USA vs Panama: Five things we learned

Before the US took the lead against Panama on a beautiful flowing goal that ended with Jozy Altidore sliding in at the back post to finish Fabian Johnson’s inch perfect cross between the defense and the goalkeeper, the US had briefly looked as if they might struggle for goals. Eddie Johnson, in for Zusi, is not a like for like replacement, and his crosses, and in general the long balls the US tried to send up for Altidore, were asking even this powerful forward to do too much against the equally strong Panamian center backs of Baloy and Torres. And while Altidore had a decent penalty shout when he turned and ran for goal a moment before opening the scoring, in general what we saw in Seattle was not so much him powering his way to goal, but picking out his route.

The abiding memory of Altidore’s performance was the deftness of his hold up play – repeatedly receiving the ball and instantly changing the angle of attack, or as in his late game set up for Beasley (that was a post’s width away from being one of the great US goals) just having great 360 degree awareness and opening up space — at times playing deep in the space you might expect Dempsey to pop up.

And of course scoring in three consecutive international games for the first time means he can not only do these things, he currently has an abundant belief in his ability to do those things. He’ll need that memory in tougher times ahead, but for now he’s added another dimension to this US attack.

Dempsey makes a great ghost

We knew he made a great troll, but this was one of those Dempsey performances where his qualities were evident in relief. Clearly Panama thought he was the US danger man, to the point where they were prepared to risk the space opened up by Baloy tracking Dempsey everywhere he went. Dempsey duly went everywhere, and in doing so created all sorts of space for the men around him. The US could have opened the scoring when the late-arriving Bradley (another potent weapon) had way too much space on the edge of the box to strike a low shot on goal. The space had been created by one Clint Dempsey, who ironically blocked the shot in the advanced position he’d moved to.

As it was the opening goal also owed much to Dempsey’s movement as he drew runners to the near post and out of the play, just as Johnson’s whipped in cross came on. The beneficiary of this space was the unmarked Altidore, who scored at the back post. The idea that Altidore might be unmarked at any point is beginning to look a crazy proposition, on recent form — but with Dempsey on the field something can happen at any moment. Panama opted to stifle that threat, but Deuce still haunted them

Geoff Cameron is no misfit

He was the club midfielder who was converted to a center back who was played at right back, and then couldn’t get a look in at any of those positions as Klinsmann’s team came together, but in Seattle Geoff Cameron went back to his roots and played alongside Michael Bradley in center midfield. The Stoke City player had a very strong game, even without taking into account his through ball to Eddie Johnson for the second goal, where he received the ball near the center circle, looked up and released a great ball into space for the Seattle striker. His support play was well-judged and his tackling was tenacious.

Perhaps the true marker of Cameron’s influence was the position of Bradley. When Bradley plays he’s the center of balance for the team. He sets the tempo and links up myriad triangles of passes to and from the players around him. With Cameron cleaning up, that center of balance was pushed higher up the field, meaning Bradley was a significant late-arriving threat into the box, as Altidore and Dempsey made all sorts of space and trouble in front of them.

It’s unfortunate for Jermaine Jones that he had to miss out, as he has finally begun to look like the player Klinsmann hoped he might be, instead of a yellow card machine, but for a coach half way through the Hex and daring to look to Brazil, he’ll be relieved to know that one potential squad member was able to show his versatility

The backs might be the future

With the exception of the veteran Beasley (whose 103rd cap on the night surpassed Kasey Keller) this is a very inexperienced US back line at international level — something both Jamaica and Panama tried to exploit in their relentless targeting of Brad Evans on the right. Quintero was Evans’ would be tormenter in Seattle — the Panamanian forward repeatedly running at the non-specialty full back to try and create an opening. But while he had some success, two of the strongest images of this subplot were Omar Gonzalez stepping across to block Quintero as he looked to have beaten Evans, and in another move where Quintero had got to the byline, Matt Besler stepping forward calmly to intercept a cutback intended for Tejada.

The central pairing has grown in confidence as Klinsmann has in turn extended confidence to them. Gonzalez still seems vulnerable to late lapses in concentration and he was caught ball-watching by Blackburn in injury time, forcing Howard to be out sharply to make a block from the substitute. But he and Besler are complementing each other well, and Evans (whose goal in Jamaica may prove to be one of the defining moments of the campaign — along with Altidore’s in the same game) accepted his role as a likely opposition target and stuck to his task, even as the attacking tendencies of Zusi and then Eddie Johnson left him very exposed at times on that flank.

Evans is slowly winning round the doubters. It’s unlikely that the steady drip of emails I get during every liveblog, asking for Lichaj to be played, are going to stop soon (Lichaj, like Gonzalez during his injury last year, may find himself in the unenviable position of becoming a better player in the minds of many, the more he doesn’t play). But for now Evans and the defenders alongside him are passing the tests put in front of them. The margin of those passing grades matters less than the two point margin of the US lead at the top of the Hex.