Ching and US men's team prove too much for Cuba

October 15, 6:47 PMAsian-American Sports ExaminerMichael Street

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In the pregame pep talk, US men's soccer Coach Bob Bradley told his team to keep up the pressure. "Keep it up, make it hard for them. They can't handle it," he said, and his team followed his orders to the letter.

Hawaiian Brian Ching and the US team walked all over Cuba, 6-1, on Saturday night, advancing them to the next round of 2010 World Cup qualifying. They play a relatively meaningless third-round match tonight, against Trinidad and Tobago,  a good workout for a younger US squad, which will not include Ching.

Saturday's match was played in RFK Stadium in Washington, DC, in front of a crowd of about 20,000 screaming USA fans, who got the shooting match they wanted. Forward DeMarcus Beasley was joking with another player before the match that he wanted to score one minute into the game, and suggested they compete for the most goals scored. Though he didn't fulfil the brash prediction of a near-immediate goal, Beasley did get the match started for the US in the right way.

A mere ten minutes into play, Sacha Kljestan slid a perfect through pass to a streaking Beasley, who brought the ball into the penalty area, then beat the defense and the Cuban keeper with a beautiful shot to the far right post. It gave the US a lead it wouldn't lose, even if Cuba made things interesting.

Beasley scored his second goal twenty minutes later, when Landon Donovan led him perfectly with a long ball into the box, and Beasley settled the pass and delivered another powerful shot. US 2, Cuba 0. But Cuba responded quickly to this, lofting a nice ball over goalkeeper Tim Howard into the back of the net. This score would hold through the half, although Yoel Colome of Cuba got his second yellow card minutes before the half ended, setting the stage for the blowout second half.

Brian Ching was the lone forward in the US' 4-2-3-1 formation, an important role in the second half. With Beasley, Donovan, and Clint Dempsey behind him, he was able to keep pressure on the Cuban defense, while waiting to capitalize on opportunities created by the US's veteran midfielders. This paid off just three minutes in to the second half, with a series begun with a takeaway, continued through beautiful passing, and culminating with a cross through Ching, to Donovan, and into the goal.

After a midfield turnover and a few crisp passes, Ching took the ball at the top of the penalty area and passed it wide left to a streaking Heath Pearce. The midfielder took the ball briefly down the wing before crossing it back across the box, where Ching and Donovan were charging the goal. Ching, slightly wide and well covered, let the ball go through to Donovan, who drove it easily into the net to bring the score to 3-1.

Ching would get his scoring chance soon enough, after Cuban keeper Molina made two excellent saves on hard shots from the US squad. On an indirect free kick outside the box, Beasley delivered a long cross to Klijestan, who headed it back across the box. A diving Ching finished the play, heading the ball firmly into the net.

With the score now 4-1 and Cuba looking clearly overmatched, it was time to allow some of the younger US players their turns on the pitch, so Ching came out for Jozy Altidore, and Pearce left for Jose Torres. Freddy Adu would come in a few minutes later for Klijestan, and all but Torres would figure in the last two goals.

Torres managed to get off a solid shot that Molina made another sweet save on, but Altidore dropped his defender with a dazzling series of dribbles, then shot a low liner past Molina for the fifth US goal of the night. Even defender Oguchi Onyewu got into the act when Adu slid down the left side of the defense before delivering a high cross into the box, where Onyewu leapt and crisply headed the ball in, with seconds left in the game.

Though the 6-1 game seemed a clinic at times, with Altidore and Adu making long runs against the defense, the US still proved its mettle, and Ching in particular lived up to his reputation as the "go to" forward in the US offense. The numbers may not have reflected it, but Ching's presence upset the Cuban defense, as he created opportunities for the US's amazing midfielders.

Tonight's match against Trinidad and Tobago will not feature Ching, Donovan, captain Carlos Bocanegra, Michael Bradley and five other US players, as Bradley recognizes that the match will be both easy and less important to the US team. Look for Ching to return to the Houston Dynamo, who have already clinched a playoff berth. He's certainly shown his value to the US team, and will be back with them as soon as fourth-round "hexagonal" World Cup matches begin in February 2009.