It allowed some players to boost their chances of featuring against Mexico in October’s Confederations Cup playoff, which some players did. It also allowed coach Jurgen Klinsmann to see which players aren’t quite ready for the pressure coooker of next month’s showcase match.
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What the match didn’t do was show us a complete and cohesive U.S. squad, and while Klinsmann would surely point out that star players Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley and Fabian Johnson weren’t available Friday night, that doesn’t change the fact the team that started the match played a largely lackluster 45 minutes before second-half substitutions injected life into the squad.
The team’s strong second half helped the Americans pull off another comeback and instill some much-needed confidence for a team looking to forget a bad summer.
“For the whole team it was important and good that, after that Gold Cup, that we show we can beat a team that played a good Copa America and always plays good in South America,” Jermaine Jones said. “It was not easy. The first half I think they played really good, but in the second half we changed a little bit and we came better in the game.”
Not everybody hurt their stock in that first half, which Peru dominated. Gyasi Zardes finished as the most impressive U.S. player on the night, while Tim Ream played well enough to be seriously considered for future shifts at left back.
Then there was Jozy Altidore, who scored both U.S. goals and put in his best national team shift in more than a year. Klinsmann handed Altidore the captain’s armband less than two months after sending him home from the Gold Cup early, and the gesture seemed to motivate the veteran striker as much as his eagerness to put a disappointing summer behind him.
Here is a look at the five things that stood out the most from the U.S. victory against Peru:
Zardes shines, primed to start vs. Mexico
Altidore may have walked away with the official Man of the Match award, but even he might have cast a vote for Zardes, who was all over the field, providing support in attack and defense, in one of the best performances of his young national team career. The LA Galaxy standout’s constant movement provided consistent outlets for his teammates, he pressured Peru’s defense with confident runs, and he provided promising passes, including the one that led to Altidore’s game-winning goal.
“In my eyes he’s a beast,” Jones said of Zardes. “He’s an amazing guy. He’s always quiet and makes his work. Goes up and down. He’s so important to the team.”
Guzan stands his ground
Klinsmann may have given Guzan a vote of confidence, but that didn’t mean he still doesn’t have to impress in the run-up to the Mexico. Against Peru, Guzan came up with the key saves when needed. When Peru broke in with a chance to regain the lead in the 67th minute, Guzan made a crucial double-save to deny the South Americans. Moments later, Altidore scored the winner at the other end. Overall, Guzan did nothing to suggest Klinsmann should change his mind about his starting goalkeeper.
Ream looked effective at left back
When Klinsmann called in seven center backs to this week’s training camp, the lingering question was just who would step in to play the fullback positions. Despite the presence of Greg Garza, Klinsmann called on Ream to play left back and the Fulham defender played a steady and impressive 90 minutes.
“Tim Ream played a very, very solid game and won many one-against-one situations,” Klinsmann said. “He played simply out of the back, which is what we asked him to do, which he’s known for.”
Ream’s sharp passing helped alleviate pressure, and Peru found much less success on his side of the field than on the opposite side.
Jones makes welcome return to midfield
A year ago, Jones was a vital cog in the U.S. midfield at the World Cup, but since Klinsmann’s decision to experiment with Jones as a central defender, the U.S. midfield has missed Jones’ presence. Jones made a successful return Friday, playing a strong 71 minutes in his first national team match since February. His showing was made even more impressive by the fact he only recently returned to action after having sports hernia surgery in June.
“I’m still not 100 percent, so me and Jurgen talked about it. First we said maybe 45 minutes, but then I said, ‘I feel good and I want to go,’” Jones said. “I’m still trying to build up. The goal is that I be 100 percent for the Mexico game.”
Klinsmann’s decision to partner Jones with Alejandro Bedoya in central midfield seems to suggest that he is planning to partner Jones with Michael Bradley for the Mexico match. That is assuming Klinsmann goes with a 4-4-2, which seems likely. If that is the case, then Kyle Beckerman could be the odd man out. Jones showed Friday that bringing him back into the midfield was a wise decision by Klinsmann.
Gonzalez loses ground in center back battle
On a night when several other defenders made strong cases for more playing time, Omar Gonzalez turned in a tepid performance that could open the door for others to take over in central defense. The Galaxy defender stepped in late to a challenge and saw a deflection off him float into the net for Peru’s goal, and some of his passing left a lot to be desired. He didn’t have the kind of atrocious matches that we saw Ventura Alvarado and John Brooks have in the Gold Cup, but on a night when he could have pulled ahead of younger options in the race for starting spots, Gonzalez may have hurt his chances of being a starter against Mexico.
