USMNT Player Ratings

May 30, 2012; Landover, MD, USA; USA goalkeeper Tim Howard (1) gets ready to make a save against Brazil during the second half of a men

Doug has already covered many of the talking points of the game so I thought I’d share my player ratings for the game. Overall, the team looked lethargic for most of the game and couldn’t control the game. This led to blunders and being more reactive instead of being proactive. With that said, here’s my ratings:

Tim Howard – 9 (Man of the Match)

Another game where Tim basically saves the day (like the pun, eh?). Couldn’t be faulted for the first Russian goal by Feyodor Smolv.
Fabian Johnson – 5
Johnson was very inconsistent and was unable to get involved in the attack enough. He had some nice moments but he should’ve played back more since the CBs were struggling.

Carlos Bocanegra – N/A
Poor guy got injured in the 15th minute, so there wasn’t enough playing time to merit a rating. Hopefully he gets better soon.

Geoff Cameron – 6
By far the better of the two CBs. I thought it was interesting that the Russian forwarded pressed him to pass the ball right away when he would receive it from Howard to give it to Goodson. Nice sign of respect if you ask me. He started to wear down in the 2nd half, which resulted in giving Russia a dangerous free kick in the 78th minute.

Timothy Chandler – 5
He had some moments in the 1st half where he delivered some nice crosses into the box. He too faded in the 2nd half and like Johnson, needed to focus more on helping his CBs out.

Michael Bradley – 8
He busted his tail all game and scored a great goal. He was probably the most dangerous player offensively but that’s not saying much either. His possession could’ve been better and his service to the forwards as well. However, that was an issue for the entire midfield. Would’ve been man of the match if it weren’t for Howard’s performance.

Danny Williams – 3.5
He had a really poor guy and sulked a lot on the pitch. With that said, this is one of the games where I’d rather have growing pains happen in versus a qualifier. He’s got to work on his composure when things aren’t going his way.

Jermaine Jones – 6.5
I know Doug isn’t a fan of Mr. Jones but I thought he did a solid job. While I think 3 midfielders aren’t a good combo but he didn’t make many of his usual blunders. After Gatt and Gomez came off, he helped link the American attack to the midfield. As the game opened up, he (as well as Bradley) were able to improve in possession and passing.

Herculez Gomez – 5.5
Hurting for service, Gomez did what he usually does – hustle all over the pitch. Playing out wide doesn’t suit his skills and he drifted towards the middle of the pitch to try to get some service.
Jozy Altidore – 5.5
He played okay and can’t be at fault for the midfield’s inability to get him the ball, but he didn’t do anything to convince me that he should be an automatic starter again. I did like his hustle but was annoyed when he failed to control a great chance created by Johnson in the 70th minute which would have seen him 1-on-1 with Russian keeper.

Josh Gatt – 6.5
Pretty impressive debut for the young speedster. I bet he was really nervous this game, but he didn’t attack the defense like many thought he would. However, now’s the time to get him assimilated to international soccer – especially if Donovan doesn’t come back. I was very happy with his hustle and grit at times but didn’t stay out wide nor stretch the defense like I would’ve wanted. It’s time for him to move to a bigger club but still get playing time. Holland perhaps?

Clarence Goodson – 4
Came in for Bocanegra when he got injured and didn’t have the chance to warm up which is never ideal. It was troubling how much he was chasing the Russian attackers from behind  and had some poor marking. Started to improved in the 2nd half but then he gave up a dumb penalty. He’s losing his spot on the team.

Sacha Kljestan – 6
He provided some service but didn’t do anything to show that he should be considered more than a sub on the team which disappoints me.

Maurice Edu – 4.5
Was an upgrade from Williams but Williams also had a horrible game. I’m not sure why he keeps getting called into the team at this point since he’s not even making the bench at Stoke. He needs to get playing time and preferably at CB.

Juan Agudelo – 6.5
Provided a much needed spark to the team and I bet he’s going to be very happy that he ended 2012 with this performance. I think he earned himself a call up to the January camp.

Terrence Boyd – N/A
Came on for Altidore too late in the game but did set up Diskerud’s equalizer. I thought he should’ve come on earlier for Jozy.

Mikkel Diskerud – 6
I would’ve liked for him to also get more playing time but he did what most of the players didn’t do: make the most of the slim opportunities available. I think we’ll see him in January and we need to get him capped-tied like Chandler.