Indians 5 Reds 2: The Great Giambino to the rescue!
May 30, 2013Cleveland Sports bits and pieces
May 30, 2013International soccer came to Cleveland last night and more than a few traditional Cleveland sports fans wondered what the response would be like. In the end 27,720 seemed like a capacity crowd as Clevelanders cheered on a pretty poor effort from the United States. Some may scoff when I call 27,000 a capacity crowd, but consider that only the lower bowl and one of the club sections were even open. Make no mistake though, when given a good opportunity it was loud.
And the crowd really only had one big opportunity in the 4-2 loss to Belgium. The United States went down 1-0 in the first half in the sixth minute of play, but it didn’t deflate the crowd. Then in the 22nd minute the United States put the ball across the goal mouth of Belgium on a corner, Clint Dempsey headed it back across the goal where Geoff Cameron was waiting to put it in the net. They were able to score right in front of the American Outlaws, the USMNT equivalent to the Dawg Pound too. FirstEnergy stadium exploded1 as the Americans celebrated on the field.
The 1-1 score held up through halftime, but Belgium hit really hard in the second half. The U.S. defense seemed to break down and the sloppy touches in the midfield were leading to turnovers. Combined with a halftime goalkeeper switch away from Tim Howard to Brad Guzan. The United States got one more goal on a Clint Dempsey penalty kick after a hand ball was called, and the 4-2 defeat was complete.
It was a fun night. It was a warmup for the USMNT, but it was a nice showcase for the city of Cleveland as a place to hold international soccer games. While I don’t think it put Cleveland in the top markets for soccer, it was a very nice showing by the local fans. It’ll be tough to compete with Columbus who really shined when they got a chance to host a world cup qualifier, but again, a great night in Cleveland.
- I was with Jon and family and it also brought his child to tears as the noise scared her completely out of her comfort. [↩]
14 Comments
I was there as well. It was a great night, minus the result on the field. There was a great crowd. The biggest downer was not being able to grab a tshirt because ALL of the credit card machines were down at the merch booths. That aside I’d love to see more international or club sides come to town, I’d buy tickets again.
Ditto. Amazing evening. In addition to some of the credit card machines going down, a few places ran out of beer too, which was a bummer.
Nice recap, Craig. I was partying with the American Outlaws all day yesterday and had a blast. The roar in our section after the USA’s first goal was incredible. I only wish we could have had more highlights to cheer, but Belgium is one of the best teams in the world right now and our boys were missing an important piece in Michael Bradley. Also, it’s hard to overstate the impact of Tim Howard, as he only played the first half – and it was tied 1-1 at half. GO USA!
I was at that qualifier.
something to keep in mind…CC stadium in Columbus seats just a bit over 20 thousand
we had 35% more than their max capacity.
but it only filled 37 % of CBS
I had no idea this game was even here and I’m not kidding.
I watched on TV, but the reaction of the commentators to the crowd in Cleveland as well as the field conditions at First Energy was definitely favorable. There were a few bright spots in the game. I thought DaMarcus Beasley looked great at left back for the second time in a row, which had been a sore spot for years for the USMNT. He was getting forward more than the forwards and had plenty of speed to get back and cover. Graham Zusi looks like a good component as a wide midfielder… excellent crossing and competent on the ball… solid defensive player as well. Altidore was lost trying to work up top by himself (as he always is when Klinnsman tries to put him there)… that’s not his game, but aside from that he just seemed content to let himself get taken out of plays and not hustle back… frustrating since my only USMNT jersey is Altidore’s. A game to forget for Omar Gonzalez, but I still like his potential as a young centerback. An okay game from Dempsey, but I expected more from him in the attacking third. He scored a goal yes, but it was Eddie Johnson’s work that gave him the penalty kick (btw, I like this little experiment with Eddie Johnson playing on the wing… he’s been dangerous out there). Sacha Kljestan isn’t starter-quality and it showed. Rough game for Cameron and I still like him better as a centerback than fullback. The midfield hurts when Michael Bradley isn’t a part of it.
Me too. I didn’t know about it until yesterday. If it had been in the news more, I might have gone to the game.
Literally, the only guys that showed up last night were Jones, Beasley, Zusi, and Howard. The rest of the team was sleep walking through the game. It was incredibly frustrating.
Regarding Dempsey: They could barely move the ball out of the defensive third of the field. That doesn’t bode well for him having a good night. I was really disappointed in that, he’s my favorite player on this team by far.
I agree that the game wasn’t very well advertised. I just found out about it from a coworker a couple days ago. I follow Tottenham Hotspur in the EPL, so I would have made the effort to get there from Columbus to see Dempsey, Dembele, and Vertonghen all playing here in Ohio.
It’s hard to believe Belgium are only ranked 15th in the world. That team is loaded.
I’m not an Omar Gonzalez fan. And I root for Eddie Johnson, but dude has never really put it together except for a brief 2-year run. I’m a harsh critic on him because he has real talent.
well, Lukaku and Benteke just really came into their own in the last 9 months. Fellaini, while always solid, also took a step up to the next level this year. so that’s your 2 forwards and a center-mid suddenly playing at a very high level. (and i didn’t even mention Hazard).
Add to that the emergence of Vertonghen on the world stage, and a classy season by their keeper from Sunderland. They aren’t sleepers anymore!
I love the United States Mutant Ninja Turtles.
I have never liked Eddie Johnson on the national level, but I am now starting to wonder if he was miscast in his position all along by Bob Bradley. He’s provided a real spark when put in a 4-3-3 where he is a withdrawn wing forward and can run at the flanks. Wish we would have had a few years to see that in his prime.
I love me some Clint Dempsey and I guess I should have said that I judge him on a different scale. Because he’s so talented, I expect more from him… he needs to act like the USMNT’s best player and I just didn’t see that from him yesterday even in spite of lack of service. It seemed like a lackluster effort to me compared to what I am used to seeing from him.