Robbie Findley struggled yesterday in Holland. (Getty Images)

Do we chalk this loss yesterday to Holland as a bad thing. Uh, yes and no. Yes because its a loss and one that showed us exactly where we stand. No because it did help US manager Bob Bradley out in figuring out who exactly he needs to take with him to South Africa.

I felt like going into the classic good, bad and ugly theme for this recap. I gave it a day to mull things over and see where I think things stand. We did see some good, things we can take from the game and move forward with a positive attitude about. But on the flip side there were some negatives in this one and then some down right ugly items I hate even bringing up today. Continue Reading…

Not a bad showing by the US against Holland. (Getty Images)

I won’t go too into the match just yet, I have a plan on re-watching some of it later on today but I did want to give my initial player ratings from this afternoon’s 2-1 loss to the Dutch in Amsterdam.

WVH USMNT Player Ratings:

Tim Howard – 7
Jonathan Spector – 5
Carlos Bocanegra – 7
Jay DeMerit – 5
Jonathan Bornstein – 2
Stuart Holden – 5
Michael Bradley – 5
Jose Francisco Torres – 5
Landon Donovan – 4
Jozy Altidore – 6
Robbie Findley – 4

Subs:
Maurice Edu – 4
DeMarcus Beasley – 7
Alejandro Bedoya – 6
Heath Pearce – 4
Eddie Johnson – 4
Clarence Goodson – 5

Top Three Players for US:

1. DeMarcus Beasley – Off the bench he was very good today, probably much better than he’s been in recent games that I’ve seen him in. I like the idea of him still coming off the bench though instead of starting for the US.
2. Tim Howard – He made his usual few big saves but got unlucky with the PK and the other goal. Still can’t blame this loss at all on Timmy, he worked his ass off as usual.
3. Carlos Bocanegra – Got the lone goal on a great free kick by Beasley. He was so freakin’ open on that play it was ridiculous. He also did well in the back today for the US.

Overall it wasn’t a terrible game by the US. I thought Donovan was a ghost most of the game but that could be due to poor service from out of the back for him. Early on the US was too predictable in the midfield and in the final third. Robbie Findley was okay but really showed he has no shot at a roster spot in South Africa after getting over powered in this game by the Dutch defense. He has the speed to beat them but never really took people on like we would have liked.

Bad day for Bornstein though. First the penalty late in the first half and then the deflection for the second Dutch goal in the second half. I thought Bob Bradley should have subbed him at half for someone like Pearce but he’s got too much of a love fest for Bornstein.

Again, I hope to have more later on this game.

Bob Bradley has some tough choices to make for tomorrow's friendly against Holland (Getty Images)

Honestly I need to amp up my USMNT cover on here. I’ll admit I don’t get to see every game like I would like and I honestly nearly forgot the El Salvador game last week. In fact I didn’t even get to watch all of it but what I did see what the final 20 minutes or so which were fun to view since it was a nice comeback for the US.

What we know is this Holland game tomorrow is a biggie. Its in Holland and the Dutch are easily one of the best squads in the World right now. But this is more than a high profile friendly for Bob Bradley it is a chance to really finish filling out his roster for June at the World Cup in South Africa.

A good chunk of the roster is probably set but for those bubble players this is a big test. The two friendlies so far this year were definitely for the MLS talent to show their stuff and while they did a decent job only a couple of that B or C bunch will make an sort of dent in this roster come June.

Bradley has a couple areas to hammer out before June. The nearly all his defense needs to be figured out, his defensive midfield spot, and a striker. Continue Reading…

I’ll admit I nearly forgot about this game yesterday and then I nearly forgot to post some thoughts about it. Honestly I didn’t get much out of the game other than the fact that both Heath Pearce and Brian Ching are definitely in line for a World Cup roster spot right now. The two better hope that there is some MLS this season or their WC dreams will go bye-bye.

That would be a shame too.

Anyways, here are some highlights and thoughts on the 2-1 win over El Salvador from ESPN. Crazy finish to the game but a nice showing by the MLS All-stars USMNT.

Dallas fans are hoping for a little more to cheer about in 2010. (Getty Images)

After a couple days away from this series we are back, today with my hometown team FC Dallas. So far we’ve looked at Chicago, Colorado, Chivas, Columbus, DC and Philadelphia in this pre-season look in on how each club is looking as they gear towards the new season.

FC Dallas comes into pre-season camp looking pretty good after a solid finish to the 2009 campaign. Schellas Hyndman has made a couple moves and could be prepared to do a couple more before the season starts. Right now there are a few trailists on the pre-season roster but that doesn’t always mean they’ll be there on opening day.

Let’s take a look in now and see what Dallas had done and what else they need to take care of before the new season.

Continue Reading…

Gotta love the inside access that FC Dallas is providing this year. Heath Pearce is turning into quite the inside reporter.

Dax McCarty and Heath Pearce give us a little insight on what it is like to get back to work after a couple months off.