Aug. 10, 1930 – Sao Paulo FC 5:3 U.S., international friendly at Chácara da Floresta

Billy Gonsalves celebrated his 22^nd birthday playing alongside James Brown (21), Arnie Oliver (23) and Bert Patenaude (20), a group of young players that could have formed the base of the U.S. national team for years to come, though only Gonsalves remained in the picture for the 1934 World Cup.

The Gonsalves-Patenaude combination had been productive for the Fall River Marksmen – Patenaude scored 112 goals in 114 games, many off Gonsalves setups, from 1929-31, and Gonsalves added 69 goals in 116 games from 1928-32. But Gonsalves and Patenaude went separate ways after the demise of the American Soccer League.

Patenaude scored twice for the U.S. against Sao Paulo, totaling 10 (plus eight disallowed goals) on a six-match post-World Cup tour of Uruguay and Brazil.

Gonsalves (b. Portsmouth, R.I., Aug. 10, 1908) was long considered the all-time best U.S. player, and in this match he faced Artur Friedenreich, the greatest Brazilian scorer ever. Friedenreich (b. July 18, 1892) scored three of his 1,329 career goals for Sao Paulo Futebol Club in this game (some sources credit Friedenreich with 1,239 goals, believing numbers were transposed). No goal totals have been compiled for Gonsalves, who had a 26-year career and once scored 54 goals in a season in St. Louis, but sources have credited him with about 1,000 total goals.

Gonsalves converted one goal in six games for the U.S. national team, all his appearances in World Cup matches (1930 and ’34), plus a game against Brazil (listed as a Rio “Scratch” team) on Aug. 17, 1930. Friedenreich, who also had a 26-year career, totaled 10 goals in 23 matches for Brazil, playing in two Copa America tournaments.

From the www.saopaulofc.net site:

10.08.1930

Amistoso Internacional
São Paulo (SP) Estádio São Paulo Futebol Clube – Chácara da Floresta
SÃO PAULO Futebol Clube (SP) 5 X 3 Seleção dos ESTADOS UNIDOS

Árbitro: Attílio Grimaldi

SPFC: Nestor; Clodô (capitão) e Barthô; Milton, Bino e Abate; Luizinho, Siriri, Friedenreich, Armandinho e Romeu. Técnico: Ramón Platero

Gols: Armandinho, 30s/1; Friedenreich, 9/1; Friedenreich, 17/1; Friedenreich, 21/1; Romeu, 15/2

EUA: James Douglas; Alexander Wood e George Moorhouse (Frank Vaughan); James Gallagher, William Gonçalves e Andrew Auld; James Brown, Mike Bookie, Bert Patenaude, Arnie Oliver e Tom Florie (capitão). Técnico: Bob Miller

Gols: Patenaude, 6/1; Brown, 33/1; Patenaude, 18/2