As you can see from the highlights, the US MNT's 1-0 loss to Slovakia wasn't pretty, but they hung in there, got some good chances, and only allowed a goal on a questionable penalty kick (also, good job spelling Marek Hamsik's name wrong, USsoccer.com).

There really isn't too much you can say about this match.

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The Sin: Envy has always been associated with the color green, probably in a large part thanks to the Bard's classic Othello. In that play, the jealousy that accompanies envy is referred to as "the green-eyed monster". Proverbs 23:17 also warns against it, stating that one should "Let not thine heart envy sinners, but be thou in the fear of the Lord.

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The USA plays 2 international friendly matches in the next 10 days.
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Nov 14
Slovakia v USA
-Wed Nov 18
Denmark v USA
Here is the roster:
G:
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa
Marcus Hahnemann - Wolverhampton
Troy Perkins - Valerenga
D:
Carlos Bocanegra - Rennes
Jonathan Bornstein - Chivas USA
Steve Cherundolo - Hannover
Jimmy Conrad - Kansas City Wizards
Clarence Goodson - Start
Frankie Hejduk - Columbus Crew
Chad Marshall - Columbus Crew
Heath Pearce - FC Dallas
Jonathan Spector - West Ham
M:
Michael Bradley - Monchengladbach
Clint Dempsey - Fulham
Benny Feilhaber - AGF Aarhus
Sacha Kljestan - Chivas USA
Dax McCarty - FC Dallas
Robbie Rogers - Columbus Crew
F:
Jozy Altidore - Hull City
Conor Casey - Colorado Rapids
Jeff Cunningham - FC Dallas
Eddie Johnson - Fulham
So much for Edgar Castillo's call up. Click to continue reading...

BAM!G - Guzan, Howard, PerkinsD - Bocanegra, Marshall*/Califf/Gibbs, Castillo, Cherundolo, Conrad, Goodson, Pearce, SpectorM - Bradley, Beckerman*/Cronin, Cameron*/McCarty, Dempsey, Donovan*/Beasley/Bedoya, Feilhaber, Torres, WhiteF - Altidore, Casey, Cunningham, Findley*/CooperThe players marked with an asterisk may or may not be available, depending on MLS leg two results this week. Click to continue reading...

The U.S. men's national team is set to close out its World Cup qualifying campaign tonight against Costa Rica (8pm, ESPN2/Galavision). The Americans have already qualified, but Costa Rica needs a win tonight to ensure a berth in the 2010 World Cup.

Tonight's match is being played under a bit of a somber cloud as the U.

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No LIVE tonight, but we have a preview look from ESPN and I'll be back in about 30 with the line-ups (as well as the usual wrap bits after).UPDATE:Howard; Cherundolo, Onyewu, Bocanegra, Bornstein, Feilhaber, Bradley, Holden, Donovan, Altidore, CaseyBench: Guzan, Conrad, Torres, Rogers, Cooper, Spector, Clark- Greg Seltzer Click to continue reading...

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                                                                       Photo by ISIphotos.com

With the 2010 World Cup berth already secured, the U.S. national team will head into its final qualifier on Wednesday playing for a chance to top the CONCACAF qualifying group, and a chance to improve its place in the FIFA world rankings (as well as score a measure of revenge for the 3-1 thumping delivered by Costa Rica in June).

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                                                                       Photo by ISIphotos.com

With the 2010 World Cup berth already secured, the U.S. national team will head into its final qualifier on Wednesday playing for a chance to top the CONCACAF qualifying group, and a chance to improve its place in the FIFA world rankings (as well as score a measure of revenge for the 3-1 thumping delivered by Costa Rica in June).

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I'm still sweating whether my feed will hold up all the way through, but it's about 98% that I'll have one.I'll be back around 8.30 PM ET with my thoughts, with the line-ups and a prediction to follow at around 9 PM. This is what I expect will be the line-up:Howard; Cherundolo, Onyewu, Bocanegra, Hejduk, Bradley, Clark, Holden, Donovan, Davies, AltidoreSee ya in a while. Click to continue reading...

                                                                         Photo by ISIphotos.com

With the roster now selected, it is time to consider the options U.S. head coach Bob Bradley has when selecting his starting lineup in next weekend's World Cup qualifier vs.

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                                                                         Photo by ISIphotos.com

With the roster now selected, it is time to consider the options U.S. head coach Bob Bradley has when selecting his starting lineup in next weekend's World Cup qualifier vs.

Click to continue reading...

