Quaranta.. (R)

[jri]

And the excitement is about (what?)

I've seen him play in 6 matches in the last 5 weeks- and I am wondering why some folks still think he's the next great American talent. Aside from an occasional, nice 40 yard diagonal switching ball, I really don't see the 'enormous talent'...

Honestly, he looks unoriginal, uninspiring to me in the final 1/3. The only decent game he had, he came in at the 80. mark vs. tired legs in the Gold Cup- well, lots of players coulda looked good in that situation.

Can we deposit Quaranta back in the "show high-level consistency in MLS and THEN we'll give you a shot"..

Adu is more effective (than Quaranta) against high-level competition, game warts and all. Chelsea match proved that (Adu actually has fakes that work against quality comp- Quaranta has the 'I read that book last week' fake). Hell, let's give Jusin Mapp or Chris Rolfe a 5 game run-out: They can produce as much as Quaranta (has shown)...

[rgli13]

its all relative.

tino has played as well as ralston and at least theres still upside there. its not that i think tino is gonna come on like beasley/donovan 02- but short of moving established guys we have to the right its a question of improving on what we have, which is ralston.

and yeah- i think tinos played just as well. (if not better)

[Kernel KlinK]

I agree. There are some decent passes/crosses but he seems out of the game too many times and is it me or does he seem lackadaisical? Let's move on from him.

Second, he's not better than Ralston but there are others who are.

[dcc134]

its all relative.

tino has played as well as ralston and at least theres still upside there. its not that i think tino is gonna come on like beasley/donovan 02- but short of moving established guys we have to the right its a question of improving on what we have, which is ralston.

and yeah- i think tinos played just as well. (if not better)


Agreed, if the competition is Ralston, then I pick Tino. At least he has the physical attributes which suit the international game.

Whether Mapp, Gaven or Adu should be given a chance, I'm on the fence. Tino has the advantage over all of them because he actually has learned to play defense.

[jri]

its all relative.

tino has played as well as ralston and at least theres still upside there. its not that i think tino is gonna come on like beasley/donovan 02- but short of moving established guys we have to the right its a question of improving on what we have, which is ralston.

and yeah- i think tinos played just as well. (if not better)

Ralston scored against Mexico, and doesn't he have at least one assist?

Quaranta has done what in running time?

I like to see production. Soccer is such a low-scoring game- that guys who can score/create goals/near goals are worth so much.

That's why Freddy is valuable- he can even play poorly, but he almost always produces a PK, or 90% chance for assist, or goal or assist in games he plays....that is a valuable skill. Quaranta does not have that (he is great at side-2-side balls though!)

[DCFAN96]

Ralston scored against Mexico, and doesn't he have at least one assist?

Quaranta has done what in running time?

I like to see production. Soccer is such a low-scoring game- that guys who can score/create goals/near goals are worth so much.

That's why Freddy is valuable- he can even play poorly, but he almost always produces a PK, or 90% chance for assist, or goal or assist in games he plays....that is a valuable skill. Quaranta does not have that (he is great at side-2-side balls though!)

Wow don't get carried away Ralston scored a tap-in and disappeared for the rest of the game, Quaranta and everyone else last night played poor (I'd exclude Marcus and Marshall). There was no leader in the midfield and it showed, which is why I would've started Donovan or even Convey in the middle that way we'd at least have a quasi #10. Tino's game is playing off other players and no one did that last night, which is why everyone involved in the offense looked poor. You can't judge on one game, otherwise we'd throw Donovan off the team for his performance against Mexico and Ralston off the team for his last 8 Nat performances (we actually SHOULD kick Ralston off teh team).

[Zathras]

Ralston scored against Mexico, and doesn't he have at least one assist?

Sure, but what else did he do against Mexico? He was invisible except for being in the right place at the right time. You can't have an invisible game except for an opportunistic goal and point to it as justifying your selection. Ralston might still be the best option we have at the moment, so for now he plays, but we should definitely be looking for better.

[scarshins]

he's 20 frickin years old and has finally got his chance with 3 months of regular playing time now- give him a chance to grow a bit. He's won't be playing in Germany over Ralston IMO, but he's one for the future.

[scarshins]

That's why Freddy is valuable- he can even play poorly, but he almost always produces a PK, or 90% chance for assist, or goal or assist in games he plays....that is a valuable skill.

Wrong. For instance, DC at Colorado last weekend.

Half the time the Good Freddy doesn't show up and the teenage Freddy gets totally manhandled.

[ctruppi]

Wow don't get carried away Ralston scored a tap-in and disappeared for the rest of the game, Quaranta and everyone else last night played poor (I'd exclude Marcus and Marshall). There was no leader in the midfield and it showed, which is why I would've started Donovan or even Convey in the middle that way we'd at least have a quasi #10. Tino's game is playing off other players and no one did that last night, which is why everyone involved in the offense looked poor. You can't judge on one game, otherwise we'd throw Donovan off the team for his performance against Mexico and Ralston off the team for his last 8 Nat performances (we actually SHOULD kick Ralston off teh team).


This is an excellent point and I said in the player ratings post that my 1st sub last night would have been LD for Dempsey. We did look a lot more dangerour one EJ and LD were in there and Tino on the right would have created even more chances. I think both Ralston and Dempsey are a waste of time right now!

