Halftime thoughts

1. We're dominating Latvia. Not a surprise, but still good to see. We're only 16 years removed from the ragtag bunch of college players we sent as sacrificial lambs to Italia '90.

2. I think this is likely to be similar to the lineup we see in the World Cup. Eddie Johnson has been very inconsistent, but he's the perfect complement to Brian McBride's target game. I've always felt he would start with McBride up top. You have to put the players with the greatest potential on the field in the World Cup. If they don't play to the best of their abilities, then yank them for a more solid performer. I think Johnson will start

3. John O'Brien on the left midfield is interesting. He's much more a central-mid, but when he's healthy, he is the best player to ever come out of the United States.

4. Beasley on the right mid is fascinating. The least obvious starting slot over the past month is the right mid slot. Bobby Convey is playing with so much confidence that Arena really appears to be considering

5. Jimmy Conrad has looked very solid the last two games. Very solid. Granted, it's against Venezuela and Latvia, but you've got to think that he's playing very well in camp to get on the field. And he's performing well on the field.

6. Losing Gibbs on the backline hurts so much.

7. What the heck is with the ref? Latvia is just fouling the heck out of us. Eddie Johnson and John O'Brien are particularly taking some hard fouls, and those aren't players who've been known for their durability. Arena has to keep O'Brien in the game, because he has to see how long he can go (he's probably played less than 20 games since starring for the US in World Cup 2002). But every hard takedown that O'Brien keeps taking is making me very nervous.

If this ref wants to keep control of the game, he's going to have to go into his book and give some cards. He's given quite a few, but he's been very kind to Latvia. The first double yellow/red would go a long way towards bringing some accountability into Latvia's tackling.

8. I believe Eddie Johnson has been taken down 4 times inside the box. Many of these were close, but the ref can't keep letting them push the line that much.