Despite their 2-1 win, the United States did not play well against Honduras on Tuesday night. Los Catrachos were the better team for most of the game, but just didn't have anyone as clinical and clutch in front of net as Clint Dempsey. That was the entire difference between the two teams. One really experienced player.
The USMNT stunk against Honduras. They’ll probably win the Gold Cup anyway.
There really isn’t anything to worry about.
Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
There were so many things about the USMNT's performance that were concerning. Brad Guzan and Fabian Johnson, bless them, were doing everything they could to hold a bad defense together. John Brooks was below average, Timothy Chandler was worse and Ventura Alvarado had his worst game in a USMNT shirt -- which is saying quite a bit. Kyle Beckerman, theoretically in front of the defense to protect them, didn't do much of that at all.
Going the other direction, Jozy Altidore was Bad Jozy instead of Good Jozy, doing that thing where he stands around and everyone yells "F--KING RUN!" at their televisions. Chris Wondolowski wasn't much better when he came on, though he did run. Gyasi Zardes had a handful of good moments, but largely looked unsuited to Jurgen Klinsmann's diamond setup. There's a lot that needs fixing.
The good news is that absolutely none of this is cause for concern. Partially because the schedule worked out favorably for the USMNT, and partially because their main rivals have been ravaged by injuries.
First, the schedule -- Honduras was as hard as it gets for a while. They’re a mean, hard-working team with some serious athletic talent and they always give the U.S. a hard game. They’re probably the fourth-best team in CONCACAF. Over their next two games, the Americans get to play Haiti and a Panama team that drew Haiti, so they’re probably quite a bit less formidable than the Hex version of Los Canaleros. The third-placed team that the U.S. plays in the quarterfinals will probably be worse than both of these teams.
So Klinsmann has three games to try random stuff, play with his lineup and figure out his best team. It doesn’t matter if the U.S. puts in bad performances in all three of those games -- they probably won’t lose any of them.
The other piece of excellent news for the USMNT is that Mexico and Costa Rica are at nowhere near full strength. Depending on who you ask, Los Ticos might be missing as many as six first-choice players, including Real Madrid goalkeeper and World Cup Superman Keylor Navas. Mexico sucked in both of their Gold Cup warm-up friendlies, where they lost Hector Moreno and "Chicharito" Javier Hernandez to injuries.
If the U.S. had harder group stage games coming up, or their top rivals were looking great, there would be reason to freak out. But there are easy games coming up, while Mexico and Costa Rica are nowhere near full strength. Everything is fine. The USMNT are in great shape.
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