STARTERS

Nick Rimando—He opted for a risky play in the opening minutes right in front of the U.S. goal, and he pulled it off. Was it necessary? Probably not, but otherwise he had little to do during his 45 minutes on the field. Maybe he knew it would be a slow night. Rating: 5

DeAndre Yedlin—He's fast, or did you know that already? Not the most influential performance, but his clearance in the 66th minute preserved the United States' lead. Rating: 5.5 

Omar Gonzalez—He gave a strong first-half effort, breaking up a few of Mexico's early attacks in the midfield before they could get started. His aerial prowess came in handy in the 39th minute when El Tri pushed forward with a dangerous long ball and again two minutes later off a probing Carlos Esquivel cross. Clashed with Erick "Cubo" Torres and didn't back down against his former StubHub Center rival. Looked like a first-choice central defender from start to finish Rating: 7

Ventura Alvarado—A sloppy touch gifted Mexico a corner kick late in the second half, but nothing came of it. Was he jittery? Oh yeah. But the U.S. secured a clean sheet and Alvarado deserves credit for his role. Rating: 6

Greg Garza—The burly Club Tijuana left back reminded many that the recently resurgent Brek Shea is not going to claim a spot in the Starting XI without a fight. Garza fought hard, showed a good first touch, looked to attack, and was utterly fearless during his 45-minute showing. Rating: 6.5

Kyle Beckerman—His style of play matched the pitch perfectly—ugly but effective. Beckerman broke up a Mexican counterattack in the second minute with a clean, violent tackle that set the stage for the rest of the match. An injury forced the dreadlocked Utahn (weird combo, right?) to the sidelines right around the one-hour mark. Rating: 6

Mix Diskerud—Opened the match like he was shot out of a cannon and came close to creating several scoring chances in the opening 15 minutes. He didn't find a way to create a goal but neither did he hurt his standing with Klinsmann. Defensively, the Norwegian-American is becoming a force to be reckoned with. Rating: 7

Joe Corona—He gave a solid 45 minutes on both sides of the field. In the 38th minute he delivered a pinpoint cross that nearly found Morris in the six-yard box. Is he back in the mix? Big time. Rating: 6

Michael Bradley—Wearing the armband for the third match in a row, Michael Bradley showed why he deserves to be captain. He played a key role on both U.S. goals, outran everybody on the pitch, chased every loose ball like his life depended on it, and was clearly the smartest player on the field. Bradley found his preferred target, Omar Gonzalez, with all of his attacking zone free kicks. Oh yeah: He nearly scored his second Olimpico of the year in the 79th minute. Rating: 8.5

Gyasi Zardes—Struggled with his technique throughout the first half, demonstrating a poor first touch and some sloppy passing. Not his night. Rating: 4

Jordan Morris—Nobody expected the 20-year-old Stanford junior to make the starting lineup, but there he was, lining up alongside Bradley and Diskerud and Gonzalez. He ran hard and fast throughout the opening 45 and got his reward four minutes into the second half when a deflected Gyasi Zardes pass landed at his feet at the edge of the penalty area and he delivered a confident right-footed shot that put the United States ahead. Rating: 7.5

SUBSTITUTES

William Yarbrough—Had about as much to do as Rimando, so let's give them both the same rating, OK? Rating: 5

Brek Shea—Came on for Garza at the break and immediately delivered a beautiful cross that could have led to a goal but didn't. Other than that...? Not much. Rating: 5

Miguel Ibarra—Anonymous but not egregious. Rating: 5

Juan Agudelo—Came on in the 65th minute for Morris and scored seven minutes later after a beautiful first touch on a long Bradley pass. The sloppy field helped Agudelo secure the space he needed to blast a right-footed shot that gave the U.S. a 2-0 lead. A great feel-good story for U.S. Soccer Rating: 7

Perry Kitchen—Nearly scored in the 80th minute thanks to a beautiful pass from Diskerud, but his shot was blocked by an El Tri defender on its way the far post. He grabbed his head with both hands because he wanted it so bad. Rating: 5.5

Brad Evans—Good for him. Rating: NA

COACH

Jurgen Klinsmann—He didn't have Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, or Jermaine Jones available, and the pitch was a piece of shit. And yet the U.S. coach and technical director made it work, picking the right players and making the halftime adjustments that led to two second-half goals. We give him plenty of grief when he screws up, and it's only fair to praise him when he gets it right. Tonight, he got it right. Rating: 8

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