US, Canada battle to scoreless draw in soccer friendly

Toronto, ON, Canada (AHN Sports) – Even with vaunted scorers Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey starting together for the first time, the United States soccer team was forced to a scoreless draw by Canada Sunday in an international friendly match at the BMO Field.

US head coach Jurgen Klinsmann decided to start the two football superstars after the team absorbed a 4-1 beating at the hands of Brazil May 30 in a tune-up game that exposed the Americans’ weakness.

The move failed to produce goals or a win for Klinsmann, who will now be hard-pressed to make some adjustments before the team begins its 2014 World Cup quest against Antigua and Barbuda June 8 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.

Donovan had no shots while Dempsey had four of Americans’ 12 goal shots. Canada had nine total tries. The Americans controlled the ball for most of the game, with 63 percent compared to just 38 percent for Canada.

Goalie Lars Hirschfeld had four saves, but the biggest came in stoppage time when he blocked Clarence Goodson’s header six yards away, foiling the Americans’ last attempt to win the match.

Canada also had a chance to score in the 76th minute but Kevin McKenna’s header from an assist by Dwayne De Rosario was too high.

The United States continued its unbeaten run against Canada to 15 games (eight wins, seven draw) since April 4, 1985.

This was first time that the Americans played in Canada since 1997 but they agreed to it to contribute to the 100th anniversary celebration of the Canada Soccer Association. This also marked the first time that Toronto hosted a U.S.-Canada game for 43 years.

The Canadians will travel to Havana June 8 to battle the Cubans in a 2014 World Cup qualifying match at the Estadio Pedro Marrero.

---

---