During the course of the first 45 minutes I wondered if the United States mens national team realized how close they are getting to South Africa 2010 and the World Cup.
The squad looked passionless and listless. In fact “Soca Warrior” Cornell Glen lobbed Tim Howard only to see a certain goal hit the cross-bar and then a clear penalty was missed and the U.S. avoided being down at half time.

On to the second half and Houston Dynamo midfielder Ricardo Clark was about to be subbed out when Landon Donovan found him at the top of the box and Clark prepared the ball beautifully with the outside of his right foot and un-leashed the fury……a swerving , vicious hit that beat Clayton Ince in goal for T&T and with this Clark “wonder hit” the U.S. secured the full three points .
Rico doesn’t score them often but when he does they are usually very special goals. Good to see the U.S. get a long range goal out of the central area of their midfield.
Lots of competition in the U.S. midfield with Michael Bradley, Benny Feilhaber, Ricardo Clark and the emergence of Stuart Holden who for the third straight game got some great delivery in from the right side.
Your thoughts on the U.S. win and a vital three points?

MEXICO beats stingy HONDURAS 1-0 at AZTECA….Cuauhtemoc Blanco scored off a late penalty kick to secure the full three points and jump to second in Concacaf WCup qualifying behind the United States. Personally, I thought Honduras made things far more difficult at Azteca for El Tri than most. I also thought Gio dos Santos went down rather easily to draw the penalty. Was it a dive? What are your thoughts on this match?

ARGENTINA drop to 5th in CONMEMBOL

A dis-oriented Argentina lost at Paraguay 1-0 on a 29th minute goal from Nelson Valdez. Diego Maradona made four changes in Asuncion and even brought 36 year old Martin Palermo on while also starting Sergio Aguero his son-in-law. Paraguay has along with Brazil qualified for the next World Cup while Argentina is in 5th place after Ecuador pulled off a 3-1 win over Bolivia in always difficult La Paz. Argentina still have Peru at home while they finish up qualifying at Uruguay who are currently 1 point behind in 6th place.
Can you imagine a World Cup without Lionel Messi?

ENGLAND and SPAIN punched their tickets to the next World Cup while Portugal remained alive after a 1-0 win over Hungary so we might just see Cristiano Ronaldo again at a World Cup……..

SOCCER MATTERS WITH GLENN DAVIS today at 5pm on FOX SPORTS HOUSTON!!!!

TWITTER.com: Soccermattersgd

Thanks to FIESTA !!! Thanks to DANISH INSPIRATIONS!! Thanks to MARK WEST PINOT NOIR!!
See Ricardo’s goal here

Lots of big World Cup qualifying matches today! Will you be watching?
The U.S. is at Trinidad and Tobago while Mexico hosts Honduras in Concacaf. England with a win over Croatia will qualify for the South Africa while Argentina fights for their lives in Paraguay. What games will you be watching and why?

GOING HEAD TO HEAD

Still baffles me as to why MLS goes head to head with the U.S. National team on a World Cup qualifying date. KC is at DC tonite at RFK Stadium and will go up against World Cup qualifying from around the world. Not to mention the U.S. National team which is chock full of MLS connection…..

RELIANT HOSTS ALL STAR GAME

We all knew that Reliant Stadium would be the choice in Houston for the MLS All Star game which will be played next summer after the World Cup in South Africa. Are you ready for the MLS All Stars against Club America of Mexico? Or would you prefer European opposition?

PODCAST IS UP

Dynamo midfielder Danny Cruz came in studio last night for Dynamo All Access with Glenn Davis. The young man was impressive and appreciative of his opportunity that he has earned in soccer not to mention being named to the U.S. under 20 national team for the U20 World Championship in Egypt beginning at the end of this month.
Lots of Dynamo and World Cup qualifying talk as well from you the fan! Access the podcast by going to 790thesportsanimal.com, click podcasts, click Glenn Davis.

SOCCER MATTERS WITH GLENN DAVIS on Fox Sports Houston this Thursday at 5pm….set your DVR to the newest soccer program in Houston!

DYNAMO AT CBUS

This is a huge MLS game and both teams are looking to get back on track. The match-up this Sunday afternoon which can be seen on Fox Sports Houston and KHOU11.2 pits the two teams that have won the last three MLS Cups. So are the Dynamo ready to go on a run after a bye week in MLS play? The time is now!

FC DALLAS SIGN ANOTHER PLAYER SMU……..

FC Dallas has signed 33 year old defender Daniel Hernandez who returns to MLS from the Mexican League.
Hernandez played at SMU under FC Dallas coach Shellas Hyndmann. What do you think of this signing?

Twitter.com: Soccermattersgd

FIESTA supports soccer with “Smart Soccer tips with Glenn Davis available at SOCCER 4 All and SOCCER TIME!

Thanks to Fiesta, MARK WEST PINOT NOIR (Pick up a bottle ..a great wine value that drinks like a more expensive bottle) and DANISH INSPIRATIONS FURNITURE!