While Honduras are yearly contenders, they haven’t played that great in the last two World Cups they participated.
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Anthony Lozano will be the player to watch for Honduras. If the Catrachos still commanded the run of play for long stretches of the game, it was the USA that seemed to control its own fate. That message was received by the Texan loud and clear, as the striker got his head on the end of a Michael Bradley free kick in the 64 minute to make it 2-0. During his club and global career, he’s played just about every position outside the defense. Goalkeeper Donis Escobar kicked the ball out with his right foot and it popped up to Dempsey, who nodded it in from 6 yards.
The U.S. continued to lack fluency in the second half but began to pin Honduras back more regularly, before Dempsey doubled their lead to notch his fourth goal in his past three internationals. “That’s why we go on the training pitch, that’s why we work hard”.
With that being said, the United States came out in a 4-4-2 diamond, which is very familiar, as it has been the default formation for the better part of the past year.
(AP Photo/LM Otero). United States’ Jozy Altidore (17) and Honduras’ Henry Figueroa (5) jump for the ball during the first half of a CONCACAF Gold Cup soccer match in Frisco, Texas, Tuesday, July 7, 2015.
In practice, the balance looked a little wobbly. The United States escaped the early barrage on goal unscathed as a pair of Honduran attempts on net were denied by the Aston Villa keeper.
While Bradley whacked a free kick to the near post, where Escober could only just keep out, there were a fair few close calls in front of Guzan’s goal.
Bradley will be the 16th American male to make 100 global appearances, matching Tony Meola and Joe-Max Moore at the century mark. He’ll be lucky to retain his starting spot in the next game against Haiti. There will be times will Bradley will be pressed into forcing the ball into tight quarters, but he may have to take some more cautious passing routes in tonight’s match. Honduras is being coached by the same coach who led Costa Rica to a surprising quarterfinals run that ended abruptly in a penalty shootout against the Netherlands.
The third-placed match would see Panama matched up with the runner-up from Group A, El Salvador. He then failed to finish a 1-v-1 with the Honduran goalkeeper after being sprung by Johnson.
And the chief attacking threat for Honduras is not now playing in Europe but back in Honduras’s domestic league for CD Olimpia. Honduras soccer team has not entered into the Gold Cup final since 1991. His strength, balance and eye for goal troubled the U.S. from the first whistle and while he didn’t get on the score sheet in this game, he did plenty to enhance his reputation and suggest that some of the European scouts who rated him as a teenager might want to take another look during this tournament.
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But before Klinsmann dips further into his preliminary roster for help in the latter stages of the tournament, he has to find a solution to his midfield problem before Friday’s Group A clash with Haiti at Gillette Stadium.
