Kljestan Hat Trick Powers US To 3-2 Win Over Sweden

A Great Win But Come On Folks – Not Even 10,000 Fans In The Stadium?

Sacha Kljestan scored the 11th hat trick ever for the U.S. Men’s National Team Saturday evening to earn a 3-2 victory against Sweden to open their 2009 campaign at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. If any club was on the fence about signing him, last night’s performance should have his agent’s phone burning with calls.

In a fairly tepid first 45 minutes, Kljestan provided the U.S. with a 2-0 lead going into the locker room. His first goal was a stunning 35-yard free kick that he placed perfectly into the upper left corner, before following up that effort by burying a penalty kick with five minutes remaining in the half.

With Sweden pulling a goal back in the 73rd minute, it was Kljestan once again who answered for the U.S., taking a feed from Brian Ching to bury a left-footed shot just one minute later. In the 89th minute, Sweden struck again to make things interesting, but the U.S. was able to kill off any last minute attacks for an equalizer.

The three goals by Kljestan were the first of his career with the full team, and put him in unique company as only the second player ever to open his national team scoring account with a hat trick. The only other player to pull off the feat was Aldo “Buff” Donelli, who tallied four goals in a 4-2 victory against Mexico on May 24, 1934, in the lone qualifying match for the 1934 FIFA World Cup in Italy.

“Getting a hat trick is pretty exciting for me,” said Kljestan. “I’ve never scored more than one goal in a game as a professional, so it’s definitely exciting. I’m just as happy about the win and I’m glad we held on in the end. It was great to do it [score a hat trick] here at the Home Depot Center. I have a lot of friends and family that come and support me every game, so that was pretty cool to have them here.”

The victory kept the U.S. undefeated in eight matches at The HDC (7-0-1) and was the eleventh straight time the U.S. has either tied or won their opening game of the year, with the U.S. also defeating Sweden 1-0 to start the streak in 1998. Overall against Sweden, the U.S. now holds a winning record with four victories and three losses in seven games.

Despite a fairly inexperienced roster, the U.S. was able to control the majority of the match and provide an effective attack, especially in the second half. Of the 18 players on the roster, 13 had less than 10 career caps, and six of the starters chosen by U.S. head coach Bob Bradley had less than 5 caps, including two – goalkeeper Troy Perkins and midfielder Robbie Rogers – who earned their first caps on the night.

The slow and controlled beginning of the match was jarred awake by Kljestan with his stunning free kick in the 17th minute that gave the U.S. the early lead. Ching, the leading U.S. capwinner on the roster (33), was brought down by Marcus Lindberg about 30 yards out and on the free kick Rogers ran over the ball allowing Kljestan to unleash his drive into the upper-left corner of the goal.

The U.S. continued to control most of the possession and doubled their lead near the end of the half with some nice possession play that led to a penalty kick. The ball was knocked out wide right where Ching was able to collect the ball and touch it to John Thorrington along the sideline. With Marvell Wynne involved in the attack, Thorrington slipped the ball through for him and he took one touch to get into the penalty area before getting tripped up by Adam Johansson. Kljestan stepped up to bury the penalty shot to the right of the goal as Dahlin went the opposite direction.

During the first half, the U.S. was able to thwart Sweden’s attack as captain Danny Califf and fellow central defender Michael Parkhurst controlled the backline, while midfielder Ricardo Clark also broke up numerous attacks. Wynne and Jonathan Bornstein were also staunch in their defending on the wings, while also choosing wisely when to dart up the sideline and join in the attack. Overall in the first half, Sweden only had two shots, and just one on goal, which came from Mikael Dahlberg in the 24th minute, a 18-yard effort towards the lower left post that Perkins was able to cover with ease.

Kenny Cooper came on to replace Charlie Davies to start the second half, and the 6-foot-3 forward almost tallied two minutes in when he got his head to a Rogers corner kick. The header got past Dahlin, who had challenged for the service, but Lindberg was able to clear it off the line and over the bar.

Despite controlling much of the play, Sweden pulled one back when Alexander Farnerud supplied a service into the penalty area for Daniel Nannskog, who lost Bornstein at the right post and finished past Perkins with a diving header.

