CARSON, Calif. - Clint Dempsey scored midway through the first half and a 10-man United States squad survived a late Guatemalan surge as the U.S. won 1-0 in the Group B opener at Home Depot Center on Thursday.
Dempsey was named Miller Lite Man of the Match.
The United States picked up where they left off in the last Gold Cup. The Americans won the 2005 Gold Cup with a penalty-kick shootout win over Panama. Guatemala, meanwhile, will need results quickly if they are to avoid their 2005 fate when they failed to get past the group stage.
With the sun shining brightly at the start of the match, the United States took the initiative early on and pressured the Guatemalan goal. Dempsey took a knock some 25 yards from goal and set up a free kick, which Landon Donovan sent into the penalty area. Goalkeeper Ricardo Trigueno bobbled the ball and the U.S. won a corner kick. Donovan again took the set piece and swung a ball to the front of the net. Carlos Bocanegra slammed a header on goal but right to Trigueno's feet.
Donovan again nearly set up a goal off a corner kick in the 17th minute but Michael Bradley's header on goal was cleared off the line.
But Guatemala had settled in and was not allowing much space for the Americans to maneuver in. In fact, the U.S. appeared a bit rattled at times, possibly from a combination of a stingy and gritty Guatemalan squad and the blue-clad Guatemalan supporters, who dominated the stands.
In the 19th minute, Bocanegra nearly put a ball into his own net when he botched a clearance attempt. The ball grazed the right goalpost as the U.S. captain apparently tried to clear it to the other side of the field.
But two minutes later, the U.S. started to settle in. DaMarcus Beasley floated a ball to the front of the Guatemalan net and Dempsey slid and hit a shot off the outside of the net.
The U.S. finally broke through in the 26th minute. Jonathan Bornstein started the play as he collected the ball near the middle of the field after a U.S. corner kick. Bornstein knocked a ball to the left flank and Beasley flicked a header toward the corner of the penalty area. Taylor Twellman raced onto the ball and beat Pablo Melgar inside the penalty area. Twellman centered to Dempsey who slammed the ball into the back of the net.
It was Dempsey's eighth goal in a U.S. uniform and second in as many games. Dempsey, who scored for the U.S. in last summer's World Cup, also scored a goal in Saturday's 4-1 friendly win over China.
Guatemala had no answer for the U.S. goal. Forced to go forward, Guatemala showed little creativity. In the 40th minute, Carlos Ruiz found himself unmarked inside the penalty area after a quick restart of a free kick. Ruiz had little angle and centered the ball to the front of the net but the ball was cleared away by the American defense.
The U.S. had several chances in first-half stoppage time. Beasley found space inside the penalty area and ripped a 12-yard shot on goal. The ball deflected off a Guatemalan defender and rolled slowly to the front of the goal toward Dempsey but the Fulham man could not get to the ball in time. Eventually, Donovan found the ball on the right side of the area and slammed a 16-yard shot on goal but Trigueno did well to knock the ball over the end line.
Oguchi Onyewu was booked in the 56th minute on a dead ball after apparent contact with a Guatemalan player. Onyewu protested the call and looked stunned after he saw yellow.
Ruiz had Guatemala's best chance of the match on the hour mark. Ruiz ripped a free kick from 25 yards out that slipped past the wall. U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard dived and stopped the ball right at the goal line.
In the 61st minute, the U.S. made the first substitution of the match as Eddie Johnson replaced Clint Dempsey in a forward-for-forward swap.
Guatemala made its first substitute when Mario Rodriguez replaced Rigoberto Gomez. The move paid off as Rodriguez was involved in a play that left the U.S. with 10 men. Rodriguez sprinted into the U.S. third of the field on a Guatemalan counterattack. Onyewu was the last defender back and clipped Rodriguez, who went sprawling to the ground. Onyewu received his second yellow card of the match and subsequently sent off.
Guatemala had plenty of possession for the final quarter hour but did not mount any serious pressure on the U.S. goal.
Guatemala will play El Salvador on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET followed by United States-Trinidad & Tobago at 5 p.m.
Luis Bueno is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
