Some (one) of you have requested it, so here I am: all set to live blog (is that one word or two?) the USA-Mexico game TONIGHT! Just to give you some perspective, as I am without one of those new fangled fancy laptop dealies, I've uprooted my big ass PC so as to get all of the benefits of HD and the Internet. The things I go through for you people...
I can't remember if I've given an official prediction, so I'll go ahead and do it now; as lovely has dos a cero would be, my gut tells me the Mexicans get at least one.
USA 2 Mexico 1, Donovan and Onweyu with the goals.
Stay tuned as I attempt to be as witty as possible without cursing on Match Fit USA's Premier Live Blogging Event!
T-Minus 5 minutes: I really can't stand NASCAR coverage. And would someone explain to me how an ex-basketball player becomes a racing expert?
T-Minus Not Sure Exactly: The crowd looks thin, but that's obviously an effect of the weather. Starting lineup is basically what we all thought it would be.
T-Minus Almost There: Poor Pedro Gomez. I'm still not a fan of sideline reporters for soccer.
Anthems: Anyone know where that hand-across-thing during the Mexican anthem comes from? Seems a bit odd, but I'm not judging.
Anthems: The American portion of the crowd seems to be in good voice. We'll see how they hold up. A lot of beer and a lot of adrenaline can overcome cold and wet any day.
Kickoff: Here we go! Let's see who pressure's first.
3rd Minute: Things are still very unsettled, with a lot of giveaways dominating early. AND HOWARD COMES UP BIG! Bad defending.
4th Minute: The wind is going to play havoc with clearances, just like it did there with Gooch's attempt.
6th Minute: I'm already not happy with the referee.
7th Minute: Sacha just looks plain weird, and he's definitely got some nerves. Poor touch there when had a chance to go one v. one.
9th Minute: Gooch isn't getting the benefit of the doubt with the referee, which could be bad news later on.
11th Minute: C'mon boys! Settle the damn thing down! We're just playing out of control, and it's going to bite us if we aren't careful. Need to get some possession just to slow the Mexicans.
12th Minute: I want DMB to get a little more depth, although he just had a nice cross. The problem with playing with width is that the wind is going to mess with everything.
16th Minute: A little bit of role-reversal right now. Looks like the Americans want to a buildup, while the Mexicans are looking for a quick break.
16th Minute: DMB with a weak left-footed shot. Not a bad effort, but never looked that dangerous.
20th Minute: The game has definitely settled down quite a bit. We're getting some possession, we're not just not doing anything with it.
21st Minute: Ching does what he does and draws a foul in a dangerous area. I think this has to be Sacha's.
22nd Minute: Donovan hits it wide left. Damn, what an opportunity. AND WHAT THE HELL IS ESPN DOING GOING TO A SPORTSCENTER BREAK IN THE MIDDLE OF THE GAME!
24th Minute: Sacha needs to trust himself a little more. He can make a mark in this game, but I think he's definitely still pressing a bit.
27th Minute: Great shot of the SBI banner from the contest Ives ran.
27th Minute: Beasley with another left-footed shot from a loose ball, easy save for Sanchez.
29th Minute: I might have some larger breaks between updates coming up; my son doesn't want to sit still.
31st Minute: Great save by Sanchez on a shot from Dempsey. Donovan did well to head it back into space to set up the shot.
33rd Minute: One of Mexico's most dangerous players, Nery Castillo, pulls up lame. Huge break for the US if he is done.
35th Minute: Castillo IS done. Wow. Neither side is taking control right now, but it seems like the Americans are having the better of play (for the moment).
36th Minute: Howard with another save. Great chance for Mexico. Our back line looked lost there, chasing around Dos Santos leading up to the shot.
38th Minute: End to end stuff here, but our passing is still a little dodgy. Donovan tried to spring Dempsey, good idea.
40th Minute: Boca fouls, bad bad stuff there. The wind takes the cross (or so I thought) and pushes it straight to Howard.
41st Minute: A programming note for me: have to take care of my son at halftime, and guarantee I'll be back right when the second half kicks off.
43rd Minute: Hejduk does what he does, and wins a corner on the right. Beasley takes, GOAL MICHAEL BRADLEY!
Beasley with the far post corner, headed back to the middle, and Bradley finds the back of the net.
45th Minute: Great ball into Beasley, and the touch let him down. Sanchez makes a saving play.
HALFTIME: Great stuff to end the half. Going in with a lead is HUGE and takes some pressure off of our boys going into the second 45. Have to go feed my son now, hope to be back soon.
