Down 3-2 to a superior Mexico side in the 2011 Gold Cup final, Bob Bradley needed to take a gamble, and he hasn't disappointed, deploying highly rated New York Red Bulls striker Juan Agudelo to see if he can get the United States back into the match. Alejandro Bedoya is the sacrifice, and in all honesty the 24-year-old didn't really do enough out on the right side to break up Mexico's game or help the US' attacking players.
Gold Cup Final 2011, USA Vs. Mexico: Juan Agudelo Comes In For Alejandro Bedoya
Although the substitution is a striker for a midfielder, Bradley's shape stays the same: Agudelo will go up top and goalscorer Landon Donovan will drop back into the right wing spot vacated by Bedoya. It's still, overall, an attacking move, but we haven't seen any huge tactical shift from the USA yet. If the score stays the same for the next ten minutes or so, expect to get a fairly major one.
And for the sake of New York Red Bulls fans around the world, let’s hope nothing happens to their prize youngster. They’ve already lost captain Rafael Marquez to an injury today, after all.
For more on how the two teams got to this point, check out our USA vs. Panama stream and our Mexico vs. Honduras stream. For more updates leading up to USA vs. Mexico, bookmark this StoryStream. For all of our previous Gold Cup coverage, check out the Gold Cup 2011 section. For more on Mexican football, including the Mexican national team, the Mexico vs. USA game, and the Mexican Primera, check out SB Nation’s Mexican football blog FMF State Of Mind.
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