The United States shutout Mexico on Wednesday night to record their first win at Estadio Azteca. Michael Orozco was the goal scoring hero for the USA, finishing off a sequence in front of the Mexico goal in the 80th minute that started with a run into the box from Brek Shea. Orozco had subbed on three minutes earlier. Tim Howard kept Mexico out with several quality saves for his 28th shutout at National Team level.
“It took a lot of grit and determination,” Howard said. “We went out there and played our hearts out tonight. It’s not lost on any of us that we made history. We’re just so proud of those guys. We worked hard. We played well and we had to weather their storm most of the game and we did that.”
Though Mexico outshot the United States 15 to six, both teams put three shots on goal. US coach Jurgen Klinsmann used all six of his substitutions. That included subbing in Orozco, part of a group of US defenders that performed admirably in place of the experienced veterans that normally makeup the US back four. The US was also without Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley, with Klinsmann allowing most of the veteran European-based players to remain with their clubs.
“We were well aware that we’ve never won here at Azteca and this is an amazing experience for all the players,” Klinsmann said. “We told them before the game, ‘This moment is for you, go and grab it.’ We are aware that is was a lot of work. Tim Howard kept us in the game I don’t know how many times. It was an absolutely fantastic performance by Tim. Also, the back line were holding their strength for the whole 90 minutes. It was a fantastic team performance. We know we still have to improve in many elements. We have to keep the ball longer, we have to create more chances and we have to do a lot of work still, but I think this gives us a lot of confidence.”
The United States returns to World Cup Qualifying against Jamaica on September 7th in Kingston.
— GAME REPORT —
Match: USA vs. Mexico
Date: August 15, 2012
Competition: International Friendly
Venue: Estadio Azteca
Kickoff: 7 p.m. CT
Attendance: tba
Weather: 72 degrees, mostly cloudy
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
USA 0 1 1
MEX 0 0 0
USA – Michael Orozco Fiscal (Terrence Boyd) 80th minute
Lineups:
USA : 1-Tim Howard (capt.); 23-Fabian Johnson, 20-Geoff Cameron, 7-Maurice Edu, 15-Edgar Castillo (4-Michael Orozco Fiscal, 77); 13-Jermaine Jones (14-Joe Corona, 89), 5-Kyle Beckerman, 6-Danny Williams (8-Graham Zusi, 60), 16-Jose Torres (18-Terrence Boyd, 45); 10-Landon Donovan (17-Damarcus Beasley, 45), 9-Herculez Gomez (11-Brek Shea, 78)
Subs not used: 3-Matt Besler, 19-Chris Wondolowski, 22-Nick Rimando
Head Coach: Jurgen Klinsmann
MEX : 1- Guillermo Ochoa; 5- Severo Meza (3-Enrique Perez, 88), 2-Francisco Rodriguez (capt.), 15-Hector Moreno, 20-Jorge Torres Nilo; 17-Jesus Zavala, 6- Manuel Viniegra (23-Edgar Lugo, 45), 18-Andres Guardado, 7-Pablo Barrera (11-Elias Hernandez, 45); 10-Angel Reyna (9-Aldo de Nigris, 73), 14-Javier Hernandez
Subs not used: 4-Hugo Ayala, 8-Adrian Adrete, 12-Alfredo Talavera
Head coach: Jose Manuel de la Torre
Stats Summary: USA / MEX
Shots: 6 / 15
Shots on Goal: 3 / 3
Saves: 3 / 2
Corner Kicks: 0 / 10
Fouls: 11 / 10
Offside: 0 / 4
Misconduct Summary:
USA – Maurice Edu (caution) 14th minute
MEX – Hector Moreno (caution) 31
USA – Jermaine Jones (caution) 69
USA – Graham Zusi (caution) 82
Officials:
Referee:Walter Quesada (CRC)
Assistant Referee 1: Leonel Leal (CRC)
Assistant Referee 2: Octavio Jara (CRC)
Fourth Official: Alfredo Penaloza (CRC)