46th Minute: Alright, I'm back and primed for our boys to put this away (knock on wood). Luckily my kid eats fast.
47th Minute: Sven putting a good face on his team's performance. They had chances, put it definitely appeared the US played better.
48th Minute: First few minutes here are crucial. The Americans can't get complacent. Through ball for Beasley from Bradley, just a touch too much weight.
50th Minute: Gooch is scaring the living crap out of me right now. Bad giveaway in mid-field.
51st Minute: And then Gooch makes a great play to get the ball back to Howard.
52nd Minute: The Mexicans look like their playing with a little more intensity than at the end of the first half, but the Americans are doing well to keep them uncomfortable.
54th Minute: Playing well through mid-field, but there's always a pass that's just a touch off that ends the attack.
56th Minute: I'm a Landon fan, but he seems like he's playing a little more tentatively than usual. He doesn't look like he wants to trust the jets.
57th Minute: Any free kick into the wind (the direction we're going now) is just dying.
58th Minute: Ching seems fairly anonymous most of the time, but when he does touch the ball, something good usually happens. I think I'm not officially in the bag for Brian Ching.
59th Minute: Mexico finally gets behind the US defense, but a good line kept Pardo offside (barely). Zinha (Sinha) on for Mexico.
61st Minute: Boca is always too quick to play the long ball. The wind is just going to eat those alive.
62st Minute: The Mexican's are definitely starting to try to take advantage of the high line we're playing. Always scary to watch, because we're depending on the ref's assistant to get the offsides call right.
64th Minute: It's almost a miracle that there have been no cards in this game. Who would have called that before kickoff?
65th Minute: Wow. Pardo free kick and all hell breaks loose. Mexico got a red, but I can't tell who. Announcers think it's Marquez. Holy crap did we dodge a bullet right there. There is absolutely no way that ball should have stayed out of the net.
66th Minute: As soon as I say something about cards, Marquez gets sent off. I HAVE THE MAGIC TOUCH. Let's hope I don't let the power go to my head.
68th Minute: Anyone have any clue why Howard got a yellow?
69th Minute: Alright boys, possession is our friend.
70th Minute: Haven't seen anyone warming up on the American side. I'm curious what Bradley is going to do now with Mexico down a man.
71st Minute: Damnit Sacha; you can't give the ball away in mid-field like that. Long shot wide from Mexico after the turnover.
72st Minute: Looks like we might see Marvell Wynne with Frankie limping.
74th Minute: I'd like to see us take those free kicks on the ground and take the wind out of play.
75th Minute: The wind is effecting the Mexican's too, as their long pass sails out of bounds.
77th Minute: For a team a man up, we seem to have an awful lot of trouble holding onto the ball. We're passing better, looking dangerous. Hejduk shot, Ching was offside and couldn't redirect.
79th Minute: Long ball, Ochoa has the ball knocked away by Howard. Corner to Mexico. I'm a little nervous.
80th Minute: Boca saves the day, Mexico back in, cross straight to Howard. We've played with some fire tonight...
81st Minute: Frankie is just a smart player. The attack slows down and he plays the ball out off the Mexican player to waste some time.
82nd Minute: Jozy on for Ching. I thought we'd see Jozy; I think he has a chance to do some damage.
84th Minute: Another mid-field giveaway has the Mexicans on the attack. Deep throw in, ball goes back out to the top of the 18, long shot and Frankie cleans it up.
85th Minute: Americans breaking out, now slowing it down. Good stuff.
86th Minute: Ricardo Clark on for Kljestan. I like this sub, just hope Clark is careful with the ball. Sometimes his passing is a little short.
89th Minute: I expect the Mexicans to start throwing everything they got now. Smart passes boys, smart passes.
90th Minute: Sometimes the Mexicans get themselves in trouble by trying to be too perfect. Dempsey goes down, maybe a little gamesmanship, but I didn't see the foul.
91st Minute: Blew a chance there. Donovan can't corral a wind ball.
92nd Minute: Jozy now, pass out to Donovan. Bradley SCORES!
DOS A CERO! DOS A CERO! BRACE FOR BRADLEY!
Tons of space for Bradley, tons of power and he hit it on target. I'm almost too excited to type.
FINAL: That's it. Great way to start off the hexagonal. Mexico had their chances, but I think our boys definitely deserved it. The weather played its part, but it by no means ruined the game.
So I think the live blogging went pretty well. I feel like I missed a few things trying to watch and type at the same time, but it was good nonetheless. I'll be back tomorrow with a few final thoughts on the game.
