Rating- Confirmed

Goalkeeper Dominic Cervi is on trial with Scottish super club Celtic. The 21 year old goalkeeper was drafted by the Chicago Fire, but rejected their contract offer. Cervi has been capped by the United Stats U-23 team during Olympic qualifying and was the 12th overall pick in the 2008 MLS Superdraft. 

The United States U23s stumbled out of the gate in Olympic qualifying with a 1-1 draw against Cuba on Tuesday night.  Freddy Adu’s goal in the 14^th minute was answered by Roberto Linares just before halftime and despite a more aggressive American side in the second half, the go-ahead tally would not come.  This leaves the US tied for 2^nd in Group A with Cuba on one point, with the top two teams in each group moving onto the semifinals.

The US came out defensive, playing a 4-2-3-1 scheme with Jozy Altidore the lone striker.  Whereas this style worked in the U20 World Cup for the Americans, it misused the talent available in this competition and, with the US not having a left-sided midfielder in the 20-man roster, was doomed to failure.  The insertion of Sacha Kjlestan to start the second half (and the move to a balanced 4-4-2) was helpful in bringing the side out of the malaise comprised of minutes 30-45, but removing Altidore and not Charlie Davies or Robbie Findley (the in-name-only right and left midfielders) required manager Peter Nowak to use a second substitution (bringing on Chad Barrett for Davies) to create a means of play that could result in a winning score.  The Americans should have been able to take the game by the throat based on talent, but relegating forwards to the wing midfield and leaving Altidore alone at the top resulted in an attack that was easily marked-out and, instead of being up two or three at the intermission, was lucky to be level after 45.  If Nowak wanted to get more out of the first XI he named, he should have played all three forwards high and used Kamani Hill and Hunter Freeman to provide width coming from the back for the triangle midfield of Adu, Dax McCarty, and Maurice Edu, like this:

Hill—————Ianni————————Sturgis—————–Freeman

McCarty——————————Edu

Adu

Findley—————————–Altidore—————————–Davies

Next up for the US is Panama on Thursday night and a win is absolutely necessary with Honduras (the fourth team in the group) on three points and playing Cuba prior to the Americans’ match-up with the Canaleros.  With the news that five players from the Cuban team disappeared after last night’s game (and thus reducing their playing squad to 13 players, 12 of which are eligible for the game against Honduras due to Linares’ red card), anything less than three points against Panama will in all likelihood eliminate the US at the group stage and make Beijing the second consecutive Olympic Games missed for the Americans.  Expect changes in the first XI designed to bring more aggressive play and a better attacking core for the US, with a 3-0 scoreline not out of the question.