Thank you for joining us here for this Gold Cup Doubleheader. My name is Matthew Evans. Good night!
The VAVEL USA Man of the Match is none other than Clinton Drew Dempsey. His two goals lifted the Americans to the win to open this edition of the Gold Cup.
Full Time: United States 2, Honduras 1
90+4': Acosta's shot is straight into the wall and the referee blows his whistle!
90+4': Bryan Acosta stands over the ball.
90+3': Free kick to Honduras in a very dangerous position... very late... It's nervous time.
90+2': The corner is played short to Dempsey who kills a few seconds.
90+2': Corner coming for the United States. Zusi plays a ball into Wondo that is cleared out by the defense.
90': Dempsey clears the corner. Three minutes of stoppage time to go.
90': Evans with a great tackle on Quioto, the ball goes out for a corner.
90': This may be the quietest that the crowd has been during this match.
89': Beckerman plays the ball down the field and out of bounds.
89': Just a few more minutes to go.
88': Great match played by Zardes.
87': United States Subs - Gyasi Zardes (Out), Graham Zusi (In)
86': Yellow Card - Johnny Palacios
85': Alvarado wins a free kick as he tries to shield the ball out of bounds.
84': MISS!!! Eddie Hernandez gets in behind the defense again as Alvarado keep him on. Hernandez sees his shot roll just wide of the far post.
84': Honduras starting to throw numbers forward.
82': MISS!!!! EDDIE HERNANDEZ MISSES!!!!! Wow, the cross gets by Guzan and falls to Hernandez who cannot turn the shot on goal. Wow!!!!
81': The United States is now playing keep-away. The ball going all the way back to Guzan before coming back forward.
80': End to end action here from both sides. The pace is picking up.
78': Eddie Hernandez nearly beats the defense but he is just a step offside.
78': SAVE!!!! Bradley curls in the free kick to the short side that Escober barely keeps out of the net. Wow.
77': Zardes draws a free kick from a favorable angle to the right side of the box.
76': BIG DEFENSIVE STOP!!! Brad Evans makes a huge defensive play as Honduras would have been in all alone in the box against Guzan.
75': Honduras Sub: - Henry Figueroa (Out), Eddie Hernandez (In)
73': Yedlin gets in behind the defense. He plays a cross towards Wondo at the top of the box but it is headed to the goalkeeper by the Palacios.
72': The ball is played to Zardes at the backpost who cannot keep the ball in. Goal kick.
71': Fabian Johnson draws a foul from the corner of the 18-yard box. Michael Bradley comes over to take.
69': GOAL!!!!! CARLOS DISCUA!!!!! WOW! The substitute comes on the field and scores less than a minute later. His first touch is beautiful to get into space and fires the shot near post to make it 2-1.
69': Honduras holding possession now.
69': Honduras Sub - Mario Martinez (Out), Carlos Discua (In)
67': Zardes makes a great run to the near post. He tries to feed a ball across the face of goal but it is cleared by Palacios.
66': Beautiful, a #DOSACERO chant going around the stadium.
64': GOAL!!!!! CLINT DEMPSEY!!!!!! Michael Bradley curls in the free kick and it meets the forehead of Clint Dempsey. Dempsey is unmarked at the far post and it is 2-0.
63': United States Sub - Tim Chandler (Out), Brad Evans (In)
63': Honduras Sub - Andy Najar (Out), Romell Quioto (In)
62': Honduras is starting to go to ground a little more easy now.
59': United States Sub: Jozy Altidore (Out), Chris Wondolowski (In)
57': A great look by Bradley but his ball into Altidore is just behind him.
56': Yedlin uses his speed to make a recovery run on Andy Najar. That is not something you will see very often.
56': Maynor Figueroa completely mishits his cross. There was no chance for that to beat Guzan.
55': Zardes and Johnson push forward into the attack now. One of the rare attacks down the left side that we have seen tonight for the United States.
53': Corner coming for Honduras as Alvarado sends his clearance out over the wrong line.
52': Bryan Acosta finds a ball at his feet from distance and he fires a long shot. The shot goes well wide.
50': Dempsey brings the ball up the other way, he dishes the ball in front of Altidore but it is too far ahead of the Toronto FC man.
