There will be plenty of report cards rushed home for showing off after the US national team jump-started their Copa America hopes with a thorough 4-0 rout of Costa Rica in Chicago.
Clint Dempsey bagged an early goal from the spot to move into the top 10 scorers among active internationals, and the Americans never looked back.
Brad Guzan (6) - The netminder wasn't overly troubled on the night, and largely displayed command when put under some duress. However, he did require one dose of help from the woodwork on a firm Bryan Ruiz header.
DeAndre Yedlin (6) - His badly muffed clearance put the team in a fifth-minute pickle and there were also a couple of bad giveaways in the early going. Yet Yedlin improved as the game went on. His cross led to the penalty call and the Tottenham right back tightened up defensively after the break.
Geoff Cameron (7) - The Stoke City defender also committed a bad early turnover in the US end, but gathered himself to to ring up eight total defensive stops in or in front of the home area. Cameron also threatened to join the goal fun with a strong corner-kick volley in the waning moments.
John Anthony Brooks (7) - For most of the night, Brooks handled business the Chicago way: no nonsense. He notched seven of his 10 area clearances in the first half and pulled off a nifty bit of ball-handling to escape trouble in the box just after the hour. However, his mark dropped a bit due to his twice leaving an opening for the Ticos to breach the box, and for losing Ruiz on the aforementioned header off the frame.
Fabian Johnson (7) - The Borussia Moenchengladbach star had more involvement going forward in the opening 15 minutes than he did the entire Colombia loss. Johnson also bothered Joel Campbell plenty before the Costa Rica speedster was removed, racking up 12 total defensive stops by the midway point of the opening frame. The biggest among them saved Brooks' bacon after the center back was caught out of position in the 23rd minute. His grade was lowered a half-point for an unnecessary yellow card in the offensive end.
Michael Bradley (7) - The General was back in command on Tuesday night, offering up a much-improved passing game and a litany of defensive stops all around the US end. Bradley could have also notched a late assist on Cameron's late shot were it not for an excellent save by the Ticos 'keeper.
Alejandro Bedoya (6) - Like Yedlin, Bedoya had early issues with turnovers in the US half. He tidied up his ball-handling and would provide grit at two different midfield positions before exiting late.
Gyasi Zardes (6) - The Galaxy man was another player that inflicted bad giveaway situations upon his teammates and he badly lost a restart mark in the second half. That said, Zardes also offered a handful of helpful link touches and tons of help defense. In particular, his area tackle and pressure-valve escape got the hosts out of a big fourth-minute jam.
Jermaine Jones (8.5) - If there was a soccer play that Jones didn't make on Tuesday night, we haven't heard of it. The Colorado Rapids star was everywhere, and not just because he shifted from the left flank to the middle at halftime. Among many other things, the veteran pitched in with the steal that led to his perfectly-measured strike for the US second, a hustling area shot block, five tackles and a splendid late through ball that deserved an assist.
Bobby Wood (7) - Though not a spotless showing, Wood battled aggressively for 70 minutes. He won three fouls, including the spot kick that was converted for the early opener. When the Hamburg recruit finally got his chance, he buried the US third with a brilliant turn-and-fire.
Clint Dempsey (7.5) - Like his strike partner, Dempsey didn't really dominate; he didn't always pick the right pass and lost his handle on a few rushes. He certainly produced, though, putting the home side up quickly with a flawless penalty goal they simply had to have. His first assist may have looked a bit cheap, so "Deuce" added a second on Wood's goal.
Coach Jurgen Klinsmann (7.5) - The boss reverted to the "empty bucket" to combat Costa Rica's flank attacks and it did the trick for the most part. This space isn't so sure we can credit him for the side's quality bounce-back (this is what US players routinely do, after all), but let's puff his grade up a little because he had them working for each other better than we've seen in a while. All told, this was the team's strongest overall display in a competitive match since the Portugal draw at World Cup 2014.
Subs:
Graham Zusi (7) - The Sporting KC winger worked a hearty 20-minute sub shift. He caused the turnover that led to his fine capping goal.
Chris Wondolowski (6) - Wondo contributed a few link touches in 12 minutes, but could have held his late breakaway run a half-step.
Kyle Beckerman (6) - In seven minutes plus added time, the Real Salt Lake bulldog logged a helpful area clearance and a bad giveaway near midfield. We'll call it a wash.
