Defender Fabian Johnson combined with Michael Bradley to score a
superbly executed goal in the first half before Clint Dempsey added
a second after the re-start.
Turkey, who failed to qualify for the World Cup, got a consolation
goal in the last minute of normal time when Selcuk Inan converted a
penalty after Geoff Cameron was ruled to have handled the ball in
the box.
"Overall, I thought it was good, open game," said U.S. head coach
Juergen Klinsmann. "I think, defensively, especially in the first
half, we needed to make some corrections at halftime, we need to
close the gaps a bit better and we still have some work ahead of us.
"But overall, it was a good game to watch ... and you can tell that
everybody is getting more and more excited about the World Cup."
Turkey were unlucky not to score earlier when their captain Nuri
Sahin hit the post in the first half but had difficulty containing
the Americans as the match went on.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2014/Jun/02/images/ads/current/ccaonline_sda050208.png)
Playing in front of a full house at Red Bull Arena in New Jersey,
the U.S. had anxious moments in defence, allowing the European side
to breach their last line on a handful of occasions, but held firm
and looked sharp in attack despite having just finished a gruelling
training period.
"This is all normal, it's all part of the process," Klinsmann said.
"We are comfortable with every position, that we have top quality
players to get the job done.
"The fine-tuning element is coming along, it's getting better, it's
not there where we want it, but we're working on it."
U.S. forward Jozy Altidore had an early goal disallowed for making
contact with the Turkish goalkeeper Onur Recep Kivrak before Johnson
gave the home team the lead with a spectacular goal in the 26th
minute.
Bradley, the heartbeat of the American team, deftly flicked the ball
over the Turkish defence into the path of Johnson who hit a perfect
left-foot volley into the net for his first international goal.
[to top of second column] |
![](../images/ads/current/graue_lda_ascent_1700_042814.jpg)
Dempsey gave the Americans a 2-0 lead in the 52nd minute with a
typical poacher's goal, poking the ball in after Kivrak fumbled
Timmy Chandler's cross from the left.
Turkey got on the scoreboard in the dying moments after a mix-up in
the American defence. Cameron lost the ball to Mustafa Pektemek and
failed to get his arm out of the way when the Turkish substitute
rifled his shot at the goal to concede a penalty.
The U.S. beat Azerbaijan 2-0 in San Francisco last week and have one
more warm-up, against Nigeria in Florida on Saturday, before heading
to Brazil.
The Americans are drawn in Group G with Germany, Portugal and Ghana
for the World Cup, starting in just over a week.
"I believe they (the U.S.) can do a very good job at the World Cup,"
Turkey coach Fatih Terim said, speaking through a translator.
"They are a solid team with good players and I have a lot of
confidence in Juergen Klinsmann."
(Editing by Ed Osmond)
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2014/Jun/02/images/ads/current/business_directory_filler.png)
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2014/Jun/02/images/ads/current/tcb_lda_042814.png) |