“Our right back is Brad Evans, he has that position locked down." this was Klinsmann’s comment when speaking to Graham Ruthven yesterday postgame. I don't about you guys but this unequivocal stance on Evans by Jurgen is more than a bit disconcerting. I'm not sure what Evans did or has done to give Klinsmann such unilateral faith in his ability but if Jurgen maintains this stance moving forward through the World Cup I don't see it ending well. It may not have happened yet but I'm confident Evan's lack of athleticism and 1v1 defending ability will cost us points at some juncture. Add to that Evans' inability to contribute anything offensively and it's shocking that Klinsmann views Evans as such a sure fire starter. It's like Jurgen is grading him on a sliding scale because he's not a natural RB or something.
The sad thing Louis is that we didn't really have any better options than Bornstein at LB back in 2010. But with Evans and the 2014 RB spot that's far from the case. Apart from Chandler and Cherundolo whose status appear to be in limbo we have a RB starting in the EPL in Geoff Cameron, another starting in the Championship in Eric Lichaj and a couple MLS top rookies in DeAndre Yedlin and Andrew Farrell. Add to that Michael Parkhurst if he can get a loan or transfer this winter and it's clear there are enough viable options in the player pool that we shouldn't be relying on a converted midfielder at the position. And unlike our other converted mid (Beasley) at fullback, Evans offers nothing in attack to go with his shotty 1v1 defending. It's a lose/lose situation for me.
Ha, we posted this literally at the same exact time. I really don't understand JK and his selection and use of fullbacks. It's maddening. How an MLS mid, who's not even a top 3 player on his MLS team has our NT RB position locked down is beyond me. He might not even be a top 5 player for Sea. We have a starting EPL RB who JK feels at best is emergency cover at that position for us. Why doesn't Cam cut it? Defensively he's better than Evans. Does he not offer enough going forward? Cam is superior with the ball at his feet to Evans. Neither can cross all that well but Cam at least offers more on the ball and is a quicker/more accurate passer than Evans. Evans rarely ventures forward or offers anything in the attack. And if it's not Cam, then how about Chandler who's playing well at RB for FCN? Offers more than either Evans or Cam going forward and actually can send in quality crosses. Has pace neither can touch. Not as good as Cam defensively but both are better than Evans at this level defensively. Two RB's starting in top 4 leagues, yet an MLS mid who frankly had a poor season for Sea has the position on lock while Cam is deemed emergency cover and Chandler apparently won't get a look the rest of this cycle. And instead of going with Cam or Chandler, JK goes with Evans, while also giving time to other non-RB's in Orozco and Bedoya while Lichaj couldn't get a look. It literally makes zero sense. Evans isn't an international at this level(above CONCACAF) on either side of the ball and he really isn't even close. Cam at least solidifies one side of the ball and offers more in possession while Chandler has the ability to be an asset on both sides of the ball.
Evans and Beasley is like Klinsmann is trying to prove some point that anyone can play fullback, who needs real fullbacks when you can just use wingers or mediocre midfielders? I'll just leave this here... Other players have the unfair advantage of actually being fullbacks!
Which games do those stats come from? (Aside from the Panama one obviously) The top right stats seem to be a mix of club and USMNT games. Is that the same with the ones on the left?
Which is to say that they look nice and official, but as an actual comparison between players, they're all kinds of stupid. Good test of how gullible people are.
If Brad Evans has a World Cup like Bornstein did for us, I'd consider it a rousing success. Not that I'm comfortable with him back there, but food for thought on your comment.
As a Sounders fan I have to say I am perplexed as to why Klinsmann continues to play Brad at RB. I just don't get it.
I dunno do you have a running total for all the defenders? That's not the question anyways the question is why does JK continue to play Brad Evans at RB? What is it that he brings to the position?
I think the likely answer to that question is the obvious one; Brad Evans has yet to cost the US a game, has scored one game winner, and the team has won with him in there. Coaches tend to go with the things that have been successful, regardless of whether or not they are good ideas. I'm not surprised in the least, considering of the other available options, you have: -An injured Steve Cherundolo -An injured (and meh) Michael Parkhurst -A not-called-in-for-whatever-reason Tim Chandler -A completely not-ready DeAndre Yedlin -A just-recalled after 2 years Eric Lichaj -Geoff Cameron -Michael Orozco That's not exactly teeming with potential there. I think 'Dolo might be done, Parkhurst is no great shakes, Chandler has issues of some sort, Yedlin would get torched, we already know Orozco is bad (and he DID get beaten for goals in CRC) and Cameron has two other spots he's better in. Maybe Lichaj is the guy; who knows. Hopefully he plays well in Vienna and is good enough for his club to stay in the picture. Have I missed anyone?
Bornstein did have a good WC but unlike Evans, Bornstein was always fairly athletic so he could make up for some of his shortcomings defensively with recovery speed. Bornstein was also a threat going forward unlike Evans. Part of the reason JB would got burned as often as he did was because he'd push into attack too often. Really he wasn't that terrible at LB for NT when he was actually playing position for club, also unlike Evans. So to sum up: Evans isn't as athletic as JB, isn't as offensively gifted as JB and never plays the position for his club like JB. So no, I have little to no confidence that he can replicate Bornstein's 2010 WC performance. If Evans actually played RB for Seattle or another MLS side and proved his worth at the position in MLS maybe I'd have a less of a problem with his selection. I don't think it would change anything about my perception of his actual ability or talent but at least we'd have club performance to base and judge his play against the other RB's in the pool. I don't think Jurgen would cut him so much slack or grade him on a different scale than the rest if he was actually playing the position regularly either, which seems to be the case currently.