49': Fabian Johnson takes the free kick which clips the top of the wall and out for a United States corner.
47': Dempsey gets fouled on a one-touch pass to Zardes. Bradley was the intended target for Zardes but Bradley stops his run. A free kick coming from straight away for the US.
46': Yedlin makes a run down the wing but a sliding challenge from Maynor Figueroa brings the ball back to Honduras.
46': Honduras plays a longball into the USA area as the second half begins.
46': Honduras gets us underway in the second half, they will be moving from left-to-right on your keyboard.
The teams are coming back onto the pitch.
Here is a look at the halftime stats. Honduras with a slight edge in possession with 50.4%. Honduras is outshooting the United States 9 to 3 but the United States lead with 3 shots on target to the 2 of Honduras.
Halftime: United States 1, Honduras 0
45+2': There is the hlaftime whistle.
45+1': Najar with a great run forward, he shoves Yedlin and fires a curling shot that just goes over the bar.
45': Zardes gets forward and plays in a cross that is bobbled by the keeper but Escober gets back on it.
45': Bradley plays in Altidore. Altidore shields and tries to cross from a tight-angle but it is right to Escober.
43': Just as we say that, the United States breaks forward with a solid attack. Chandler looked to play a diagonal ball to a cutting runner but nobody made the run.
42': The United States is having a problem with their goal kicks right now. They cannot seem to get the ball out of their own end.
41': MISS! Alfredo Mejia fires a shot from distance that just curls over the bar.
41': Martinez plays the ball early to Lozano who hits a shot first time. The shot is well over the bar.
40': Honduras earns a corner but Bryan Acosta absolutely skies that corner.
39': Bradley plays a ball over the top to Altidore, he brings the ball down, turns his defender inside out but his final touch is too strong. Escober gathers the ball.
38': Kyle Beckerman with two big defensive headers to keep the ball from Lozano.
36': Lozano looks for the spectacular but Alvarado makes a great play defensively to head the ball clear.
34': The United States is finally starting to look confident in their attack. They are starting to combine together instead of playing over the top.
33': Michael Bradley takes a corner kick that he tries to curl into the near post but it is just over the crossbar.
31': SAVE!!! Donis Escober comes up big as the United States combination attack finds Yedlin behind the defense. Yedlin cannot get the ball over the goalkeeper from close range. What a run from the young Tottenham Hotspur midfielder.
30': Lozano makes a great turn to get around Brooks, Chandler is in the right place at the right time to clear for a corner.
29': Chandler plays in Altidore who tries to give himself some space. Maynor Figueroa is able to make the recovery run and dispossess the Toronto FC forward.
28': Martinez leads a Honduras attack down the right wing. He attempts to float a ball into the area but he puts too much air under his cross.
27': The crowd is starting to get louder.
25': GOAL!!!!! DEUCE!!!!!! Michael Bradley whips the short corner across the box. It takes a bounces before falls to Altidore who fired a shot that is saved right to the forehead of Clint Dempsey and he doesn't miss. 1-0 United States
25': Corner coming for the United States.
24': Guzan is called into action again as another throughball is played. He is just able to get to it before the charging forward.
23': Chandler looks to play Altidore in behind but the ball is too far ahead of him and out for a goal kick.
22': The United States is having problems getting and holding possession. They need to slow the game down a bit.
21': A ball over the top looking for Lozano is over his head. The ball easily bounces to Guzan.
19': Honduras is really taking to the United States in the first 20 minutes of this match.
18': Chandler pulls down Najar on the wing.
16': Brooks goes into the book for a very late challenge on Mario Martinez, who is just now getting to his feet. He is limping very noticeably as he comes off the field. Michael Bradley is giving the official a piece of his mind.
16': Yellow Card - John Brooks
15': Jozy Altidore is pulled down on an attempted breakout, no card given.
13': The referee talks to players about the shoving before the corner kick and just happens to wait until the moment the ball is kicked to whistle a foul. The United States are voicing their displeasure.
12': Bradley played the ball over the top towards Dempsey is headed out for a corner by Henry Figueroa.
