US vs Belgium: General Postgame Thread(R)

lol, you are smoking some sweet sweet meth. belgium put a half assed effort into this game and should have walked away 5-1 or better. belgium IS 5-1 better than the US if not more, anyone with two eyes and half a brain for soccer can see that. the way the US is playing getting out of any UEFA group would take some serious work, this US team is not good right now in any way, shape, or form. from the coaches on down through every position we are a joke, this only masked by the fact that we play in a weak weak region with one, maybe two, good teams to challenge us.

 

Oh yeah - the PA dude at the stadium was stru-ga-ling with the Belgian names. I know there's a media guide to help 'em out, but he preferred to make up his own pronunciations.

 

You have no idea what you're talking about.

This is one of his best attributes and it could be a major asset for our NT.

 

My eyes don't lie - this may be unpopular since he's in Champions League, unfortunately, but we needed far more than Jones provides as a "#8" tonight.

Dempsey was insufficient also, btw.

 

I don't think you realize how much quality talent Belgium has.

 

Good God. So which of these teams is Belgium better than? Germany, Netherlands, Italy, France, Spain. Portugal.

I'd put them in the same group as Croatia, Czech, Sweden, England and Denmark- clearly better than the US but not elite.

 

Agree on Dempsey....but I rather have had started Holden for 60ish, and Sacha for the rest.

He's just not a good fit for a CM that needs to be more than a 'torres' like player. Holden has that, Bradley does, Jones when asked can contribute moving forward (tonight played as a more stay at home mid). Sacha's gotta go. Not a good fit.

 

lol this guy is clueless

 

Agreed. Belgium is on the short list of WC14 contenders, IMHO.

 

A good chunk of his goals were from Roasles' foot to his head....

 

Belgium is way better than a "middling" side in terms of individual quality. Vertonghen, Kompany, Alderweireld, Vermaelen (even if he had a bad year), Dembele, Witsel, Hazard, Fellaini, Benteke, Lukaku, de Bruyne. They have a squad that matches up against anyone's.

 

They beat the Netherlands handily 4-2 last August. So, yes, they are currently better than them.

 

Better than France, Portugal, and probably on par with the Netherlands.

 

Check the club affiliations of their current starting lineup - a lot more big teams than you'd typically see from a team outside the top 20. Lukaku and Benteke combined for 36 goals in the Premier League this past season.

Belgium may not be at the same level as the likes of Germany or Spain, but they're in a very good moment right now.

 

I honestly don't think you guys are that bad. Just not a broad squad. Just hope all your players are heatthy.

 

They are paper thin like we are, but with Eden Hazard they would absolutely destroy us.

 

Are you really only as knowledgeable as the last game you saw?

 

agree, I think maybe we should move Deuce back out left, and play Jozy and Boyd/Gomez/EJ up top

 

Well last time we did defeat the Netherlands with 4-2 also

 

We're not a very deep squad, that's one of the things that I took away from this game.

 

Belgium also didn't have their top goalie either arguably (Cortouis) to go along with Hazzard and Witsel

With our weaknesses and who we got, I kind of want to see us take the Germany game to try a 3 man backline and use some combo of Fabian Johnson DeMarcus Beasley and Edgar Castillo as wingbacks. Will it work? who knows, but I think it has a bit more potential right now that what we've been doing. Something like

Jozy​

Dempsey​

Castillo Mikey Zusi Johnson​

Jones​

Besler Gonzo Cameron​

Howard​

​

I have no idea how it will do but is it any worse than what we've been doing?​

 

paper thin? depthwise? They had Benteke and Mertens coming off the bench, no Witsel, and had no problem smashing us without Hazard

 

Wow. 1 result makes them better than a perennial WC contender. We really have some overheated commentary here!

 

I'm waiting to watch the match a second time (with less emotion plus the wife and I got caught up in a little yoga workout during the match - Thanks Klinsi!!!) but quick response to the postings I've read (every one).

Sacha was not that bad. He acted as a pivot. He's not a creator.

Goodson screwed the proverbial pooch. Twellman's comments about Gonzo (yes, I'm a Galaxy fan haters) were pathetic. I forgot to keep the match on mute.

Deuce did well but WTF is he doing going 90 in a FRIENDLY? Klinis, please-please-please, no more than 20 against Dur Faderland (ditto for JJ).

Jozy is now a GAM (get oudda-hear EJ). Didn't show quite as well as I hoped but I think he's a difference-maker in the upcoming WCQs.

I love Geoff Cameron. I think he is a superior athlete and a potentially hugely important part of the USMNT's success in WC14. Dude sucked.

Davis and Zusi are really, really smart athletes. They don't have the athleticism to match up against a right-on-the-edge of world power Belgium (thank the Lord Jesus Christ...sorry, the thread debating Klinsi's true commitment to achieving godhood sidetracked me...Hazard wasn't available to Belgium to rip our outside defense to a pathetic excuse for shreds).

Train of thought just ran off the tracks.

Let's just leave it at...we ain't ready to compete with Europe's best and I sincerely hope Klinsi uses the Germany friendly as an exhibition match to prepare us for what matters.

 

Forgot about that one. Better than the Netherlands too then. That just reinforces my point.