In what evolved into a coming out party for US prodigy Jozy Altidore, the US produced an inspired performance en route to a 3-0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago in 2010 World Cup qualifying in Nashville last night.
Altidore's virtuoso performance saw the 19-year old bag a hat trick to lead the US to victory and the pole position in the CONCACAF (North America, Central America and Caribbean) region for qualifying for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
After a 2-2 draw this past weekend in El Salvador prompted changes to the US lineup, head coach Bob Bradley proved to push the right buttons by moving DeMarcus Beasley to left back, Landon Donovan to left midfield, and inserting Pablo Mastroeni into the midfield and Altidore up front. He also welcomed back goalkeeper Tim Howard (suspension) and central defender Oguchi Onyewu (injury).
Each of those moves paid dividends in the match, and in talking with the US staff the day prior to the match, each of those moves had the desired effect they were looking for -
* Beasley and right back Frankie Hejduk bombed forward down the flanks to stretch the T&T defense and create more space for the US midfield. There was a brief flurry in the second half where the T&T right-sided players were able to get behind Beasley and put some pressure on the US defense, but Onyewu, Bocanegra and company weathered the storm.
* Donovan was creative and dangerous, whether it was patrolling the left flank or coming inside to allow Beasley to get forward. Donovan linked up with Altidore to collect assists on all three goals. Playing with four across the midfield, but allowing Donovan and Clint Dempsey to tuck in, gave both players the opportunity to create for themselves and combine off the central midfielders and strikers.
* Mastroeni was able to provide the cover and support in the middle of the midfield to allow US playmaker Michael Bradley to roam the field and be more involved in the attack. He dictated the tempo and rhythm of the match for the US, and created the 3rd US goal. Tightening things up in the midfield and defensive thirds, as well as getting Bradley more involved, were significant changes from the El Salvador match.
* Altidore was a scoring machine, collecting goals in the 13th, 71st and 89th minutes. After scoring against El Salvador over the weekend, he now has 4 goals in the last two US matches. He and Ching proved to be a good strike pair, and combined well off each other - Ching helped set up the first goal by bumping on a ball for Donovan, and his near post run late in the 2nd half helped create space for Jozy's second goal. Having two athletic attacking players who can battle and punish an opposing back line was crucial, although Altidore was quick to praise the sum of the group opposed to the individual parts.
"When you have 11 guys on the field working hard and working together as a team, an individual can have a good night," Altidore said. "That's just how it happens. When the team plays well, individuals will shine, but at the same time we have to keep the mentality that things aren't easy in CONCACAF. These are good teams to play against and sometimes they're tough to break down, as you saw tonight. I just want to keep going forward and keep working hard and hopefully good things will happen.”
* Onyewu was his usual physical presence in the heart of the US defense, and kept T&T striker Kenwyne Jones - who is a standout for English club Sunderland - in his pocket throughout the game.
* Howard was a steadying influence in the defense, and along with 'Gooch' Onyewu, brought some continuity that was missing against El Salvador.
After a disappointing match by US standards against El Salvador, US head coach Bob Bradley felt that the team was prepared for a vindicating performance against Trinidad.
"Full credit to the players," USA coach Bob Bradley said. "After the last match we were certainly pleased with the push we made when we were behind, but there were things in that match that we felt were not indicative of what we're all about. The players felt strongly about that, and I think you could see the response from the team from the beginning tonight."
With seven points now from three matches, the US is in the pole position for qualifying. The Americans' schedule so far -- one that has included games against arguably the two weakest teams in the Hexagonal -- has been easier than that of their rivals. The next two qualifiers -- away to Costa Rica on June 3 and then at home to Honduras three days later -- will be absolutely critical in determining if the Americans' road to South Africa will be a beautiful, smooth highway, or one full of potholes.
There is no question that Altidore will play a huge role in the US bid for qualification for the 2010 World Cup, and it certainly appears that he is coming to age at the right time.
"He's a player that we've known for a while," Bradley said of Altidore. "He's going to be a big part of our team going forward. But things need to be earned. Things need to come at the right time.
"When he came on in the last game [Saturday's 2-2 tie on the road against El Salvador in which Altidore scored after coming off the bench], I thought it helped us. So tonight we thought about ways to give our team a little bit of a different look from the start."
As Altidore has grown over the past year after a move to Spain, his maturity and development is something that even he has noticed as well.
"I'm finally understanding what's needed to be successful," said Altidore, who last June became the most expensive American export when he was acquired by Villarreal of Spain from the New York Red Bulls for $10 million.
No comments:
Post a Comment