Not So Fast: Things We Can Take From USA-Honduras

Alright, so three weeks worth of training and preparation kind of went out the window thanks to a quick red card to Jimmy Conrad (whether or not it was deserved is a whole 'nother argument, which I don't feel like getting into). But I think there are still some things we can take from yesterday's game as it relates to Bob Bradley's quest to put together a final roster for South Africa. We didn't expect to have any real revelations during this match, and many (myself included) preached perspective for the observer. The best we could have reasonably taken from this match was whether a player looked completely out of place, or whether they might be able to hold their own at the international level. From that point of view, I think we learned a thing or two from last night's 3-1 loss.

Robbie Findley was the focal point of much analysis leading into the game, though his role was quickly made a lot more difficult by the man disadvantage. Nevertheless, we saw some positive signs from his play that were (dare I say) reminiscent of Charlie Davies. Unlike his strike partner, Findley made several diagonal runs into space to spread the defense and provide an easier outlet for the midfielders and defenders. He showed some scrappiness and fight with a couple loose balls and 50/50 challenges, starting the US defense from far up the field. This is something that Davies adds to the table that makes life a little bit easier for those behind him, and it was good to see Findley do just that much.

Now Findley was not Charlie Davies last night by any stretch of the imagination; he just did some of the little things like defending and making productive runs that Chuck does that help his teammates out. He was unable to provide that attacking bravado and bite that Davies does, instead looking a little hesitant to take on a defender or trying anything audacious in a 1 v. 1 situation. But that kind of confidence will come with some more minutes, which Findley will likely get against El Salvador. The bottom line is, Findley did not look out of place at the international level, and he made several positive, though subtle, contributions in his appearance. We didn't expect to make any conclusions about whether Findley belongs in the final 23 or not, so why worry that we didn't get to see all aspects of his game? If anything, a goal may have inflated our opinions or clouded our judgement. So, though it was a tough situation for someone making their first start, I think Findley made enough of a positive impression to merit another call into camp in the coming months, which is all we should have realistically tried to determine from last night's performance anyway.

The 10 v. 11 situation might excuse a hole or two in the defense or difficulty breaking down the opposing back line, but it does not excuse poor decision making and touch. That's what we saw from Sacha Kljestan on a number of occasions in the attacking third. His runs at several defenders were overly ambitious, and it seemed as if he didn't have any plan of what to do once he beat the first Honduran. Several of his runs concluded with a hopeful chip into space or too large of a touch, as he tried to improvise a way through the next wave of defenders. These types of runs are not necessary in a 10 v. 11 situation, yet Sacha kept on trying. His World Cup dreams were already pretty slim heading into yesterday's match, but I think they may have dwindled even more after that performance.

Another thing that was evident from the get go was that Jeff Cunningham is a very one dimensional player. We kind of knew this heading into the match, but some still have hopes of the FC Dallas front man filling the void at striker in South Africa. Though he and Robbie Findley both provided speed up top, there was a stark contrast in their play throughout. Cunningham consistently was only looking to go forward, doing his best Marvell Wynne impression by trying to beat everyone with raw speed. But this stalled several attacks, and not even in a productive manner. They were cheap giveaways that shifted the US back into a defensive posture soon after they had just won possession. Findley, on the other hand, utilized his speed but also got his head up and surveyed the field when he got the ball at his feet. For a team like the USMNT that tends to bunker in against quality opponents, it's imperative that the strikers maintain possession or at least win a throw-in or set piece to give the defense a brief respite from the onslaught. At some point, Cunningham has to realize that there is a big difference between running past the Kansas City Wizards defense and running past the defense of an international team. Until that happens, I don't think he will be much of an asset to Bob Bradley.

We also saw some good things from debutant Alejandro Bedoya, who made a few attacking runs down the wing and provide a couple of decent crosses late in the second half. While he did not have much time to show his stuff, he definitely was a bright spot in the second half and helped his case to be considered as an option at outside midfield. This was the first time that most of us have had the opportunity to see Bedoya play, but I was pleasantly surprised with his skill and think that, like Findley, he should be brought into camp again next month.

Last but not least, we learned once again that Jonathan Bornstein is maddeningly inconsistent. After his awful showings in November, Bornstein was arguably the USMNT's best player last night, following a pattern of awful-solid-awful-solid that has gone on for the better part of a year now. Like it or not, there's still a high probability that Bornstein is in the starting XI come June. All we can do is hope he hits one of those peaks in form for that month, rather than one of those valleys that cause us viewers to age prematurely.

Maybe I'm reading to much into a few things I saw in a friendly between "B" teams (which I had to watch on Telefutura thanks to the complete failure that was foxsoccer.tv), but I feel like there were some legitimate things to take from last night's match.