I know this isn't a Jurgen thread, but we just look like a stupid team, a team that makes bad decision after bad decision. Since the guys I'm familiar with don't play like that with their clubs, that leads to one conclusion.
I thought at times we pressed really well and gave the russians trouble. we had 4 or 5 high pressing their back line. We are not a stupid team. I thought we did some clever things at times. Some good runs were made and nice passes as well. For playing a top team like Russia we acquitted ourselves pretty well.
That stood out to me as well. It also got mentioned by Tomaszewicz in his piece for ESPN yesterday: "The game slows for Michael Bradley, but the States still miss a horizontal player to control the tempo in midfield." Still waiting for that successor to Reyna in this regard.
Agreed. While Jones has talent, he tried to do way too much going forward. There were a number of times when he tried dribbling or some nifty pass going forward and lost posession which the Russians quickly turned into a counter. Klinsmann needs to keep him at Dmid and battling with Williams for that spot.
In the first half the forwards were left alone while the backs and midfield lagged 20-30 yards behind. As the game progressed and our line moved up the forwards were better supported. Both goals resulted with the forwards being able to play back to the midfield
That's definitely one thing that killed a number of counterattacking opportunities was the slow ball movement.
The biggest thing the U.S. was missing was someone to really orchestrate the attack. There was a defensive midfielder, two box-to-box midfielders ( quality ones, I should say) and three forwards. We didn't have a guy between those two sets of players that linked them and really looked to create. I'm not really okay with having two box-to-box midfielders in our central midfield ahead of a defensive midfielder, but if we do, we need to have somebody ahead of them that can really make the magic happen offensively. That said, the game changed for us when we got numbers and movement going both up top and in the midfield. We switched to a narrow diamond 4-4-2, which gave us more men in the central midfield, meaning even more possession after the Russians decided to drop off, and gave us two guys up top that could work the channels and work the defenders into uncomfortable positions.
I disagree with this. MB has the metronome role in the strong 3 midfield and I think he does a good job I that role.
I actually agree with THHF on this one. He was/is called General Bradley by Chievo Verona fans/followers for a reason. He's organizes and controls the flow of the game for the U.S. and keeps the ball moving in the required manner for the moment. He truly has become a leader, in my opinion. What we need, at least if we're going to continue with this 4-3-3, is a guy next to/slightly ahead of him that really can get things going offensively. A guy that bursts forward in support of the front three and can make the final pass or take a player on or control the ball. Now, that's if we play the 4-3-3. If we change shape, then I think things change. I still hop we get another look at the diamond. We've looked pretty good in it just about every time it's ever been run out. The only exception was the Jamaica game, and if we have Michael Bradley in that lineup (probably for Edu), it's probably a better game for us.
Yeah the backline needed to move further up the field. Still players like Zusi, Dempsey, or Donovan would have been more useful in directing traffic and making plays from the flanks.
MLS is really bad at their formation charts. Rapids was wrong most of the year and that is a fact. I believe this is due to software that only allows 3 rows of positions and tech guys with no clue about soccer.
Well it appears that will be to close to world cup for him ever to be included. He needs to be playing right now, so we can get him into Hex games for any chance at WC14 (which is 18 months from starting).
This post is spot on With Bradley and Jones playing dual 8's we leave ourselves with no creative attacking option to link the midfield and the forwards. - For as good as Bradley is and has been, he is excellent in dictating temp and controlling the midfield but he lacks the creativity to drive an attack against a team sitting deep and defending. - I honestly believe Jones is expected to do that and is trying to do that, but its just not the type of player he is. Although he did it a little better in the 2nd half out on the left. The problem is not that the 4-3-3- can not work, its that Jones and Bradley are the same player and their skill sets do not mesh together This is exactly why we have looked so much better vs. guat and jamaica in the 4-2-3-1. Because that formation gives us a 6 and an 8 but then has an attack minded creative player in front of them(Dempsey) I think in a perfect world that creative mid for now has to be Donovan. Dempsey is not creative enough.. moving forward I believe the role can be filled by a healthy Stu Holden or a maturing Mix Diskerud. We are a team in transition that wants to play a certain way(4-3-3 dictating tempo and controlling the ball) but some of the existing personnel(Dempsey mainly) do not really fit into a 4-3-3 formation
When have I ever, ever used a player's quotes to justify something tactical or strategic? Hint: The answer is never.
Really? I thought we kept possession for decent stretches, far long than we did at France, Italy, or Mexico. We also created two goals and some decent other chances.
Best passing match the US played was Jamaica home match. 87% passing accuracy on 598 total passes. 69% possession. That was with a midfield diamond of Zusi, Torres, Williams, and Jones.
A midfield trio of Edu, Jones, and Bradley generated plenty of opportunities against Scotland and Brazil.
Lets not kid ourselves Scotland was terrible in that game. As for Brazil we got rocked. I take no solace in creating opportunities against a team that killed us. Brazil did not need to play defense because they knew they could outscore us. Like I said I believe the 4-3-3- can work. I like Bradley and Jones, but I believe to be a consistent offensive threat out of it, we need a more creative attacking player to link the midfield and forwards together against teams defending deep. I see sparks of Jones being able to do that, but he seems to press and try hard to be that player
You're halfway there! Williams was still the 6 in the second half. Edu was the 6 when he came on. Don't confuse Bradley coming deep to get the ball with him being a deep lying whatever or a defensive midfielder. Focus more on what he does after he gets the ball. His positioning, how far up the pitch he takes the ball, where he goes after he passes the ball. These actions determine his role. Contrast what Pirlo does with what Bradley does, they both come deep to get the ball, what they do after they get the ball defines their current role. Yesterday Bradley was a free 8 and I honestly believe this is his best role. On defense they are all CM's and should be dropping back to defend. How deep they defend can be altered depending on the situation. For example, If we are chasing a goal sometimes one or both of the 8's can stay higher up. Perhaps they might defend deeper if we are protecting a lead. Either way, once we have possession, there roles will become more clearly defined.