The U.S. was quick to respond a minute later. Once again it was Kljestan getting the accolades with the finish, but the set-up by Ching was what provided the U.S. breathing room once again. Following a long ball from the back from Califf, Ching brought the ball down with an impressive first touch at the top of the penalty area between two defenders which allowed him to turn and then slip the ball to the left for the streaking Kljestan, who slammed his one-timer into the right side netting.

The action continued with Sweden getting another great opportunity a few minutes later, but Dahlberg’s header from six yards out bounced in front of the goal and bounced over the bar.

Sweden did tally their second goal of the night when Farnerud served in another dangerous cross and this time Dahlberg didn’t miss the opportunity, heading it off the right post and into the net.

Cooper had one final chance to give the U.S. another two-goal lead, when he slipped behind the Sweden defense for a breakaway against Dahlin, but his touch around the ‘keeper was too much and Dahlin was able to recover and make the save on his shot from a tight angle.

“It’s important to start the year off with a win,” said Bradley, who opened the calendar year with a victory for the third straight time since taking over in late 2006. “When you’re in a long camp, with three weeks and a lot of work, it’s nice at the end to have the reward of winning. From a coaching standpoint there’s always going to be things, at this time of year, that you feel good about, and there’s always going to be things that need improvement.”

Chris Wingert was the third player to earn his first cap with the MNT on the evening, coming on as a 79th-minute substitute for Bornstein.

The U.S. now looks ahead to their opening match of the final round of FIFA World Cup qualifying against archrival Mexico on Feb. 11 at Columbus Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. The match, the first of 10 games in the final round – commonly referred to as the ‘hexagonal’ – will kickoff at 7 p.m. ET and fans can watch the match live on ESPN2 HD and Univision, or listen on the Futbol de Primera radio network.

Tickets for the USA-Mexico match go on sale Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 12 p.m. ET.

Match Highlights Here:

U.S. Men’s National Team Match Report

Match: United States Men’s National Team vs. Sweden
Date: January 24, 2009
Competition: International Friendly
Venue: The Home Depot Center; Carson, Calif.
Kickoff: 5:30 p.m. PT A
Attendance: 9,918 Weather: 59 degrees, mostly cloudy
Scoring Summary:
1 2 F
USA 2 1 3
SWE 0 2 2

USA -Sacha Kljestan 17th minute
USA -Kljestan (PK) 40
SWE – Daniel Nannskog (Alexander Farnerud) 73
USA – Kljestan (Brian Ching) 74
USA – Mikael Dahlberg (Farnerud) 89

Lineups:

USA: 1-Troy Perkins; 12-Marvell Wynne, 2-Danny Califf (capt.), 4-Michael Parkhurst (3-Ugo Ihemelu, 82), 6-Jonathan Bornstein (15-Chris Wingert, 79); 17-John Thorrington (20-Chris Rolfe, 61), 13-Ricardo Clark, 16-Sacha Kljestan, 30-Robbie Rogers (22-Brian Carroll, 69); 10-Charlie Davies (27-Kenny Cooper, 46), 11-Brian Ching (29-Eddie Gaven, 77) Subs not used: 18-Jon Busch Head Coach: Bob Bradley

SWE: 12-Johan Dahlin, 7-Markus Jonsson, 8-Marcus Lindberg, 9-Max von Schlebrügge, 5-Adam Johansson; 10-Andreas Dahl (14-Rasmus Elm, 62), 6-Daniel Andersson (capt.) (13-Martin Ericsson, 71), 20-Gustav Svensson, 16-Samuel Holmén (15-Alexander Farnerud, 62); 11-Mikael Dahlberg, 19-Daniel Nannskog Subs not used: 1-John Alvbåge, 2-Patrik Anttonen, 3-Rasmus Bengtsson, 4-Mattias Bjärsmyr, , 17-Andreas Johannson, 18-Andreas Landgren, 21-Denni Avdic Head Coach: Lars Lagerbäck

Stats Summary: USA / SWE
Shots: 13 / 9
Shots on Goal: 6 / 6
Saves: 3 / 3
Corner Kicks: 7 / 1
Fouls: 15 / 15
Offside: 2 / 5

Misconduct Summary:
SWE – Daniel Andersson (caution) 27th minute
USA – Danny Califf (caution) 59 Officials:

Referee: Silviu Petrescu (CAN)
Assistant Referee 1: Hector Vergara (CAN)
Assistant Referee 2: Darren Clark (CAN)
Fourth Official: Baldomero Toledo (USA)

ussoccer.com Man of the Match: Sacha Kjestan

Countdown To USA-Sweden Friendly

In just a few hours, the US National team opens its 2009 campaign in a friendly against Sweden in Carson, California. The match will feature a US side drawn primarily from MLS (so they may not be as sharp) against what will basically be a Swedish B team.

