USA tie earns pride and props
by Ridge Mahoney, Monday, Jun 9, 2008 6:45 AM ET
Officially, American keeper Tim Howard earned Man of the Match honors for his superb work in a 0-0 tie with Argentina at the Meadowlands Sunday night, but truth be told he really rated nothing more than second-best. In just 45 minutes of work, Lionel Messi dazzled the sellout crowd and befuddled the USA. By escaping the kicks and tackles of Pablo Mastroeni and Michael Bradley and clipping balls over and through central defenders Oguchi Onyewu and Danny Califf, Messi repeatedly unhinged the Americans. Only some desperation tackles by Onyewu, Califf and Steve Cherundolo, and the amazing work of Howard kept Argentine forwards Julio Cruz and Sergio Aguero from scoring.
Yet not just the removal of Messi at halftime tipped the balance of play more toward the Americans during a second half they refused to buckle despite losing Mastroeni to a second caution in the 71st minute, about 11 minutes after he'd received the first one.
Another second-session sub, Maurice Edu, helped the USA gain control of midfield with his range and passing as it breached the Argentine back line several times.
Freddy Adu replaced Clint Dempsey in the 61st minute and withstood so many challenges he suffered four fouls from the impatient Argentines.
Heath Pearce celebrated his third straight start at left back by defending his corner solidly, pushing forward occasionally, and latching onto a clever Bradley header to fire a shot on goal.
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