Rimando - 6.5 - did what was asked of him Beltran - 5.5 - did his job defensively but didn't do anything of note offensively Onyewu - 5 - should have done better closing down on his man on the cut back for Cuba's goal Orozco - 6.5 - positionally sound and communicated well with the back line and Rimando Castillo - 6 - very active offensively but he got beat far too easily on Cuba's goal. I've always like his ability to get forward but he did little to ease my doubts about his defensive abiity. Beckerman - 7 - broke up play well, was tidy in possession and provided a great assist over the top to Wondolowski Holden - 5 - had good work rate but simply was not as sharp as he was in the previous two games Corona - 7.5 - played several dangerous balls into the box, kept possession well, and had a great goal. This was easily the best performance I've seen from Joe Benny. Donovan - 7 - LD is the class of this team and showed it nearly every time he received the ball. He was always assertive with the ball and got into dangerous areas; my only criticism was that he should have been more selfish. Shea - 4 - Brek was atrocious. He hit several crosses out of bounds and was totally shackled by Cuba's RB. I'm not sure if he's rusty or what, but he needs to get it together or he'll find himself out of the 18 at Stoke and watching the World Cup on TV. Gomez - 5.5 - was robbed on a few calls in the first half and had his typically high work rate but didn't quite make the impact he's capable of Subs: Diskerud - 7 - was silky on the ball and was constantly looking for the incisive pass. I like that he's not shy about not trying to blast it from outside the box; perhaps he should have done better with that effort in the last minute of the game but he'll grab another goal sooner than later. He's shown me more in a handful of a games than I've ever seen from Kljestan. Wondolowski - 7 - a fox in the box. Wondo made his usual threatening runs and pounced on his chances. Despite the 2 goals, I felt he squandered 1-2 good chances and could have easily had a hat trick. Torres - 5.5 - he looked better than Shea, but that's not saying much. I like that he made quick decisions with the ball but his crossing was off today.
Agree with all your ratings except Wondo should be a 2. He was a real disappointment - didn't even score against Mexico.
Rimando - 6.5 Castillo - 4.5 Onyewu - 5.5 Orozco Fiscal - 6.5 Beltran - 5 Shea - 2 Beckerman - 6.5 Holden - 5.5 Corona - 6.5 Donovan - 7 Gomez - 5.5 Wondolowski - 7 Diskerud - 6.5 Torres - 6 Klinsmann - 6.5
Rimando - 6 - par Beltran - 5.5 - some hairy moments Castillo - 7.5 - except for getting burned, in with a shout for MOTM. Instrumental on 3 goals and only guy penetrating the box area until Wondolowski entered. Onyewu - 5.5 - yikes Orozco - 7 - confident. Moving up the depth chart. Shea - 5 - oh my Holden - 6 - less influential than previous matches Beckerman - 7 - does what he does and chipped in with a nice assist Donovan - 8 - a terror to Cuba, easily MOTM Torres - 7 - some excellent service Corona - 7 - much improved after his excellent strike Diskerud - 7 - poise Gomez - 6 - runs hard Wondoloski - 7.5 - great runs and finishes
castillo stood out for his willingness to draw fouls. not quite good enough in attack, not quite lock down in d. corona was up and down, more up than down. agreed that this was the best we've seen from him. mixx rates him highly. beckerman had his place, he's on solid level with the B team, probably won't get any higher. gooch looked bad, fiscal looked better...goodson looked better than either last game. beltran for me was intriguing...had a few mistakes but was willing to attack, string passes together and bust his ass getting back on d. his positioning was awful at times. from me, wondo changed the game. he's a real f-i-t-b and he'd be really nice to have in your back pocket in brazil. it struck me today that we're still a year away and likely 1 or 2 catastrophic injuries. i really, really hope all the risers keep rising and no one has a bad injury.
I really feel like these games need to be pass/fail as opposed to numbers; it isn't as though these teams are very good. It does no good to give Wondo like a 9 because it really needs to be weighted against the level of opposition right now. So my grades for this game would be: Pass: Wondolowski, Diskerud, Donovan, Beckerman, Corona, Torres, Rimando, JK Fail: Gooch, Gomez, Shea, Beltran, Holden, Vasquez (ALWAYS FAIL) Incomplete: Orozco, Castillo ETA: I really want to give Orozco a FAIL because of his really, really terrible turnover in the second half. But I don't want to be too negative.