Here is our USA Roster for the final two CONCACAF World Cup qualifying games, to be played Oct 10 at Honduras, and Oct 14 v Costa Rica in Washington DC.
G:
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa
Tim Howard - Everton
D:
Carlos Bocanegra - Stade Rennes
Jonathan Bornstein - Chivas USA
Steve Cherundolo - Hannover
Jimmy Conrad - Kansas City Wizards
Clarence Goodson -Start
Oguchi Onyewu - AC Milan
Jonathan Spector - West Ham
M:
Michael Bradley - Monchengladbach
Ricardo Clark - Houston Dynamo
Clint Dempsey - Fulham
Landon Donovan - Los Angeles Galaxy
Benny Feilhaber - AGF Aarhus
Stuart Holden - Houston Dynamo
Robbie Rogers - Columbus Crew
Jose Francisco Torres - Pachuca
F:
Jozy Altidore - Hull
Conor Casey - Colorado Rapids
Brian Ching - Houston Dynamo
Kenny Cooper - 1860 Munich
Charlie Davies - Sochaux
Two comments:
-Are you surprised to see Jimmy Conrad back on the team? Click to continue reading...

You guys recently submitted your questions to us picking our brains about everything US Soccer (and some other stuff, as well). Thank you for participating. Some of the questions are obviously pretty old, but we don't get that many and we wanted to answer all of them. Now here are our answers:

HEJDUK FAN Hi guys.

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The U.S. makes two changes from Saturday, bringing in Ricardo Clark and Oguchi Onyewu.Howard; Spector, Onyewu, Bocanegra (c), Bornstein; Dempsey, Clark, Bradley, Donovan; Davies, AltidoreBench - Guzan, Marshall, Torres, Ching, Cherundolo, Feilhaber, Holden--- Greg Seltzer Click to continue reading...

Here is the USA 24 player training roster for the 2 World Cup qualifying games against El Salvador at home on Sat Sep 5 and away to Trinidad & Tobago on Wed Sep 9.
G:
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa
Tim Howard - Everton
D:
Carlos Bocanegra - Rennes
Jonathan Bornstein - Chivas USA
Steve Cherundolo - Hannover
Jay DeMerit - Watford
Clarence Goodson - Start
Chad Marshall - Columbus Crew
Oguchi Onyewu - Milan
Jonathan Spector - West Ham
M:
Kyle Beckerman - Real Salt Lake
Michael Bradley - Monchengladbach
Ricardo Clark - Houston Dynamo
Clint Dempsey - Fulham
Landon Donovan - Los Angeles Galaxy
Benny Feilhaber - Aarhus
Stuart Holden - Houston Dynamo
Robbie Rogers - Columbus Crew
Jose Francisco Torres - Pachuca
F:
Jozy Altidore - Hull
Conor Casey - Colorado Rapids
Brian Ching - Houston Dynamo
Charlie Davies - Sochaux
Robbie Findley - Real Salt Lake
Any surprises here? Click to continue reading...

MAN OF THE MATCH: This was clearly a two-horse race. While Charlie Davies did score the USA's lone goal, he failed to put away his golden opportunity to get the go-ahead in the second half. Overall, a good performance, but we had to give the nod to Oguchi Onyewu.

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Well, the big day has arrived and the time is nigh. I'll be back in a moment with my view of the impending CONCACAF World Cup qualifier between the U.S. and arch nemesis Mexico in a few. For now, the Red, White & Blue line-up that will try to break the Azteca jinx:Howard; Cherundolo, Demerit, Onyewu, Bocanegra, Bradley, Clark, Dempsey, Donovan, Davies, ChingI'm little surprised to see 'Dolo over Click to continue reading...

US Soccer released the roster for the August 12 "Attack the Azteca" game today, and THERE ARE NO SHOCKS but a couple of mild surprises.
GK: Guzan, Howard
DEFENSE: Spector, Bocanegra, Onyewu, Marshall, Bornstein, Cherundolo and DeMerit
MIDFIELD: Bradley, Clark, Dempsey, Feilhaber, Holden and Torres
FORWARD: Altidore, Casey, Ching, Davies and Donovan
Looks like DaMarcus Beasley has finally played himself out of the program. Click to continue reading...

Here is the 20 player training roster for the USA, to be cut down to 18 on game day:
G:
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa
Tim Howard - Everton
D:
Carlos Bocanegra - Stade Rennes
Jonathan Bornstein - Chivas USA
Steve Cherundolo – Hannover 96
Jay DeMerit - Watford
Chad Marshall - Columbus Crew
Oguchi Onyewu – AC Milan
Jonathan Spector - West Ham United
M:
Michael Bradley – Borussia Monchengladbach
Ricardo Clark - Houston Dynamo
Clint Dempsey - Fulham
Benny Feilhaber - AGF Aarhus
Stuart Holden - Houston Dynamo
Jose Francisco Torres - Pachuca
F:
Jozy Altidore - Hull City
Conor Casey - Colorado Rapids
Brian Ching - Houston Dynamo
Charlie Davies - Sochaux
Landon Donovan - Los Angeles Galaxy
For me the surprises on this roster are Chad Marshall, Stuart Holden & Conor Casey. Click to continue reading...

I finally got a chance to watch the U.S. Honduras match and, in the absence of our normal source for shot details, once again compiled my own list of shots taken, their position, and result. By my count, the U.S. took 18 shots against Honduras, 9 in each half. As always, I'll use the abbreviations set out here.

