Gonzo did OK - he looked even better after Wynne came in. I was really impressed with Franklin. I know he's getting bad reviews from many fans for this game, and he did have a few awkward moments at the beginning of the game. There were a few nerves all over the field. But what about the rest? The second half in particular he was stellar. His passing was very, very good, crisp, strong and accurate, and contributed to the attack. His passing put "Mr. Distribution" Ream to shame. He is very calm and has a great first touch. Maybe he'll never see the NT again - but for a first cap I thought he was one of the better guys out there.
Weren't there more people for the Honduras game last year? Also, USA vs T&T in teh Gold Cup was a sellout a few years back at the HDC. However, that was a doubleheader. Regardless, I don't think there are any markets in the U.S. where they would have gotten better attendance then this for a match of this type - two D level squads. Great job Los Angeles, we might finally be considered a successful market for the national team!
didn't see the game but read this ... is it fair? Sean Franklin was the player who hurt his stock and the team the most in the first half, getting caught out of position and committing silly fouls on more than one occasion. http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2011/1/23/1951084/usa-vs-chile-1-1-full-time-usmnt-salvages-late-draw 84:00 - Sean Franklin commits a terrible giveaway in the middle of the field, not his first of the night. He has looked like a shell of the player who had a spectacular season for Los Angles Galaxy. http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2011...le-after-a-poor-segment-usmnt-finishes-strong 5:00 - Sean Franklin of the United States commits a very silly foul on the edge of the box after getting thoroughly schooled on the wing, very close to a penalty. In a real game, Franklin would have seen a yellow. On the ensuing free kick, Nick Rimando makes a nice save on a curled attempt. 30:00 - ..... Sean Franklin has not been dangerous going forward like he is for the Los Angeles Galaxy. After a solid start, the United States has been incredibly predictable lately.
FRIENDLY and the honduras game had about 16-17k i think not so sure... and that T&T vs USA in 2007 i am sure probably 25,000 were either Guatemala or salvadorian and they cheered us on! : )
Nope! But then I already wrote what I thought - I seem to be almost alone. I don't remember the giveaway at 84:00. The 5:00 comment is right, and that was luckily outside the box and Sean did not look good. There was another time he got beat as well. But c'mon, 5 minutes into his first cap we're going to throw him under the bus? That's like anointing the striker that scores in his first cap. I've seen Ream's game praised all over the place - I don't have time but I'd really like to go back and review the second half, but my first impression was Sean was the most composed and best-passing defender for the second half. Time will tell who Bradley calls in again! Although, Ream and Franklin are not competing for the same spot, and Franklin has some speed that Ream does not, so it's obviously not a direct comparison. Ream is in competition with Omar, and they are very different players.
And I'm sorry to say as a Galaxy fan, Ream outschooled Gonzalez. Ream was pretty solid in the back and only gave up a couple of balls. Omar's passing out of the back is still pretty lousy. Hopefully the Galaxy coaches work with him on that for this season......please.
I think that overstates Franklin's deficiencies in the first half, especially given that he had a pretty solid second half. Like Geneva said, I think there have been loud voices over Franklin's first half that aren't all rooted in a rational look at his game. Ream had quite a few blunders during the game, but many are willing to overlook his mistakes on the quality of his entire performance, yet not give Franklin similar treatment. As for Omar, the best thing about Omar's game was Marvel Wynne's game. Compared to Wynne's game, Omar looks better. Otherwise, what Omar showed out there isn't "enough." If Omar doesn't get more comfortable with the ball at his fee and doesn't learn to provide better distribution he may not have a future of any sort with the USMNT; then he's going to be another Chad Marshall--a good MLS defender that can't get to the next level.
Agreed. Omar needs to step it up this season. I was at the USMNT vs. Chile game and he would straight up kick the ball straight to one of Chile's players 5 ft in front of him. That, or he'll just boot it up the field to no one in particular. His positioning and height give him a great advantage on set pieces, but he just has a lousy first touch sometimes that gives the ball away so close to the goal. We can't afford that this season.
What confused me was when he would hold it for a while until he was pressured and then boot it rather than calmly play the ball on the ground to one of the midfielders when he had the time and space. It's almost like he only knows how to play 'hot potato.' There was one play early in the game like this, he had acres of space, had the ball at his feet, dribbled it up to the mid-field stripe toward the right hand side, Chile started to pressure, so he played a long ball to Franklin up the right that was too hard for Franklin to handle, so we cough up possession just like that.
And what's odd is that everyone knows it. In pre-season he should be working on this every day. One of our coaches should be spending tons of dedicated time with him on it. Cause I agree with a previous poster. If he doesn't fix it, no future with the USMNT. Ream has it covered.
Omar is so strong in the air that he might have a national team future even with his poor distribution. But he will always frustrate us and he'll never be that great one that we 're looking for in that case. What are these footwork faults that everyone is talking about? I'm a little ignorant and don't understand what they mean.
we should. and i think bradley's team spent time on this as well. fact is, if he gets this down, he's hands down a better option than ream. the problem, i think, is that he's looking for that outlet pass rather than trying to contribute to an attack. he's the modern day pass-back-pete at this point. you know that he's going to try to make what he thinks the safest pass is, which is usually something an opposing defender can figure out as well. this leads to bad passes, or the play goes nowhere because he just give is back to ricketts. making the safe pass is ok when you're a rookie, there's the speed of the game to contend with, confidence, and if passing isnt a natural strong suit, then you could understand why he would opt for the "safe" play. is it that he doesnt know how to be creative with passes, so that when his team mates are marked, his only option is to boot it upfield?
Totally agree with you Blue Magic - astute post. And Geneva, this post by Blue Magic is what we're talking about - poor distribution (aimless hoofball) and non creative passing. Or at least, that's what I was referring to. If he can get this down he'll be tremendous and a staple on the USMNT - and I agree, better than Ream due to his stature.
Thanks - I thought maybe it was something different, like taking short or long steps, or putting the wrong foot forward or something.