US Under-23's First Round

Some thoughts on the team and players after the first round of Olympic Qualifying:

Overall the US played sloppy, lacking in concentration for many spells during the games. Despite this they managed to outplay every opponent in the first round. They even showed glimpses of playing a high quality brand of soccer. In this regard they were very inconsistent. The most glaring weakness was their inability to create chances and score goals.

As far as the players there were some Pros and some Cons. For space reasons I'll just cover who I thought played well.

Pros:
Dax Mccarty: Played the role of tireless defensive workhorse in the first two games. His quality fell off against Panama, but showed a good intelligence and a willingness to fight for every ball.
Stuart Holden: The Houston Dynamo midfielder probably had the most consistently good performance of all the US players. A skillfull dribbler and smart passer who played with a professional attitude in that he seemed to retain concentration in all his time on the field.
Kamani Hill: Converted from striker to right back, Hill looked solid defensively and sharp moving forward.
Michael Orozco: This Mexican looking central defender seemed to have the defense organized in the two games he played in. Orozco always seemed to be well positioned and put up an overall solid performance.
The Female Streaker: The woman who ran onto the field late in the Honduras match, draped in the American flag and skimpy underwear had probably my favorite performance of the tournament. It's just that it seems like streakers are always male. And fat. It's nice to see a change. I hope we get to see her, or others like her, in more games this year.

Other:
Players like Kljestan and Adu looked really good at times, but made too many mistakes to put them in the "Pro" category. Edu was up and down as usual, while many of the other players played well at times. The team seemed to play better in each successive game, dominating Honduras possession wise in the final match. Hopefully this round has prepared the team to succeed in the next round and qualify the US for the Bejing Olympics.