12': Mario Martinez plays a ball over the top looking for Anthony Lozano but it is just too far ahead.
10': Chandler earns another throw-in deeper in the Honduras end. A foul is called on Clint Dempsey now, that will end the USA attack for the moment.
10': Yedlin gets clipped from behind by Maynor Figueroa. Yedlin is struggling to get back to his feet.
9': Chandler looks to feed a cutting Bradley though the middle but the pass is behind him.
9': Martinez takes the space across the field and fires a shot back across goal. The shot sails wide.
6': Najar with the drive after the lovely touch insde. Guzan tips the ball over the bar.
5': Guzan comes off his line to punch the ball out for another corner.
4': An early corner coming for Honduras as the shot from distance is deflected out.
3': SAVE!!! Brad Guzan called into play early after Lozano gets a shot off in behind the defense.
2': An early foul called on Timmy Chandler. He pulls down Mario Martinez.
1': The United States are in all-white.
After some technical difficulties, we are finally ready for football. The United States get us underway moving from left-to-right on your keyboard.
With the finish of the Panama-Haiti match, the United States fans are starting to make themselves heard. That is the first time we have heard 'I Believe' tonight.
Here is the starting eleven for Honduras: (4-5-1) Escober; Crisanto, M. Figueroa, H. Figueroa, Palacios; Najar, Acosta, Mejia, Martinez, Beckeles; Lozano
Here is the starting eleven for the United States: (4-4-2) Guzan; Chandler, Alvarado, Brooks, Johnson; Beckerman, Yedlin, Zardes, Bradley; Dempsey, Altidore
Haiti and Panama are level at halftime.
From the pictures we are seeing, it looks as though the United States will be wearing their white uniforms tonight.
You can follow along with our live coverage of Haiti and Panama right here.
How do you see our match United States - Honduras Live going? Leave us your thoughts in the comments section below.
The biggest question for Honduras will be who will step up offensively. Current leading goal scorer Jerry Bengston is not with the team making 22-year-old Olimpia forward Anthony Lozano the player with most international goals at five. As a team, they have combined for just 27 international goals between the 23 men.
Honduras comes into the Gold Cup as the last qualifier. They defeated French Guiana over two legs to make it into the competition. They bring a squad that has very solid veteran leadership in goalkeeper Noel Valladares and defender Maynor Figueroa. They also have a very good midfield with a solid young core of players under 25. Mario Martinez of Real Espana has 52 caps at age 25, Luis Garrido of Houston Dynamo has 30 caps at age 24, and Andy Najar of Anderlecht has 27 caps at age 22.
The United States should not have any problems getting through their group, the matchup with Panama has always seemed to be a difficult one for the Americans. Projecting into the knockout round, it looks like they will face a path with either Canada or Trinidad and Tobago in the quarterfinals before a clash with Costa Rica or Panama in the semi-finals.
A 4-0 win over Guatemala in their final tune-up match has set the stage for the Gold Cup run. The USA got goals from Tim Chandler, Clint Dempsey, Chris Wondolowski and an own goal by Carlos Castrillo in that match.
The mood surrounding the United States Men’s National Team had changed dramatically. They had gone from a team who could not finish a match earlier in the year to a match who beat two of the three best nations from the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Now the expectation is that the USA should defend their Gold Cup and it should not be a struggle.
The United States took that momentum into Germany where they defeated the defending World Cup Champions 2-1 off of goals from Mix Diskerud and Bobby Wood. This was after Mesut Ozil gave the Germans the lead in the 12th minute.
Bobby Wood finished off the scoring with a goal on a great counterattack led by Michael Bradley. If Wood has missed it, Mix Diskerud was right there as well to tap in. The United States shocked the Dutch 4-3 at the Amsterdam Arena.
Danny Williams would bring the match level in the 89th minute after his strike from the top of the box took a deflection and settled into the net. It was a lovely strike to bring the United States back to a 3-3 score.
John Brooks would pull the first goal back in the 70th minute. He made a great defensive play at the center circle before distributing the ball to Michael Bradley. Bradley would find the streaking Yedlin down the wing, he put a perfect cross into space where Brooks, who continued his run from midfield to the back post, finished without a doubt to bring the score to 3-2.
