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U.S. Player Ratings: Ching heads class
by Ridge Mahoney, February 25th, 2010 1:41AM
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TAGS:  men's national team, world cup


[USA REPORT CARD] Soccer America's Ridge Mahoney rates the U.S. players after their 2-1 win over El Salvador on Wednesday in Tampa.

U.S. Player Ratings
Starters

Rating Player (Club) GP/G

5 Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake) 4/0
Routine saves handled cleanly, distributed ball well.

4 Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders) 4/0
Terrible error on goal, otherwise defended well and played good balls up the flank.

6 Clarence Goodson (IK Start/NOR) 10/2
A real presence in the air, won tackles on the floor, too.

5 Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA) 28/2
Covered his area well, mix-up on first goal left gap.

6 Heath Pearce (FC Dallas) 30/0
Strong game even before he set up first goal with burst of speed and good cross.

4 Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew) 11/1
Flubbed shots and passes, hit some excellent set pieces in second half.

5 Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake) 12/1
Held the middle, found teammates with passes, caught upfield a couple of times.

5 Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo) 5/0
Caused El Salvador some problems in first half, left at halftime with tight hamstring.

6 Sasha Kljestan (Chivas USA) 23/4
Good shots were saved in first half, wandered at times, pounced to score winner.

4 Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake) 2/0
Floated wide to find space, hit a good cross, left when tendinitis flared up.

5 Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids) 19/2
Used his touches well, set up Kljestan for good chance, didn’t win much in the air.

Substitutes
6 Eddie Gaven (Columbus Crew) 7/0
Livened up attack working the right side and cutting through the middle.

7 Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo) 44/11
Headed equalizer, got off several shots, laid ball to Kljestan for winner.

5 Jeff Cunningham (FC Dallas) 14/1
Played deeper than normal, passed effectively.

NR Dax McCarty (FC Dallas) 4/0
Nice touches, no mistakes in brief appearance, set up chance.

NR Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo) 1/0
Got into the action to hit a shot just wide in stoppage time.

(1=bad; 5=average; 10=brilliant.)

What did you think of Ridge Mahoney's Report Card? Let us know.



0 comments
  1. Mark Arnold
    commented on: February 25, 2010 at 9:38 a.m.
    I think Goodson, Ching, and Bornstein should get the call for the Dutch game. Kljestan and Gaven surprised me with their energy last night. I'd like to see more, but not sure Bob will include them for next Wednesday's game. BTW Zach - the numbers are caps & goals for each player.

  1. David Kinney
    commented on: February 25, 2010 at 9:44 a.m.
    Zach: The #/# to the right of the player's club is caps/goals the player has with the USMNT.

  1. Mike Gaire
    commented on: February 25, 2010 at 1:39 p.m.
    I agree with Ridge's ratings for the most part. Findley, Casey and Cunningham have had their chance and blown it. Don't pick them again! Evans, maybe or maybe not. Give the guy a chance to play his own position first! Almost as daft as playing Beasley at left back! Disappointed Brad Davis didn't get to play on the left wing where he is more effective, he is not as good playing in the middle. If he is fit for the Dutch game I would bring him back but play him on the left wing. Rogers should ride the bench for a while he looks too much like the current Michael Owen instead of the former Liverpool Michael Owen. if you compare Rogers on the right wing last night to how Donovan has played on the right wing for Everton you can see that Rogers is light years away from that standard. Glad to see Ching and Kljestan looking more like their old selves but can they produce the same results against an England? Not so sure! Ching looks big and strong against El Salvador, not so sure he would be as effective against some big defenders like they have in Germany or England but did enough last night to warrant another chance. It will be intersting to see if he can be as effective against Holland. He was great when he was the San Jose Earthquakes star Centre Forward and if he can regain that form he could be as good as McBride, eventually, but for my money Dempsey should play that role with Ching on the bench when we get to South Africa. Sacha needs to show he has really regained his form consistently. This was a good step in the right direction but the jury is still out. Gaven Goodson and Pierce took their opportunity to shine and deserve credit for that. Bornstein did OK. Still not sure if he is a left back or a central defender and whether he is really good enough in either position. Can't see him keeping out Gooch, Bocanegra or DeMerit. Cherundolo is our best right back by a mile. Rimando did enough to warrant another look on a quiet night. McCarty looks good every time he comes on and should get a start. Beckerman did OK and continues to improve as he groes in confidence. Cameron is a fringe player but has some versatility which makes him a potentially useful squad member.


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