The U.S. wrapped up its schedule of pre-World Cup friendlies with a ho-hum 1-0 win over Latvia in Hartford. They looked impressive in the sense that they dominated possession and never looked threatened in the slightest. However, Latvia looked so bad that the small margin of victory was a bit disturbing.
Latvia looked like they hadn't played a game since their last World Cup qualifier, which would have been last fall. It appeared they quickly scrapped a squad together to head over to America for a few days. I'm also guessing they made the short trip from Hartford to New York City to do some sightseeing. You didn't get the feeling Latvia was overly interested in this game other than to see some new players and get a little vacation time.
In a game so thoroughly dominated by the U.S., it's hard to pick a single player who stood out, but Eddie Johnson looked energetic and active for the second consecutive game. This is good. A lively Johnson has the potential to be a nightmare to opposing defenses with his blazing speed.
Brian McBride was his usual self, meaning that if the crosses are made, he'll get to a few and probably find the back of the net, which he did.