Still, its a good chance to see some of the up and coming talent who will be competing for spots in the 2009 Confederations Cup and 2010 World Cup teams. And while almost everyone doing a preview of the match has focused exclusively on the US team, kudos go to Andrea Canales for providing a good look into what to expect from Lars Lagerback’s side.

For those Stateside, you can catch the match at 5:30 (Pacific) on the Fox Soccer Channel or Galavision. In Western Europe, the game time is 2:30 AM but unless you are in Sweden, you’ll need to find it through a streaming web service.

If you are in Columbus, head on over to Claddagh Irish Pub ( 585 S. Front St. ) to join Crew captain and all-around great guy Frankie Hejduk for a USA vs. Sweden viewing party this Saturday, Jan. 24. Hejduk will be signing autographs and engaging in a meet-and-greet starting around 7:30 p.m. and he’ll then be sticking around to watch the match. Four members of the Crew are in Bradley’s side for the match including midfielder Brian Carroll, Eddie Gaven and Robbie Rogers and goalkeeper William Hesmer.

In other news this weekend, Clint Dempsey and Fulham had a bit of trouble putting down an upstart Kettering side in FA Cup action.

Also, Javier Saviola, the perpetual Argentine would-be sensation is once again looking for a new team after not fitting in at Real Madrid (which follows being bumped out of Barcelona in 2007). While he is currently linked to Plymouth after a potential deal to Boca Juniors fell through, Saviola remains a talented and potentially explosive player looking for the right situation.

Note to MLS: Take a good look at Saviola (who is available now) before its too late. He could add a creative spark to any team and he’ll put butts in seats.

Beckham Wants To Stay In Milan

So, I started out this sunny Napoli morning as usual; with a cup of coffee and a copy of La Gazzetta dello Sport, and there on the front page was the headline: Beckham Forever: He’s fallen in Love With Milan and Doesn’t Want To Return To The USA.

Of course sensational headlines are the norm over here so I had to turn to the three page spread on this topic (that’s right, three pages) to find out how much substance there was to it. After all, the only other real news they could talk about was last night’s Copa Italia snoozer between Lazio and Torino (especially now that the Kaka transfer spasm is over).

In between snippets of how Beckham is taking Italian lessons must be an indicator he wants to stay (nevermind that understanding his teammates may be the reason) , there were some indications that AC Milan may indeed want to keep him. Club administrator Adriano Galliani made it clear that they see Beckham first as a player, claiming he is “not just a beauty figure.”

Rossoneri coach Carlo Ancelotti has been starting Beckham in the team’s two league matches so far this year where he has proven he still has the pace, touch, and vision to contribute to the side.

And not only the print media but also Italian television today seems filled with Beckham-mania, with unattributed reports that Beckham is willing to take a pay cut (from his cushy deal with MLS and the LA Galaxy) in order to play for Milan and increase his chances of playing in the 2010 World Cup. Its all laughably ironic because Beckham is the only player for whom a move from MLS to Europe would mean a pay cut (OK, that may apply to one other Galaxy player).

Beckham’s loan deal ends in March and his deal with MLS lasts until 2011. He does however have a clause in his contract which would allow him to move elsewhere during the 2010 winter transfer window of 2010 but by then he may be too old, at almost 35.

And while Beckham may be falling in love with Milan, he is also winning fans over both on and off the field. Most recently, he won praise for visiting former AC Milan striker Stefano Borgonovo yesterday at his home. Borgonovo is suffering from the paralyzing illness of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and the team stays in close contact with him. Remarking on Beckham’s visit, Ancelotti told Gazzetta that “David has a golden heart.”

The question remains however, whether Beckham still has a heart for LA and whether new coach Bruce Arena can count on his return at the end of March (along with Landon Donovan, currently on loan to Bayern Munich).

During a time of economic downturn, it may not be a bad move for MLS to unload his massive salary bill, so long as they reinvest some of it in exciting young players who can capture fans’ imagination. I’d be happy to see Beckham move on if it improves the league’s balance sheet and allows them to bring DaMarcus Beasley back home, keep Donovan in the league, pick up a few youngsters from Boca Juniors and Independiente, and start to pay rookies more than garbage collectors.

