Landon Donovan was a one-man wrecking crew on Sunday, scoring a hat trick to give the U.S. national team a 3-1 victory against Ecuador at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
The Los Angeles Galaxy playmaker opened his account after just 41 seconds with a swerving volley and he struck twice in quick succession midway through the second half to effectively kill off the game.
Donovan now has five goals in his last three games for the U.S. He took advantage of a defensive miscue by the South Americans in the first minute to give the USA the early lead. Ivan Hurtado's weak clearing header fell right at Donovan's feet near the top of the box and the U.S. captain blasted home a left-footed half-volley.
The 1-0 lead held only until the 11th minute, though, as Felipe Caicedo stumbled through several defenders in the U.S. box, eventually poking a shot towards goal that bounded off U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard and into the back of the net.
DaMarcus Beasley was inches away from restoring the U.S. lead in the 26th minute. Donovan started the play by finding Kansas City Wizards forward Eddie Johnson on the right side of the box. Johnson's cross was just slightly strong and Beasley's flying header went just wide of the net.
Then it was the Ecuadorians who saw a good chance go amiss. Caicedo was again the danger man, heading a corner kick towards the goal and out of the reach of Howard. But U.S. rookie Benny Feilhaber was perfectly positioned on the line to clear the attempt.
Houston Dynamo forward Brian Ching nearly gave the U.S. a lead heading into the break. He stuck his head into a dangerous spot right in front of the goal, putting a shot on target and taking a kick to the face in the process. The shot was saved and Ching's nose was bloodied and soon after the referee signaled for the intermission.
Just seconds after the restart Ching went right back into mix, getting on the end of a long cross to force a save from Ecuadorian goalkeeper Rorys Aragon. Hurtado was shaken up during the collision with Ching and his own goalkeeper, though he would return to the action after being taken off the field on a stretcher.
Carlos Tenorio made a break toward the U.S. goal in the 53rd minute, but Howard was again off his line very quickly to defuse the situation.
The U.S. arguably should have been awarded a penalty kick 10 minutes into the second half when Donovan went down under a challenge from Hurtado. The referee, though, insisted the foul took place outside the box and nothing came of the ensuing free kick. Donovan made another superb run through Ecuador's defense moments later, forcing Aragon to make a desperate save.
In the 66th minute, Donovan wouldn't be denied. Ching sent the Los Angeles Galaxy playmaker through all alone and Donovan's patient, well-placed finish rolled just inside the far post to put the U.S. on top.
Two minutes later, Donovan completed his hat trick and he did it in style. Beasley rolled a square pass along the edge of the 18-yard box and Donovan smashed a first-time shot into to upper right corner of the net.
Donovan now has 30 career goals for the U.S. national team in 87 appearances, good for third place on the all-time list. The U.S. will next be in action on Wednesday when they take on Guatemala at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas. That game will kick off at 9 p.m. ET and can be seen live on ESPN2 and Galavision.
Jonathan Nierman is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
