Teen-age star Landon Donovan sparks impressive win over Mexico with goal and assist. Long before Landon Donovan lit up the night there were hints this USA-Mexico encounter was going to be different. The Oct. 25 match was officially labelled a friendly, but as keeper Tony Meola said with a chuckle, “Maybe they should come up with a different word when these teams get together.” Many of the top players from both nations sat this one out. Of the 18 U.S. players selected by Coach Bruce Arena, only Donovan listed his employer as a foreign club. Arena did not call any Chicago Fire players, who had played four nights earlier in the U.S. Open Cup final, but there were MLS champion Wizards all over the roster. Mexican coach Enrique Meza selected only a few regulars, but even a team lacking Luis Hernandez, Jorge Campos and Ramon Ramirez attracted 61,072 fans on a Wednesday night. Many of those fans had departed in anger long before the final whistle, which shrilly jarred them into acknowledging their team had been beaten 2-0 by an opponent imbued with grit, skill and flair. Most of the American players looked fresher than their opponents. More than a few of the Mexican starters looked jaded a few days after playing league games. “They won well,” said Meza of a U.S. team that squeezed Mexico in midfield and produced two superb goals. “We lost the ball a lot and lost a lot of space. It was a good win for them.” Many of the essential elements for a memorable meeting in the Los Angeles Coliseum, which might as well be called Azteca Norte, were in place. Mexico wore green and the United States wore red, pockets of obnoxious rowdies tossed objects and fluids, and jeers and whistles rang out during the U.S. anthem. Red-white-and-blue flags and faces were nearly engulfed. Yet fans of both nations saluted the precocious American teenager. Donovan took one goal and created the other, stepping sweetly into his first national team appearance while devoid of hesitation or fear. “I had a lot of practice as a sub with the Olympic team,” he said with just the merest twist of irony. “I wasn’t expecting to get into the game at that point, but getting in early was good.” He entered the match in the 32nd minute as a replacement for Chris Henderson, who’d suffered a calf strain. There had been flashes of fluidity in the U.S. play prior to his arrival, yet his teammates responded as if oxygen had been pumped into their lungs. “He’s very good in front of the goal,” said Josh Wolff, an Olympic teammate who swapped passes with Donovan before firing in the clinching score. “How good he is remains to be seen, but he’s still proving to people he’s a damn good player.” A SOLID GAME PLAN. Arena fashioned his squad, and his tactics, with a mix of experience and youth. He kept the 3-5-2 he had deployed against Costa Rica, and buttressed the system with potent player combinations. D.C. United teammates Carlos Llamosa and Jeff Agoos took two spots in the three-man back line, and in front of them Richie Williams anchored the midfield. Agoos and Williams worked in tandem with left back Greg Vanney to stifle Mexico’s efforts on that side, in particular those of defender Pavel Pardo. Next to Williams in central midfield was Kerry Zavagnin, and just a few yards outside him was Wizards’ teammate Chris Klein on the right flank. On the left was Henderson and in goal was Meola. Total: four Wizards. “The midfield was the key,” said Meola. “We shut them down. Kerry and Richie picked off so many passes, the Mexican forwards never really got into the game and we kind of frustrated them.” Both Zavagnin and Klein were earning their first caps. But Mexico never took advantage of their inexperience. Llamosa closely tracked Daniel Osorno’s raids and Klein subdued left midfielder Ramon Morales. Both Mexican players were eventually substituted, as was Jared Borguetti, who came into the game as the Mexican League’s top scorer with 13 goals but came up limping after a clash with Llamosa and never threatened. “Kerry and I, once we got the jitters out, felt great,” said Klein. “Playing with players of this level isn’t hard. “All week, Carlos and I were sorting out what we’d do. He was great at holding his position and I just had to come back and cover when needed.” Up front Chris Albright was paired with Wolff. They’d sparked the United States in the 0-0 tie with Costa Rica as subs and had also meshed well for the Olympic team in Australia. Clint Mathis played behind the frontrunners, which offered him more space than he usually finds playing second forward for the Metros. His lateral dribble and return ball set Donovan through for the first U.S. goal. “After the game settled down a little bit it was tougher for us to hold the ball up top in the attacking third,” said Mathis. “It affected my ability to get the ball to feet, turn and playmake a little more. “But with all due respect, that’s to be expected. We had a young team out there, except for defensively, and I thought the guys did well.” MIDFIELD PRESSURE. The game plan was to pressure Mexico in the midfield and strike quickly when the ball was turned over. In the first half, the plan worked, except for the part about striking quickly. “The first half, we struggled,” said Arena, who was back on the sideline because the FIFA-mandated three-match suspension applies only to qualifiers. “We didn’t do a good job passing the ball, and