the full 90 and had a fair night and did what he needed to do for the most part.

Edgar Castillo- D

On the bright side, it wasn't Jonathon Bornstein. However, Castillo had a shaky 90 minutes and had some bad passes. I have a feeling Castillo would have had a lower grade if Chicharito was on the pitch.

Carlos Bocanegra- B+

The captain once again provided solid defense to a shaky back line. Bocanegra began the US shooting barrage, nearly scoring off a corner that was saved by Ochoa. I believe Klinsmann made the right decision by letting Bocanegra continue to wear the armband.

Grades- Midfield

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Michael Bradley- B-

Bradley had a solid night in his USMNT match without his dad on the sidelines. Bradley was beaten by Peralta Mexico's lone goal, but it was much more of a spectacular goal than a defensive gaffe. Bradley did a good job anchoring the midfield and sending in passes.

Jose Torres- C-

Torres did little to impress in his first before coming out in the 84th minute in his first match since the World Cup. It will be intersting to see if Klinsmann will give the Pachuca middie another shot for the Stars and Stripes.

Kyle Beckerman- B+

I was very impressed by Beckerman's 12th appearence in a US uniform. The Real Salt Lake star was one of many MLS players on the roster and did a good job anchoring the midfield along with Michael Bradley.

Jermaine Jones- D

Jones had very little involvement in tonight's game. I've been very high on Jones since he committed to the Yanks, but tonight's match was another under performing showing by the Schalke midfielder. In a night where the US had a strong midfield, Jones was by far the weakest link.

Brek Shea- A

Shea continued his stellar club form, but with the National Team, in his second career appearance. Shea made a big impression on the new look USMNT and set up Rogers' goal with a perfect cross across the box.

Robbie Rogers- A

I was extremely critical of Rogers inclusion on the Gold Cup squad and even more of his replacement spot on Klinsmann's roster. But the super-sub proved me completely wrong by scoring the equalizing goal. While it was a tap-in, Rogers also made a nice run that should've been a break away if it wasn't for Gerardo Torrado dirty play.

Ricardo Clark- F

Clark came on in the 84th minute in his attempt to climb back into the roster. In Clark's only real chance with the ball he absolutely blew it, launching literally the worst shot I've ever seen. After Donovan circumnavigated the Mexico defense by himself, Clark received Landon's pass and launched a very, very wide shot.

Grades- Forwards

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Landon Donovan- B+

I guess you can call Donovan a forward, but it would have been nice to see him give Buddle a little more help in the first half. In the second half, Landon had a few solid runs along with some spectacular moves through the Mexican defense that was spoiled by Clark's awful shot. Donovan continues to be the leader of the Red, White and Blue.

Edson Buddle- C-

I feel sorry for Edson Buddle. The forward was stuck around nothing, but Green Shirts the entire first half. Buddle recieved little support and had to go 1-4 against the Mexican defense every time he recieved the ball.

Juan Agudelo- A-

The young forward was an improvement over Buddle and was dangerous in the offensive half, nearly scoring. Agudelo's highlights of the night were helping to set up Robbie Rogers' equalizer, and his perfect pass to Rogers, creating a breakaway that was spoiled at the hands of Torrado.

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Grades- Coaching and Refereeing

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Jürgen Klinsmann- A-

I was very critical of Klinsmann's lineup and use of only one forward. The first half looked like the opposite of the attacking-style football Klinsmann had been hired for. The US could rarely get anything going on the offensive end and poor Edson Buddle never got any help. However, the way the US played in the final 30 minutes was pretty inspiring.

The game really flowed well for the Yanks, with the ball constantly in their zone and Mexico getting no shots on goal. Honestly, it was the best I've seen the US play in a long time. Considering the players used and the opponent, the US final 30-minute performance was absolutely stellar.

Klinsmann looked like a genius due to his inclusion of Rogers on the final roster spot and substitutions of Agudelo, Shea and Rogers—the three contributors on the 73rd-minute goal. Either way, a result against Mexico was a good way to begin Klinsmann's tenure as the US Manager.

Refereeing- F

It seems like whenever the USMNT plays a game the postgame reaction is "That's the worst refereeing I've ever seen!" This match was no different.

Jamaican referee Raymond Bogle made two absolutely awful calls that basically cost the Americans a chance to win the game. First was the non-call, when Donovan was clipped in the box. This was an obvious foul and should've been a potential game-winning PK for Landon.

The call that will be remembered from this game was the yellow card on Torrado after his "throwing-down" of Rogers on what would've been a breakaway. Honestly, if that's not a red card I have no idea what is.

Analysis- a Tale of Two Halves

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As we all know by now, the first half was dominated by Mexico, and the second went the way of the US. This being said, a 1-1 draw seems pretty fitting, right? WRONG. I'll admit I have a USA bias. However, the US deserved to win this game.

Mexico's domination of the first half resulted in few shots and scoring chances. However, the last 30 minutes was all USA—all the time. While the US can be held accountable for not putting a second one into the back of the net on several chances, the real blame lies on the referee and Mexico's dirty play.

The dirty playing style of El Tri was imminent in the Gold Cup final and even more on Gerardo Torrado's take down of Robbie Rogers. On the officiating side, tonight's match just enters a long line of US Soccer games tarnished by bad refereeing. With the game now in both teams rear-view mirror, the US take a step in the right direction while Mexico fall ever so slightly from the train of momentum they've been riding.

What We Learned- Missing Stars

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It's clear that the offense's of both squads are much worse when they are without there EPL stars.

With Chicharito resting a concussion, Mexico's offense looked extremely, even when dominating the first half. The flare that was shown throughout the 2011 Gold Cup and Gold Cup Final was severely missing in Mexico's subpar offensive showing. And it's definately NOT because of strong defense by the Yanks. It's clear that without Hernandez, Mexico is not nearly as dominant and certainly not a top 10 team.

The same can be said for the US, who severely needed a dose of Clint Dempsey in the first half. While the young MLS stars porvided the Americans with offense during the second half, the attack was not the same without the Fulham star.

What We Learned- Defense Is Still a Question

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The US cannot find two players to go alongside Carlos Bocanegra and Steve Cherundolo. That's pretty frightening, considering the two veterans aren't getting any younger. The combination of Castillo and Fiscal was not the answer to the biggest question facing Klinsmann and the US at the moment.

While the US was missing Clarence Goodson, not many combinations have worked. Hopefully, there's a future in players like Timmy Chandler and Eric Lichaj. For know, Klinsmann will have to continue to search for the perfect combination with World Cup qualification fast approaching.

Roster Predictions

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The Americans next match will be a friendly on September 2 against Costa Rica, followed by a trip to Belgium on the sixth. Klinsmann has announced that he will use the "best roster" regardless of club and travel concerns.

"Best Roster" can mean different things to different people, but here's my take on the 23-man roster Klinsmann should use for the friendlies.