Random thoughts from last night:
Howard - Did he even have to make an actual save? I don't recall him having to deal with anything other than slow rolling squibblers and errant crosses. Didn't have a chance on the goal.
Cherundolo - Not much to complain about defensively but didn't press forward much or link up with Donovan like he does when he's on.
Bocanegra - By far the best defender last night for the US. Patrolled the center back spot well, no scary scrambles in the box like we saw during the Gold Cup. Had the great header on the corner, unlucky to strike it right at the GK when he had all that net.
Orozco Fiscal - Didn't really notice him often which is probably a good thing for a CB we haven't really seen.
Castillo - Simply put, he had a bad night. Whiffed on a couple clears, had that embarrassing play where the cross hit him in the back of the head for a corner. Don't want to be too harsh since Mexico didn't have a whole lot of clear chances, but suffice to say the search for a half way decent LB continues.
Donovan - A little too quiet in the first half, but certainly came alive in the second, especially in the last 30 minutes or so once the subs started coming in. Had the nice cross early that Jones just couldn't get on the end of. Had his mojo working when he burned past everybody on the left side then cut into the box, which almost certainly should have earned him a kick at the penalty spot, considering the defender got two legs and zero ball.
Torres - Had a few nice moments but he also gave up the ball too easily with some poor passing. Lucky that none of them led to a successful counter-attack.
Beckerman - Looked in control while taking care of the defensive midfield duties. The pleasant surprise of the night as far as starters go, he could get a few more looks in that role if the US keeps experimenting with a 4-2-3-1 or similar.
Bradley - He seemed a bit out of place in what was supposed to be a more attacking role. He never really linked up or provided much support to the forward. May see him go back to more defensive midfield role next game. It'll be interesting to see how his club situation shakes out.
Jones - He just doesn't look comfortable out there with his teammates yet. Hopefully he will begin to gel a bit as time goes on, because the US doesn't have a lot of EPL/Bundesliga starter material to throw out there at the moment. Had the odd moment where he didn't even react to the GK clearing the ball off his foot on the Boca header. His seat becomes a little hotter with Holden coming back (plus the likes of Shea).
Buddle - He's terrible. Didn't have enough help but he was completely invisible the entire night. Hopefully this experiment ends as quickly as it began.
Shea - The US turnaround sure seemed to coincide with Shea entering the game. What a beautiful, inch perfect cross to Rogers. Had the other decent shot that forced the keeper to stretch, but just couldn't get enough on it. Hope to see more of what he can do in one of the September friendlies.
Rogers - Actually looked great in his limited time for the US, something that we've rarely ever seen from him. I'm still not sold, but he played well enough last night to earn a reprieve.
Agudelo - Looked far more dangerous in far less playing time than Buddle. Had some creative moments on the ball but occasionally held on just a second too long. Also had the fantastic pass to Rogers where he was hauled down.
Amateurs of the night:
Referee - He missed the obvious corner, the Donovan take down in the box, and then didn't show a red when Rodgers was clearly behind the last man at the time of contact. What a disaster.
ESPN - Cutting to ESPNEWS so you can finish a little league *qualifier* (not even the LLWS)? What a joke. Who is watching little leagues on TV anyways?
All in all a decent effort, neither team deserved better than a draw. For all their possession in the first half, Mexico really didn't have many dangerous chances. Over the whole game, the US produced more quality scoring opportunities, and Mexico was lucky not to cough it up late with the Donovan no-call. One minor complaint of the Klinsmann era, I don't quite dig the old school uni 1-11 numbering with no names on the back considering how many rarely seen guys were playing, but if they put some wins up on the board then I'm sure I'll learn to like it.