The one thing Evans has done (and done well) is played within his own limitations. He's not been embarrassed out there, he's stayed at home for the most part, and played positionally sound defense. He hasn't put himself in bad positions. I think even his harshest critics (and I was one) have to concede that point. He's been a totally acceptable stopgap up to this point. That said, I think better, faster attacking players like we'll see next summer will torch him, and I'd rather not see that happen. I think the best-case likely scenario for us to hope for is that Lichaj claims the spot through his play; he's the only likely available actual defender who hasn't been exposed either way for the NT this cycle.
Thanks, that's what I was going for. I also think that people tend to under-rate Evans because he isn't a flashy player. He is better technically and athletically than some people seem to think. Moreover, he is smart, tough, and relentless, and those things get you a long ways. I think he's much better than Bornstein was. Also, Chandler was a disaster in Honduras, and Cameron was a disaster against Belgium. Both of those performances were considerably worse than Orozco's in Costa Rica. (But Orozco is a guy people like to pile on.) For the record, I actually like Parkhurst's game a lot, but he needs to go somewhere he can play.
Chandler's was the worst of the bunch, but that right side of the field was an absolute sieve in CRC; Orozco was bad. I don't recall Cameron's Belgium performance, but like I said, he's better in two other spots than RB.
The whole Yedlin would get torched meme is kinda funny. He's most likely the defender of the year for the Sounders. Tell me how many times he got torched in MLS? or in the CL or in the U20 WC? The club was much weaker going forward when he went out injured and Evans had to slot in at RB. Technically he's better than every player on that list and offers more going forward is strong in the tackle and has pace to burn. He's had to deal with two very slow central defenders and poor central mid play when Ozzie was out and still managed to shine as a rookie. He changes the way MLS teams approach the Sounders. They'll often have to move attacking players away from his side simply because they can't defend his runs. His final ball has greatly improved over the course of the year as has his defensive positioning. I've watched every single game he played this season for his club and country and his growth in one season has been remarkable. He deserves a long look in January. Cameron should be the #1 however JK doesn't see Cameron as a RB so it's wide open.
I saw him get beat many times for SSFC and use his speed to recover. He can get away with that in MLS. He won't get away with it against World Cup competition. ETA: When I say "beat", I mean "put himself in a less-than-ideal position defensively". It not like he was a cone back there. I like him. He's a very, very exciting prospect. I agree with you that he improved a lot throughout the course of this season. I think 2018's RB spot is his to lose, if one can handicap that this far out. But I don't think he's ready to track guys who are top players in the world. I think you run the risk of breaking his confidence if you go with him and we find he's not able to use his physical gifts to make up for experience playing the position at the highest level.
This is, of course, an excellent inquiry. There could also, easily, be an inquiry on the other side (the left back position). Neither spot has been really tested by an outstanding winger. And who is to say. Jurgen has proven himself many times capable of saying one thing in front of the press and then deciding to do the exact opposite, when push comes to shove. He has gotten better at this in the past two years. This could be a big concern if: 1. Brad Evans and the team believes he is truly the starting right back. 2. A shaky performance and he is replaced or someone beats him out. (I, like many others, have been impressed with his performance as what I expected to be a stop gap measure, for me he is fully capable, still, of losing his position). 3. Brad or the team, makes an issue of this in the locker room. Ordinarily, statements like this can come back to haunt coaches.
Dont forget he often had to cover gaps for Hurtado or Scott who are just horribly slow and who often got caught going to ground in the midfield leaving DeAndre trying to cover two positions. His pace actually brought him into plays were he honestly he had no business being in and sometimes that made him look bad until you saw how the play developed. Early on this season he liked to try and bite on thru balls to the right or try and step into player receiving the ball to his credit he stopped doing that half way thru the season after getting turned over a few times. If Brad Evans is your starting RB in Brazil JK is going to ask him to get forward. B-rad will get forward and maybe put in some early balls into the box and occasionally drift inside. B-rad will get caught up field and lacks the pace to recover. He will not get to the end line or put the opposing left wing under any real pressure. He's good on the ball but not great and still gets lost tactically during quick transitions. He won't be a RB at his club so he'll only work on his game during callups. This is a problem. I really like B-rad he's just not a RB. Either Chandler or Cameron need to take it over or give Yedlin a shot and give him licences to get up the field and cause havoc.
I hope by the time the World Cup comes around Evans is not RB, because we will be seeing the opposition attack our right flank every time and I know they will score goals on us. I can see those highlights already for all the goals scored against us in WC2014, from the right flank every time. It would be shame to see Klinsmann not renewed/fired post-WC for not wanting to see it before then.
For the Yedlin would get torched crowd here is a good breakdown and example (include annotated photos) of the defensive breakdowns the team has struggled with all year this one is from Vancouver's big win at C-Link. Two early goals by Kekuta Manneh made the Sounders defense look silly and initially many online pointed the finger at Yedlin when the real culprits and usual suspects were Hurtado and Traore. Yup that was a goal and the theme for the 2nd half of the season.