Ok, I'll give it a shot. I've already seen the ratings published by the media. Trying it not to influence me. Rimando - 5. The average score for a keeper that had little to do, and managed fine when he had. Castillo - 4. If you are playing defender, your first duty is being able to defend well. Yes, he helped the attack and looks much better as a wingback, but I don't see him as a LB option, and regularly the USA doesn't play with 3 CBs and 2 WBs, but a typical 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1. Orozco - 5.5. He kept his head in the first half, when the rest of the defense line seemed iffy. His positioning was decent, and may be sneaking back into the 23 as CB#4. Gooch - 4. Can't be so slow, so out of touch, shouldn't stand around so much. He looks old and tired and out of form. My hopes for him have hit a low. Beltran - 3. Totally unable to help the attack, and very poor in positioning. Lucky Cuba didn't have much on their left side. Beckerman - 6.5. He did everything he was supposed to do right. A man who can play according to plan. Wouldn't expect brilliance from him, but plenty of discipline. Sometimes it's what you need the most. Holden - 3.5. Very bad. He was there for his vision, his dribbling and his passed. All three disappeared for him this time around, and became little more than a turnover machine. Perhaps he'd be better served by playing more up field. Shea - 2. Terrible outing by the Stoke winger. No idea what he was trying to do, out of synch with the team, lost on the left, unable to combine and seemingly under the influence of something that somehow lowers your IQ terribly. Hope it's temporary. Corona - 5.5. He needs someone in the middle to combine, and during the first half, with Holden not going forward enough (or losing the ball when trying), he found himself isolated and useless. On the second half Mix provided that outlet, and Corona got more space to run inside. Donovan - 7. He was everywhere, terrorizing their defenders, helping the defense, reinforcing the sides, covering the CMs, providing an outlet to the wings, etc. For the full 90. He has the bonus that his prestige alone makes the players of the other team keep an eye on him, and that gives more space to other players. Gomez - 5. He lacked service, and when he got it, he did nothing remarkable. Basically, autopilot game for him. Subs: Torres - 6. A huge upgrade on a dismal Shea, he started combining through the middle and forcing the Cubans to involve their second DM (Urgelles) on that side, leaving more space in the middle for Mix. Diskerud - 6.5. He got more space thanks to Torres and with the change to a 3-1-4-2, with Castillo and Corona bombing down the sides, and Torres helping him in the runs forward, while Kyle guarded the CBs. A very inspired change by JK gave him the needed space to involve the wings and the forwards more. Wondo(w)lowski - 7. He took his chances, and where Herc proved ineffective, he proved lethal. He even dropped more than any other time, to combine with Mix and Torres, while leaving Landon forward in case a channel was opened through the wings. My MOTM.
Rimando - 6 Castillo - 7 Orozco - 6.5 Gooch - 5 Beltran - 4 Beckerman - 6.5 Holden - 5 Shea - 4 Corona - 7 Donovan - 7 Gomez - 6 Subs: Torres - 7 Diskerud - 7 Wondo(w)lowski - 7
Rimando - 6 Beltran - 4, Had a lot of possession but did very little with it. Got burned in the second half. He may not see much of the field in the knockout rounds. Gooch - 5.5 -If anyone says they are not holding their breath whenever he even enters the TV picture.... Orozco - 6 Castillo - He's a left defender that doesn't defend. OK, he moves forward OK, but we have no defense on the left when he is on. Beckerman - 7 - Nice cross on the goal. Did his job defensively. I'm not a Beckerman fan, and don't think he's even close to going to Brazil, but he's fine in this type of competition. I'm interested to see how he does against the better teams. Holden - 4.5 - Was he on the field? He needs more games. Shea - 2 - Clearly, he just needs to go back to Stoke. At this rate, will he see any time in the EPL. Perhaps a loan to a championship side is best. Corona - 6.5 - His cross in the first half that Donovan missed was real quality given the room he had, one of the best crosses we've seen in a while on this team. His first touch needs to improve. Gomez - 4 - just not his night. Donovan - 7 - best player on the field. His track back in the second half shows just how badly he wants to play. Anyone doubt he starts on the left? Torres - 6.5 Nice touches. Definite upgrade from Shea. Wondo - 7.5 - first goal was a nice touch. While he scored two, he can't blow chances. Mix - 6.5 Nice job moving the ball around quickly
The consolidated viewpoint of 14 sources: Wondolowski - 7.5 Donovan - 7.0 Corona - 6.8 Beckerman - 6.5 Torres - 6.2 Rimando - 6.2 Orozco - 6.0 Diskerud - 6.0 Castillo - 5.6 Beltran - 5.4 Onyewu - 5.1 Holden - 5.1 Gomez - 4.9 Shea - 3.3 Biggest surprises for me are Corona and Beltran. Corona did have a nice goal and few good crosses, but he too often showed a poor touch and lack of incisiveness. Beltran was terrible. Can't possibly see how anyone gives out better than 5. Shea's performance is NOT the lowest rating in the JK era. Name it.
The question is which was worse... Beltran v. Cuba or Parkhurst v. Belize?? One thing for sure, opposing teams will be working the RB flank henceforth in this tourney (as they should.) Corona - obviously like how he's progressing. I really like what I have seen out of Mix as well... Has shown very well on the ball, and deft holding in tight spaces... his passing is crisp and on target and forward-looking... He's made the kind of forward passes to top-box that are impresive (and I think surprised some of forwards/attackers who weren't exactly ready for them...) But that comes with time and familiarity... but certainly promising. I do think he could use more movement off ball at times but given what JK has asked him to do this tourney in holding role, movement is not the focus... altogether, like what he's been doing...