USA 0-1 Paraguay; Ochocinco a make-believe soccer player

Tough loss for the boys in red (although it's kind of a smelly red).  Oscar Cardozo's 18th-minute tap off a corner kick inside the box was all Los Guaranies needed for the road victory in rain-soaked Nashville.  It was an easy goal, too, with two US defenders on the wet ground after losing their footing.

Juan Agudelo, mirroring how much
of us felt last night.

Wasn't the most exciting game I've ever seen.  Although the Yanks dominated possession for the final 70 minutes of the match, they had trouble stringing together enough passes to get to within 30 yards of goal.  The game was clearly more of an experiment for Coach Bradley, who used a bunch of subs from start to finish.  The lack of experience (on the international stage, and with each other) showed for much of the match.

Goalies Marcus Hahnemann and David Yelldell (US debut) got 45 minutes each.  They weren't really tested often, but held it together nicely.

Although they struggled a bit in the first half again, the defense wasn't nearly as disastrous as the Argentina match Saturday.  Timothy Chandler once again showed athleticism and pace, with constant runs up the wings and solid crosses.  Jonathan Bornstein, who played at left back, played similarly but didn't look as comfortable on defense.  Jay DeMerit strained a groin right before the half, and was replaced by Carlos Bocanegra.  Both of them had decent games and showed presence on set pieces.  Tim Ream, for as big of a deal as people are making him out to be, looked like he never played soccer before.  He looked extremely uncomfortable, with bad first touches and ugly passes (both being sub-themes of the day for the US).

Landon Donovan

Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan (captain for the night, even after Bocanegra came in), and Juan Agudelo all had nice efforts, although the lack of decent ball control (I'll only blame it partially on the rain) across the board prevented serious offensive threats.  Agudelo did, however, show a few flashes of this dribbling brilliance of which people speak.  Jozy Altidore was MIA for much of the game, although that was in part due to the pressure put on him all game long when he got even close to the box.  Both him and Agudelo were double-teamed much of the match.  Maurice Edu had trouble moving the ball in what at times seemed like a clogged center of the field (what else is new).  He was replaced at halftime by Jermaine Jones, who for the second time in four days, was absolutely fucking putrid.  Guy was a walking turnover.

Sasha Kljestan, Jonathan Spector, and Eric Lichaj (who had some great throw-ins toward net that could translate into goals on better days) also saw time.  Mixx Diskerud was the only unused sub, which if you ask me is a fucking travesty, considering his play against South Africa in November and Jermaine Jones' lackluster performance on Saturday.

Along the vein of experiments, I hope to see a 30-some-man camp before the Gold Cup, and get some more young guys in against Spain before the tournament.  As much as poor passing and ball care hurt us throughout the night, we can safely attribute much of this loss on how many subs were in by the end of the night.  Jose Agudelo, with his lack of experience, counts as a sub for purposes of my point.  I find it frustrating that we couldn't get a goal, but with 2 months to go before the Gold Cup, I think it's imperative to see more of these guys moving forward.  They need to play together as often as possible.  Also, I wish we could squeeze in another friendly between now and June, but it seems that the lack of international dates (and time in general) will prevent the federation from doing so.

Ochocinco


"Honorary member."  That's what Sporting Kansas City is calling Chad Ochocinco, who proved his lack of worth after six days of training and a reserve match against the fourth-division Kansas City Brass.  They're letting him stick around to train with the reserves and stay in shape until the NFL and its players kiss and make up.

By MLS definition, he's still a trialist.  Meaning, he doesn't get paid, and can play in up to two MLS Reserve Division matches this season.  SKC's reserve team also plays the Brass a bunch of times throughout the year.

What has Sporting learned about #85?  He's an athlete, clearly--but lacks the top-flight soccer skills and fitness necessary to even come close to making the team.

I still think this is a joke--KC are throwing themselves under a skeptical media bus by letting a guy with a household name wear their colors, when he has no merit otherwise.  I went to high school with kids that could probably out-play him, yet would never be given the time of day by the organization.  They said that this wasn't a PR stunt, but I hate to tell you, it has become just that.  You all look like morons.