Scotland Recap

When the starting line up was revealed for the first match of five in 18 days, most were surprised by the amount of defensive minded players on the pitch.  Coach Jurgen Klinsmann had hinted at a possible 4-3-2-1 formation to begin the match against Scotland and the starters seemed to fit.  The starters were:

Tim Howard, Steve Cherundolo, Geoff Cameron, Carlos Bocanegra, Fabian Johnson, Jermaine Jones, Maurice Edu, Michael Bradley, Jose Torres,  Terrence Boyd,  and Landon Donovan

All but two players, Cherundolo and Boyd, had played midfield professionally.  Clint Dempsey is out with a groin injury and Jozy Altidore will be arriving on Monday so Boyd gets his first national team start.  It would be clear that Torres would be relied on for the service game while Johnson and ‘Dolo would need to fill in wide.

This would be the first national team match broadcast on the NBC Sports Network as part of a new contract.  The broadcast was led with information on Donovan whom would be back in the U.S. kit for the first time since last September.  Donovan is no longer the face of the team, but is still a vital piece of the squad for any success.

For Scotland, Barry Bannan had been solid coming in and expressed interest in playing for a unified Great Britian team.  Kenny Miller is a promising young player that knows how to attack.  The team is known to be solid defensively and also have solid kits.  The 100 X 70 yard pitch would make for tight confines and once the unfortunate rendition of the U.S. national anthem was over the teams were ready to go.

The play in the first three minutes was dictated by hopeful passes  and each team possessing without threatening.  However, a turnover to Bradley leads to a ball to Donovan inside the box and he gets his own rebound to give the U.S. the early lead.  On the night he set a record for most appearances, passing Jeff Agoos, Landon Donovan would make his mark.  Torres and Boyd provided the pressure to force the turnover.

Players were all over the field early as Jurgen Klinsmann shouted at them to keep moving.  Bradley was evident in his control and poise and then he connected on a golazo from outside the box in the 12 minute.  Donovan served a perfect ball to Jermaine Jones who laid it off for Bradley.  On the half bounce he connected and faded the ball to the top corner.  Just an absolutely beautiful goal by the 24 year old.

Unfortunately the lead would be knocked to one just three minutes later as a service into the box would be headed by Miller off of Geoff Cameron and into the net past Howard.  It is doubtful that many saw three goals coming that quickly in the match, especially given the lineups.  The U.S. seemed to be putting more pressure on the defenders than the midfielders while offensively they could get out wide.  Jose Torres and Fabian Johnson showed their ability on runs down the pitch as the game settled in.  Torres hit a sneaky free kick just off the bar and the U.S. would take a 2-1 lead into the 25th minute.

Scott Brown of Celtic was a target of a shoulder block from Bocanegra as the subplot of the Scottish league rivalry with Rangers showed up several times.  The game slowed down and Scotland became very compact.  There was little formation to them on the pitch.  Boyd had a couple chances to possess in the box but his first touch betrayed him.  He would gain a corner off a quick turn to his left foot.  The remainder of the first half provided possession for the United States but the half would end with a one goal lead.

No changes were made coming from halftime.  It would be more of the same from the whistle as possession by Edu and the passing of Torres was on display.  Donovan would try to sneak one back across in the 50th minute only to hit the post.  The overall pace would slow as the Scottish players would look for more crisp and patient passes to get up the pitch.  However, the counter attack became more of an option for the U.S.

In the 61st minute Donovan connected on his second.  The U.S. won a series of throws and after some patience along the sideline Jones began the play.  He found Bradley whom touched it back to Jones.  Jones curled it back to a wide open Donovan who was precise with his strike.  It was coming and it was a welcome site to see Donovan score again.  The goal was followed by a triple substitution with Kyle Beckerman, Oguchi Onyewu, and Herculez Gomez coming on.  Edu would be substituted having completed 93% of his passes.

Donovan would finish off his hat trick off a beautiful pass from Bradley with a secondary assist going to Gomez on his first touch.  It was another well struck ball off the far post and in.  The keeper was frozen after a quick peek from Donovan to pick his spot.  Donovan had stated earlier in the week that he hasn’t had the same passion for the sport, but his performance shows he can still dominate.

Shortly after Joe Corona would make his first appearance for the national team, Jones would strike off a header from Donovan.  Gomez would get another secondary assist with a nice dive back to get the ball across to Donovan.  Brad Guzan and Edgar Castillo would come in as the rout was on.

One may handicap the performance and say that Scotland was not together long and were unprepared for the heat.  Yet this was a stellar performance, especially in the passing, by the United States.  Fabian Johnson had another solid match making fans feel more and more confident in the left back.  He figures to be the starter there for some time.  Other names mentioned numerous times in this recap, Donovan, Bradley, Jones, etc.,  were just stellar.  Those making up the record southeastern crowd in Jacksonville got to see a fine game plan and wonderful execution.

Now the competition level ramps up as Brazil visits RFK Stadium on Wednesday with, what some are calling, a young team.  It is still Brazil.