Donovan nets honor, U.S., Argentina tie

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Ticker) - Landon Donovan hit the century mark and goalkeeper Tim Howard made seven saves as the United States and Argentina played to a scoreless draw Sunday in a friendly at Giants Stadium.

Donovan became fourth-youngest American male player to record 100 appearances and 11th overall. The Los Angeles Galaxy star had hoped to reach the century mark when the Americans played in England at Wembley last week, but he was forced to withdraw with a groin injury.

He then had to sit out Wednesday’s game in Spain as the injury continued to bother him. However, the 26-year-old Donovan was fit enough to play Sunday in front of a raucous crowd of 78,682.

“It feels great (to get his 100th cap) and it’s kind of a weight off my shoulders,” Donovan said. “It was nice to be part of such a great game and for it to be on my 100th cap is special. It is an accomplishment I am proud of.

“It was a fun game to be a part of and, at the end of the day, you look at each other and say, ‘That was a good battle.’ There’s good respect between the two teams.”

Goalkeeper Kasey Keller was the last to reach the milestone, doing so during last year’s Gold Cup semifinal victory against Canada. The United States’ all-time leader for goalkeepers in wins, shutouts and World Cup qualifying appearances, Keller was recognized prior to Sunday’s match.

As for the match itself, Howard recorded his 12th career shutout for the United States national team.

“Tonight it was about standing up for ourselves, believing we could get a result,” Howard said. “We stood up to the challenge. It wasn’t always pretty at times.”

The match was played during a heavy downpour in the second half, with both sides reduced to 10 men.

A second yellow card sent Pablo Mastroeni out in the 71st minute, giving the Argentina squad a brief 11-on-10 advantage until Javier Mascherano got two yellow cards in the 86th minute to level the playing field.

“I think we’re getting stronger,” United States coach Bob Bradley said. “We are understanding what it takes to play in the better games. The first half we had to deal with a lot tactically, and Tim Howard of course made some very big saves.

“The second half we showed some real resolve, both handling the red card and adjusting to different things tactically at different times. It means that at the end we feel very good about getting a result tonight. We feel good about the depth that we have and these are things that we are building to put is in the right direction.”

Sunday’s contest also served as the final friendly before the start of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying, which begins for the U.S. on June 15 against Barbados at The Home Depot Center.