The U.S. Men’s National Team needed to dominate Cuba in today’s Gold Cup game and they did just that from a man-to-man perspective and a tactical one as well as they beat Cuba 6-0. Clint Dempsey earned his first ever national team hat trick as he continues to climb the U.S. Men’s national team scoring ladder, only 11 away from tying all time leading goal scorer Landon Donovan. However, the team seems to have more questions looming after a dominating performance than they did coming in to the game.
From the start of the game the U.S. team looked like they would control the afternoon as they scored three goals in the first 31 minutes, four in total before the half, while dominating ball possession 63% to 37%. Even the players were aware of the fact that they were expected to run over Cuba today as Aaron Johannsson shared in a post game interview, “Today we were expected from the first minute to dominate the game, but hopefully I played well enough to secure my spot.”
Gold Cup: U.S. Emphatically Advances to Semi Finals
Here’s a brief assessment on how each of the units performed:
Fullbacks: Fabian Johnson and Timmy Chandler – Johnson and Chandler did a phenomenal job to set the early pace for the U.S. and both had assists in the first two goals of the game.
Center backs: Omar Gonzalez and Ventura Alvarado – Overall, Alvarado handled some good one on one matchups while Gonzalez was solid and scored the team’s fourth goal before the half. Gonzalez had a sort of homecoming as he played at the University of Maryland so the moment certainly was special for him. Jurgen Klinsmann shared after the game that he did not think the backline was challenged enough to have a fair assessment.
Midfielders: Michael Bradley, Alejandro Bedoya, Gyasi Zardes, and Kyle Beckerman – Bradley did a phenomenal job captaining the midfield as he assisted on two goals and second assisted on an additional two others. Zardes was a threat for the Cuban defense the entire game and netted his second goal for the national team. Bedoya put in a solid 90 minutes and even finished the game playing Left Back while Beckerman was fearless attacking and winning challenges.
Forwards: Clint Dempsey and Aaron Johannsson – The best game by the U.S. men’s starting forwards so far this tournament. Dempsey’s first career national team hat trick, while Johansson also scored a goal and drew the foul in the box that led to Dempsey’s third goal. Johannsson outplayed the Cuban defense all afternoon and perhaps has helped build his confidence as the team plays on.
Substitutes: Brad Evans, Joe Corona and Deandre Yedlin – The game was well determined by the time the subs came in. Yes, Evans and Corona were halftime subs but the game was well in hand by that point. Yedlin did a good job of attacking from the right wing as well, but overall, hard to assess their impact, as they became cogs in a well-oiled machine.
Never before has such a one sided affair left so many questions for the U.S. team, but with the backline not being challenged enough, Johannsson having his best game against an inferior opponent and the barrage of goals against a team that Mexico also defeated 6-0 in this Gold Cup, the U.S. has a lot of questions to answer before their semifinal clash in Atlanta.
One thing is for sure, Klinsmann mentioned in his post game conference that he didn’t want the team to come in and mess around, he wanted them to play and get results, with a 6-0 score line, the largest margin of victory in U.S. Gold Cup history, the message was certainly received.
Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images