the Mexican team did a great job breaking up plays.” Balls played up to Wolff and Albright often bounced away, stranding Klein and Henderson, and thus Mathis had few opportunities to get forward. “The first half, I was pretty disappointed with the way I was playing,” said Wolff, who shot into the side netting in the opening minutes on a feed from Mathis before his game began sputtering. “My touch wasn’t very good, and once you have a few bad touches it’s hard to get into a good mood.” The best U.S. chance in the first half fell to Henderson after the Americans adroitly played the ball out of their own third. Mathis played it twice in an intricate sequence, and his ball to the right flank gave Klein a chance to square a pass along the ground. It ran to Henderson but his rising blast struck Mexican defender Sergio Almaguer on the shoulder. A few minutes later, Pardo bumped into Henderson, who suffered a calf strain and had to limp off. After a quick warmup, on came Donovan, who took Albright’s spot up top as Albright took over for Henderson on the left flank. As the half ran out, Donovan settled into the game. He immaculately trapped a long punt from Meola – taking it out of the air and laying it back – and broke for the far post. Albright’s cross sailed over his head, but in those few seconds of flawless control and intelligent movement, Donovan hinted at what American soccer may one day become. FABULOUS FINISHES. Both goals were products of coordinated pressure and quick transitions as well as Donovan’s brilliance. A throw-in from Vanney up the left sideline landed at Donovan’s feet. He cut inside to escape pressure and hit a short ball Mathis dribbled diagonally at the Mexican defense. Duilio Davino charged at Mathis as Donovan continued his run. Mathis flicked the ball past Davino into the open space and Donovan touched it around the charge of keeper Adrian Martinez to slide the ball into the empty net. “Clint hit the ball a little far ahead of him and I didn’t think he was going to get there,” said Donovan, “but I continued my run anyway. He did a great job to get there before the defender and put it through his legs. “It was easy for a forward from there.” Easy, that is, if you’re blessed with composure, pace and impeccable skill. On this night, Donovan had all his tools sharpened and ready. Mexico pushed forward to erase the deficit, and left yawning gaps in the midfield. Albright and Mathis tested Martinez with solid shots the Mexican keeper flew to his right to turn away, and Albright drove another attempt just over the crossbar. Albright, for whom scoring in MLS had been one nightmare after another, had labored on the right side of midfield for D.C. United and the Olympic team for most of the summer. Arena believes his best position is up front and gave him the start against Mexico at forward, but the coach had to reshuffle when Henderson was injured. “I was able to fill a void,” said Albright, who did a decent job defensively while finding his attacking game in the second half. “I think that’s the first time I’ve played outside left in my life.” Mexico’s attacks were sporadic and fruitless. Llamosa blocked an attempt by Jesus Olalde, the quietest of the forwards, and nailed Osorno to thwart a counterattack. Midfielder Victor Ruiz, and later substitute Juan Pablo Rodriguez, couldn’t kick-start the Mexican offense. They were tracked tirelessly by Williams and Zavagnin, who usually kept the ball in front of them and moved into the passing lanes time and time again. “Defensively, all 11 players were phenomenal,” said Mathis. “We were winning balls in midfield and were able to get a couple of attacks. Richie and Kerry did a hell of a job winning balls early in midfield.” One of Zavagnin’s many interceptions triggered the second goal. Almaguer was under little pressure from Donovan in his own half and passed the ball straight to the Wizards midfielder. Zavagnin sent it forth immediately, and Wolff and Donovan set sail for goal. The final pass found Wolff knifing through the middle. He tapped it forward and then smacked a shot off the inside of the post. “It was very quick,” said Wolff, who got his first goal along with a third cap. “The ball was played inside and outside and I got it back. We finished off both [goals] very nicely.” UNFRIENDLY VENUE. Mexico was all but finished off as well. Olalde fired a shot from a sharp angle that Meola held easily as fans jammed the exits. Some of those that remained threw cups and other debris onto the field, or at American fans who were celebrating. This was the same locale as the 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup final at which U.S. players were pelted and abused. Yet five days before, on the same field, the U.S. had stunned Brazil, 1-0. “We’ve had good memories and bad memories here,” said Agoos, the captain and only returnee from those games. “The American fans who came here tonight were entertained.” Neither team had its top guns. At the U.S. Cup in June, a Mexican team composed most of UNAM players had been thrashed, 3-0. So what does this result mean? “It was a good night for us, but at the same time, we realize that this is just a friendly,” said Arena. “We don’t make more of it than it is. It’s a good effort by our team, and hopefully these are guys we can look at in the future.” by Soccer America senior editor Ridge Mahoney in Los Angeles.