Copyright Chris Courtney 2008

Monaco: Park And Adu Doubtful For Sunday

AS Monaco will probably go into Sunday night’s match against Nice after the club announced that strikers Chu-Yong park and Freddy Adu have picked up similar injuries in training this week. Park is suffering from pain to the patellar tendon of the right knee while Adu is experiencing hip pain after taking some hard knocks during practice. Both are sitting out training for 48 hours and are doubtful for Sunday’s match unless they pass a last minute fitness test.

Friday Musings

I’ll be adding bits and pieces to this one all day so be sure to keep checking for more.

LFV friend Gruffgoat has a good catch with a link to a nice Sunday Observer article on Clint Dempsey by World Cup pal Jaime Jackson, a fine soccer journalist who has not forgotten his roots as a player and fan. Writers like Jaime, Amy Lawrence, and others at the Observer are the reason their newspaper has some of the best soccer coverage of any paper in the English speaking world.

How about those Seattle Sounders who have already sold 18,600 season tickets for home games at Qwest Field? Its nice to know Kasey Keller (who has some nice quotes in the article link) and his teammates will be well supported as they start their inaugural season. I’ve often wondered why MLS had not yet expanded into the soccer hotbeds of our country to places like Seattle, Portland, and St. Louis? Of course you need the perfect storm of investors, available facilities, and a supportive local government to go with that ready-made fan base but come on – couldn’t those be lined up for Portland and St. Louis as well?

My spidey sense tells me that singer-songwriter and friend of LFV Greg Seltzer will have a juicy story to break sometime soon. Can you say Kljestan in green and white stripes for more than a week or two? And no, I don’t mean a South Carolina prison uniform!

Donovan Does It Again!

Landon Donovan made a substitute appearance in Bayern Munich’s friendly against FSV Mainz tonight, scoring just ten minutes after stepping onto the field. Then in the 90th minute, he scored again! That makes three winter friendlies in which Donovan has scored a total of four goals for the Bavarian giants – a strong statement that he plans for this stint in Germany to be much different than previous ones.

Just five days before their German Cup match against VFB Stuttgart, Bayern appears to be firing on all cylinders, putting five past Mainz in a 5-0 romp.

And as promised earlier, here is a better rundown on the match from our man in Germany, the one and only Keith Richardson, an old friend from my Germany days. Keith, a fellow Nuernberg fan, used to be part of the cabal of expats covering Americans Abroad for Soccer Times (along with Harris King, Mark Flannery, and others). More recently, Keith is the English language translator for Borussia Dortmund’s official website while readers who hang out on BigSoccer probably know him better as Footyfan1

Take it away Keith…

By the time Landon Donovan entered the match in the 60th minute, Bayern was already ahead 2-0 through goals from Germany international striker Miroslav Klose in the 4th minute and Italy international striker Luca Toni in the 55th minute.

Let me note now that I am not a big Landon Donovan fan. I’m one of the few USA fans who still have a hard time with the way Landon’s first two tries here in Germany ended. However, some of the guys over at BigSoccer have convinced me that I should finally totally forgive him. Which I am working on, but I can’t say I’m a fan.

Now, given my feelings, it should not be a shock to anyone that the first thing I noticed when Landon entered the match is how much shorter he was than every other player on the pitch. But I also knew what Landon lacks in physical stature, he more than makes up for in talent and hustle. I may not be a fan of his, but I certainly have an open mind and I am fair whether dishing out praise or criticism.

Having said all of this, you will understand why I was laughing my head off on the 70th minute of the match when Landon scored on a HEADER of all things after a cross from Italian Massimo Oddo out on the left wing. Oddo’s cross went over Bayern’s Germany international midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger in the middle of the Mainz penalty area. And before you ask, no, not all of Bayern’s players are internationals, but the majority of them are! Anyhow, as the ball flew over Schweinsteiger, Landon was behind him unmarked and Landon then put a perfect header into the left corner of the Mainz goal to give Bayern a 3-0 lead.

Two minutes later, the aforementioned Schweinsteiger raised Bayern’s lead to 4-0 after simply tapping the ball in from about eight yards out after a nice cross from Bayern’s Germany international midfielder Tim Borowski.

