Caught in Possession

A weird one. Seriously.

What to do when the stars are stacked against you? No easy answers there, besides just "get better."

Take your chances. Be slick and smart and ruthless and confident and lucky, just like Chivas was. It was enough, even though they weren't fit. The plan was conceived and executed, and all United could do was react.

But hey, don't listen to me. Listen to Devon McTavish:

"Technically, they’re a phenomenal team and they came out and showed that right off the bat. I think they went after the early goal and were fortunate enough to get it, and kind of just – you could see towards the end of the game, they weren’t in midseason fitness, but they did enough to get the job done."

Just for clarity: USA has owned Mexico in contemporary head-to-head international competition. But the average Mexican player is much better than the average Gringo player. More comfortable on the ball, more alert, more intuitive, and blessed with a more aggressive mentality whenever on the field.

So there's much work to be done.