With the result looking to be all but confirmed, Jurgen Klinsmann make four changes in the next eight minutes to look for some sort of offensive spark. DeAndre Yedlin and Mix Diskerud came in for Brek Shea and Alfredo Morales in the 57th minute, Danny Williams came in for Kyle Beckerman in the 63rd minute, and Bobby Wood came in for Aron Johnnsson in the 65th minute. These players would all play key roles in the final goals of the match.
The Netherlands showed how tough of a team they are as they jumped out to a 3-1 lead after 53 minutes at the Amsterdam Arena. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar scored twice and new Manchester United signing Memphis Depay scored on a deflection to give the Dutch that two goal lead. Gyasi Zardes scored for the United States in the 33rd minute.
The squad looked like they would likely be fighting for draws rather than wins as USMNT regulars Clint Dempsey, Matt Besler, Omar Gonzalez, Alejandro Bedoya, and Jozy Altidore were all off the squad for various reasons. This opened up spots for players like Brek Shea, Alfredo Morales, Danny Williams, and Bobby Wood to potentially show Klinsmann why they should be considered for the Gold Cup roster.
It was a good showing for the United States but there was still work that needed to be done with two tough road trips to Netherlands and Germany for June friendlies. Jurgen Klinsmann wants the United States to gain experience against tough competition and these two are as tough as they come.
Second half substitute Juan Agudelo would close out the scoring just seven minutes after coming onto the pitch. He took a great touch on an entry pass, cut inside with two touches and fired a low shot past the goalkeeper to give the United States a 2-0 lead. A lead that they would actually hold on to en route to another win over Mexico.
When it was time to play, it would be Zardes and Morris who would get the start at forward for the United States. Morris would get the first tally of the match in the 49th minute after a deflected pass from Zardes towards Michael Bradley. The deflection fell into the path of Morris who beat the keeper five-hole to give the Americans the 1-0 lead.
The squad against Mexico was an MLS-heavy squad but we knew that coming in due to the match falling on a non-FIFA matchday. It was also going to be a tough match offensively as the team would be with Clint Dempsey due to the injury and Jozy Altidore due to suspension. That would leave the attacking corps to be led by the 27 caps of Chris Wondolowski. Juan Agudelo, Gyasi Zardes, Julian Green, and Jordan Morris would round out the attacking options for Jurgen Klinsmann.
With the Gold Cup looming as well as friendlies with Mexico, the Netherlands, and Germany, there was a sense of panic among some supporters. Was this what the team had turned in to? Had they forgotten how to play with a lead let alone properly finish a match?
In the first half of those eight matches, the United States had outscored their opponents 10-3. In the second half, they were outscored 12-1. The worst part about it? In the final 15 minutes of those matches, the Americans were outscored 9-0.
The most concerning part about this stretch was that the United States actually held the lead in seven of those eight matches. The only match where they did not hold the lead at one point was in the 4-1 defeat to the Republic of Ireland.
After that win over the Czech Republic though, things took a turn for the worst for the United States. They would win just one (February 8th over Panama) of their next eight matches. Matches that included draws with Ecuador, Honduras, and Switzerland as well as losses to Colombia, Republic of Ireland, Chile, and Denmark.
Three players made their international debuts that night Joe Gyau, Greg Garza, and Emerson Hyndman. Garza is the only one of those players still with the squad, he replaced the injured Brad Davis on the USMNT roster. Garza is now up to eight caps with the National Team.
They did show very well in their first post-World Cup outing, a 1-0 win over the Czech Republic on September 3rd in Prague. Alejandro Bedoya scored the lone goal in the 39th minute after a rebound from a Mix Diskerud shot. The result was a surprise to many with the youth in the squad.
It has been a very interesting year since the Americans fell in the Round of 16 at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The first eight months were not good by any means for the United States.
Good evening and welcome to VAVEL USA’s live coverage of the United States Men’s National Team. Our match tonight is the first for the United States as they look to defend their Gold Cup crown and clinch a berth into the 2017 Confederations Cup in Russia. They will be taking on Honduras from Frisco, Texas. My name is Matthew Evans and I will be your host for tonight’s match.