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US Men's National Team backup players, Santino Quaranta and Brian Ching scored four minutes apart late in the second half to lift the United States to a 2-0 victory over Honduras on Wednesday, putting the two-time defending champion on the verge of the Gold Cup quarterfinals.
Team List
USA
Coach: Bob Bradley
T. Click to continue reading...

US Men's National Team backup players, Santino Quaranta and Brian Ching scored four minutes apart late in the second half to lift the United States to a 2-0 victory over Honduras on Wednesday, putting the two-time defending champion on the verge of the Gold Cup quarterfinals.
Team List
USA
Coach: Bob Bradley
T. Click to continue reading...

I'm making one catch all post for this match, which sees the USMNT accept a Gold Cup call in Washington D.C. with a chance to clinch advancement to the knockouts.Tonight's line-up card is as follows:Perkins; Cherundolo (c), Marshall, Parkhurst, Pearce; Quaranta, Pause, Beckerman, Rogers; Adu, ChingSubs: Robles, Evans, Davies, Holden, Feilhaber, Heaps, CooperI gotta say, I rather like this line-up Click to continue reading...

We all remember a day eight years ago don't we. Â It was a 3-2 loss to Honduras at RFK stadium, the last home loss to a CONCACAF opponent. Â I'm going to be running an in game commentary here, so follow along, and keep the comments coming. Â Read on...

The US lineup is as follows:Â

Ching

Rogers Adu Quaranta

Beckerman Pause

Pearce Marshall Parkhurst Cherundolo

Perkins -

Available Subs:

9-Charlie Davies
10-Stuart Holden
16-Jay Heaps
17-Kenny Cooper
18-Luis Robles
21-Brad Evans

25-Benny Feilhaber

No big shocks except that Benny Feilhaber doesn't get the start.

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Here's how the USA will lineup for tonight, courtesy of U.S. Soccer's twitter feed.
Perkins; Cherundolo (c), Marshall, Parkhurst, Pearce; Quaranta, Pause, Beckerman, Rogers; Adu, Ching
On the bench tonight: Robles, Evans, Davies, Holden, Feilhaber, Heaps, Cooper...
Tune in at 9 p. Click to continue reading...

Sorry this is a little late, but I think it's an important discussion to have...

We've all read plenty of articles praising the Nats for their improbably run to the Cup finals, so we'll spare you the discussion of their "grit" and "heart."  (Funny I was always led to believe that Frankie Hejduk was our sole source of these invaluable commodities.

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                                                                               Photo by ISIphotos.com

If Grenada was the appetizer then the U.S. Men's national team's next Gold Cup opponent has to be considered the main course, but while Honduras should provide a tougher test than the 'Spice Boys', this isn't the same Honduras team that pushed the U.

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                                                                               Photo by ISIphotos.com

If Grenada was the appetizer then the U.S. Men's national team's next Gold Cup opponent has to be considered the main course, but while Honduras should provide a tougher test than the 'Spice Boys', this isn't the same Honduras team that pushed the U.

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Let's be perfectly honest here: Grenada... it was Grenada. Â A country with a population of 90,000. Â Were they ever going to threaten the US, no. Â Was the match ever in doubt from the opening whistle, no. Â With that in mind, the penchant was on the US to attack from the onset, impose their will upon a week Grenada.

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                                               Photo by ISIphotos.com

Who should Bob Bradley start vs. Grenada?

Doesn't have the same ring of importance and urgency as "Who should Bradley start vs. Spain" or "Who should Bradley start vs.

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Assuming that many of the USA players who are on the World Cup qualifying and Confederations Cup rosters will not be on the Gold Cup team, here is my pool of players that I see the 23 Gold Cup players coming from.
There are 78 here in total.
Who should or should not be in my list, and who would be your first 11? Click to continue reading...

Progress is not measured by scoring your first goal since Earnie Stewart in 2000 whenever... Especially not on a penalty kick at the very end of a game that you are losing 3-0 and trying to qualify for a World Cup. The loss to Costa Rica showed a lot of things, mostly that the U.S. team has not made the progress yet that it needs to make in order to make it far. Click to continue reading...

While watching the US defeat Mexico (again) on Wednesday, I was keeping an eye on Ives Galarcep's running commentary. One of his halftime thoughts kind of struck me:

Will the "Frank Hejduk is awful" people finally relax? He's not Dani Alves but he can step up and play well when needed.

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American Steve Cherundolo is starting at right back right now against 1FC Koeln in Bundesliga action tonight in Germany. Follow the match here. In German. Click to continue reading...

It was a breath of fresh air (literally) to be back in Chicago on Wednesday. After months of humidity in the Southeast, the cool and dry air of the Windy City offered a welcome respite. Since there is no viable public transport from downtown to Bridgeview, we were forced to battle the rush-hour traffic out to the stadium.

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