The United States had a hard time getting their attack in sync on Saturday in Slovakia, losing 1-0. Though the US dominated possession, they couldn't turn that into goals. Slovakia took full advantage of their best chance of the game, a 26th-minute penalty when Vladimir Weiss was taken down in the box. Marek Hamsik converted for the only goal of the game.
“This match was on opportunity to see some different players,” US coach Bob Bradley said. “I think the area tonight that let us down was the sharpness and execution in the attacking part of the field.”
FC Dallas midfielder Dax McCarty won his first cap at full international level, coming on for Carlos Bocanegra in the 72nd-minute. Major League Soccer Golden Boot winner Jeff Cunningham got his first appearance since 2005, subbing in for Jozy Altidore in the 82nd-minute.
"It was incredible,” McCarty said on his first game at senior level. “Obviously it wasn't the result myself or the team was looking for. Slovakia is a good team. They're tough to play against and they keep it pretty compact defensively. For a midfielder like myself, it was a good game to go into because they were dropping back and giving us space to play. Unfortunately, when we got to the final third today, we had trouble creating good quality chances. At the end of the day, it was a really good experience and I'm glad to get it out of the way."
The United States returns to action on Wednesday against Denmark in Aarhus at 2:30pm ET. That game starts on ESPN Classic and then switches to ESPN2.
-- GAME REPORT --
Match: United States vs. Slovakia
Date: November 14, 2009
Competition: International Friendly
Venue: Tehelné Pole – Bratislava, Slovakia
Kickoff: 4 p.m. local time (10 a.m. ET)
Attendance: 7,200
Weather: Overcast, 45 degrees
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
USA 0 0 0
SVK 1 0 1
SVK – Marek Hamsik (penalty kick) 26th minute
Lineups:
USA: 18-Brad Guzan; 6-Steve Cherundolo, 2-Jonathan Spector, 3-Carlos Bocanegra (capt.) (25-Clarence Goodson, 72), 12-Jonathan Bornstein; 19-Robbie Rogers (16-Sacha Kljestan, 82), 5-Benny Feilhaber, 4-Michael Bradley, 8-Clint Dempsey (28-Dax McCarty, 72); 17-Jozy Altidore (32-Jeff Cunningham, 82), 9-Conor Casey (36-Eddie Johnson, 46)
Subs not used: 15-Jimmy Conrad, 35-Marcus Hahnemann
Head Coach: Bob Bradley
SVK: 1-Ján Mucha; 5-Radoslav Zabavník, 3-Martin Skrtel, 16-Ján Durica, 4-Marek Cech (2-Peter Pekarík, 90+2); 7-Vladimír Weiss (14-Juraj Kucka, 82), 6-Miroslav Karhan (8-Ján Kozák, 90+1) 17-Marek Hamsík (capt.) (15- Zdeno Strba, 90+1), 10-Miroslav Stoch (9-Stanislav Sesták, 61); 11-Róbert Vittek (13-Dusan Svento, 68); 18-Erik Jendrisek
Subs not used: 12-Lubos Kamenár
Head Coach: Vladimir Weiss
Stats Summary: USA / SVK
Shots: 8 / 5
Shots on Goal: 4 / 4
Saves: 3 / 4
Corner Kicks: 5 / 1
Fouls: 14 / 14
Offside: 1 / 3
Misconduct Summary:
none
Officials:
Referee: Stefan Messner (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Claus Strasser (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Moser (AUT)
Fourth Official: Richard Trutz (SVK)