In the 82nd minute of the match, Donovan, who has had quite impressive performances in his test matches for Bayern, put the ball in the back of the Mainz net once again. However, before he could even begin to celebrate, he noticed the lineman’s flag up. The call was a tight one, but television replays confirmed the call was correct.

However, on this night, Donovan was not going to be denied his second goal. Just before the end of the 90 minutes, a pass was pulled back to Donovan who had just entered the Mainz penalty area. Landon put a blast straight at Mainz goalkeeper Christian Wetklo. However, the shot was so hard, that Wetklo, despite getting his hand up in time, allowed the ball to deflect off his hands and just behind him before he could slap it back into play. The Mainz defense played on as if the ball never crossed the line, but the same linesman who denied Donovan goal glory in the 82nd minute made it clear that the ball did indeed cross the goal line after deflecting off Wetklo’s hands.

Shortly afterward, referee Dr. Jochen Drees sounded the final whistle sealing Bayern’s 5-0 victory at Mainz.

I don’t have any problem in saying that my Man of Match was indeed Landon Donovan. Donovan kept up his string of good performances for Bayern, now having scored at least once in Bayern’s last three test matches. Landon has showed hustle and desire for Bayern. He hasn’t faced 1st Bundesliga level competition yet, but Bayern’s last two matches, against 1. FC Kaiserslautern this past weekend and Mainz tonight were against top 2nd Bundesliga sides who are both in contention for promotion to the 1st Bundesliga for next season.

With Lukas Podolski’s downturn, if Landon Donovan can continue the impressive performances he has been turning in when Bayern starts German Cup, Bundesliga and Champions League competition, Bayern may have a pretty tough decision to make when Landon’s loan expires in March.

Donovan’s First Goal:

And the Second:

Zizzo, Hannover Drop Friendly To AC Milan

American Sal Zizzo made a rare appearance for Hannover 96 in last night’s friendly against visiting AC Milan. The Bundesliga side put in a surprisingly strong performance against the star-studded Milan team, especially on defense, but was unable to hold off the Rossoneri for good.

With his team down 2-1 in the second half, Zizzo came on in the 66th minute, replacing Jan Rosenthal at right midfield where he immediately got into the mix. In the 74th minute, Zizzo’s sent in a cross to Mike Hanke, who bicycled the ball in to tie the score at 2-2.

But this could not last as three minutes later, a Kaka combination with Fillipo Inzhagi found Luca Antonini – who then sent in a good cross which “Pippo” converted to make it 3-2. All in all, the former UCLA man made a solid showing but only time will tell if the young American (who was recently linked in a loan deal to Hansa Rostock) will see more playing time this spring.

American defender and Hannover stalwart Steve Cherundolo did not play in the match.

A Few Things

My fingers are still sore from picking bass strings so all I can offer on this historic inauguration day are a few links worth checking out.

The New York Times/IHT on Bradley’s depleted squad for Saturday’s friendly against Sweden.

Dave Clark’s thought provoking idea to rapidly expand MLS. Can it be done without catching the same flu that the NASL succumbed to? You decide.

Is ESPN about to buy the US broadcast rights for Premiership matches?

AC Milan president Silvio Berlusconi has announced that Kaka is going nowhere.

And to make matters worse for Manchester City (after failing to land the big fish), Robinho has walked out of training camp.

And speaking of transfers, just how close is Arsenal to signing Russian phenom Andrei Arshavin from Zenith? It seems about $11.7 million.

I Have A Dream

Before we get to soccer today, let’s not forget…

“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident:that all men are created equal.” I have a dream that one day on the redhills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood…. I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nationwhere they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. … I have a dream that one day little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today.”

–Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, Washington, DC, 1963

Deportivo Takes Its Turn Behind Barcelona’s Woodshed

Barcelona has taken another Spanish primera team behind its woodshed, crushing Deportivo La Coruna 5-0 in the Nou Camp. 5-0 is the kind of score you expect when playing your reserve team, or a lower level club during an off season friendly, not another team in one of the best leagues in the world. Yet Barca seems to be making a habit of it as they stretch their lead to an amazing 15 points in La Liga.

Thierry Henry and Sammy Eto’o scored a pair of goals each with Lionel Messi scoring one. Check out the highlights below.

Don’t forget to support our sponsors!