I was in KC for the US game on Monday night. Thought I would share my pics with the board. Pics were on iPhone so some are of dubious quality.

I arrived in time for the second half of the opening act (Haiti/Honduras) which started at 6:00. We bought tickets the first day they were available. Ended up with great seats damn near field level. The field at Sporting Park was in immaculate shape.

Spotted Conor Casey in the stands...

Oh, I think he seent me. He mad...

Watched these Haitians play a mean game of keep away at halftime. No doubt the islanders have some special skills...

I got to watch Andy Najar work my side in the second half. He can really play, fast as an Asian whore. Would have been a real asset to the U.S. if he had worked out. Haiti finally got smart towards the end of the second half and just put two guys on him - one in front and one in behind. Still couldn't keep him off the ball...

After Honduras lost, Jorge Luis Pinto just stood motionless in disbelief for like 5 minutes. Didn't speak a word to any of his players as they walked past him to the locker room...

There was a contingent of Haitian fans seated behind us. After the game, this Haitian baw jumped in the seat next to me and grabbed a Haitian flag from them. I snapped a quick pick. He took to the field to celebrate with his teammates.

Alright, on to the real game. Sporting Stadium sold out for the game. The sell-out only meant about 18,5 in house. However, Sporting Stadium is so well-designed that the atmosphere was incredible. The fans truly were a twelfth man on the night...

Pre-game handshakes

I was close enough to Jurgy that I'm now half-fluent in German...

Timmy Chandler was in front of my section first-half. He still has the touch of a rapist in person. Dat arse...

I'm not even joking. Watching him in person, he looks awkward as hell carrying that thing around. Like it's a real struggle for him. He more waddles than runs. He's alright once he gets that thing in motion and mounts up a head of steam though.

I had the pleasure of watching Alejandro Bedoya work my side both halves of the night. For me, he was our man of the match. I was never a tremendous fan of his, just thought he was adequate to do a specific job. But he won me over in person. He worked the hell out of the line in both halves and was totally gassed by the time he came out in the second half. He never gave the ball away, defended well, and was constantly dangerous going forward. A big

to him.

Blas Perez was a GAM in person. Looked like a horse on the field. He bullied Alvarado all night. Look at the difference in size...

I am a fan of Alvarado as a future prospect for us. I still think he lacks the polish and physicality to be a starter at this point. He was easily bodied and beaten on their goal by a simple turn in the box. Seemed to lack confidence for a while after that until Guzan jumped his arse and told him to get his head back in the game. He responded okay in the second half.

JAB, who is also a beast in person, getting booked in the first half after pulling Perez back. Well-deserved but heads up on his part. Perez was clean through without the foul...

There was a pitch invader at halftime. He was shirtless wearing a US flag. He made it across the field for a solid couple of minutes before he was tackled and removed...

Time to bring on the second-half reinforcements

Obviously, second half was better than the first. Bradley was able to control the pace of the game a little better. As expected, the Panamanians sought to dirty up the game, talking shite and throwing bows whenever they got the chance. Beckerman was mixing it up and talking lots of trash off the ball. Got in some hard tackles to set the standard in midfield. Here's Bradley jogging back after the goal. I thought for sure we'd go on to win it at this point.

Dempsey near my section. Some might joke that he was hustling back after losing the ball...

Beckerman took a hard shot to the ribs and had to get some treatment on the side...

This little bastard for Panama was lightning quick. Always dangerous when he got on the ball. At one point, Beckerdreads tried to slide in and take him out when he was on a break but whiffed by a solid 5 yards