[John_Harkes_6]

And the excitement is about (what?)

I've seen him play in 6 matches in the last 5 weeks- and I am wondering why some folks still think he's the next great American talent. Aside from an occasional, nice 40 yard diagonal switching ball, I really don't see the 'enormous talent'...

Honestly, he looks unoriginal, uninspiring to me in the final 1/3. The only decent game he had, he came in at the 80. mark vs. tired legs in the Gold Cup- well, lots of players coulda looked good in that situation.

Can we deposit Quaranta back in the "show high-level consistency in MLS and THEN we'll give you a shot"..

Adu is more effective (than Quaranta) against high-level competition, game warts and all. Chelsea match proved that (Adu actually has fakes that work against quality comp- Quaranta has the 'I read that book last week' fake). Hell, let's give Jusin Mapp or Chris Rolfe a 5 game run-out: They can produce as much as Quaranta (has shown)...

Did Quaranta have a good game last night - nope. Maybe it was design, maybe it was fatigue but he didn't do a good enough job getting forward.

However, Adu flat out sucked against Colorado and was so-so against RSL. His goal was a combination of willingness to take a shot from outside and horrible defending/keeping (which was the bigger of the two). Adu can't hold up against MLS defending and is always knocked off his feet (far more than Beasley at the same point four years ago). How in the hell is he going to play any crucial role against a Mexico team destined to break DmB's legs?

[BigKris]

Tino sure hasn't looked great yet, but Bruce has a track record with this sort of thing, so I'm willing to give it some time. Among the youngsters that Bruce has given extended runs to are: Bobby Convey, Damarcus Beasley, Landon Donovan, Oguchi Onyewu, and Eddie Johnson. With the exception of GAM, I don't think any of these guys really seized the game by the throat and throttled it in their first couple of outings - Bobby, in particular, has been pilloried on these boards - but these bets seem to have worked out OK for us. Maybe Tino will work out, maybe he won't, but I'm willing to trust Bruce on this.

[FirstStar]

Second, he's not better than Ralston but there are others who are.

Who??? Who is out there ready to swoop in and claim the starting RM spot for the US? Right now, it's DMB playing out of position. If Bobby Convey keeps getting better and better, that's what is going to have to happen, as DMB is getting used to the right side playing at PSV.

Until then, RM is a black pit for the US and we need help there. Ralston has shown us ALL that he can do, and his best is good enough for CONCACAF minnows and not much else. Tino at least has potential, and potential is all that we have to go on right now because no one else is claiming this spot for their own.

[Trellis]

The biggest thing I have not seen from Quaranta that Mapp, Ralston, or even Brian West could bring to the team is the ability to beat his player down the flank and serve in dangerous balls from behind the defense.

Quaranta can serve in a good ball, but more times than not it is from 20+ yards up the field. Teams know he isn't going to try to get behind you. He' s just too one-dimensional.

Being 20, he'll be a factor in 2010, but I don't see him on the 2006 team unless he's able to beat his defender more consistently off of the dribble.

Ralston doesn't have the break-away speak, but he's a much smarter player and better at finding a way behind the defense.

[macheath]

Who??? Who is out there ready to swoop in and claim the starting RM spot for the US? Right now, it's DMB playing out of position. If Bobby Convey keeps getting better and better, that's what is going to have to happen, as DMB is getting used to the right side playing at PSV.

Until then, RM is a black pit for the US and we need help there. Ralston has shown us ALL that he can do, and his best is good enough for CONCACAF minnows and not much else. Tino at least has potential, and potential is all that we have to go on right now because no one else is claiming this spot for their own.

Agreed, except I think Quaranta is being rated too highly. He's getting opportunities, and not doing anything with them. He was invisible last night, zero, zero service to the forwards.

We've moved (if the Lewis experiment at left back works out, which I trust it will), from a left back to a right mid problem. If DMB gets comfortable out there, that's the best possible solution at this point.

[WShine]

And the excitement is about (what?)

I've seen him play in 6 matches in the last 5 weeks- and I am wondering why some folks still think he's the next great American talent. Aside from an occasional, nice 40 yard diagonal switching ball, I really don't see the 'enormous talent'...

Honestly, he looks unoriginal, uninspiring to me in the final 1/3. The only decent game he had, he came in at the 80. mark vs. tired legs in the Gold Cup- well, lots of players coulda looked good in that situation.

Can we deposit Quaranta back in the "show high-level consistency in MLS and THEN we'll give you a shot"..

Adu is more effective (than Quaranta) against high-level competition, game warts and all. Chelsea match proved that (Adu actually has fakes that work against quality comp- Quaranta has the 'I read that book last week' fake). Hell, let's give Jusin Mapp or Chris Rolfe a 5 game run-out: They can produce as much as Quaranta (has shown)...

Overall on the USMNT Quaranta has looked like a good player, not a great player so far. He is getting so much time because he is only 20. He has plenty of time to take it to the next level and that can happen next week or never. He needs USMNT playing time to learn how to be better at this level.

Despite other posts, I agree with you about Adu. He is special and needs/deserves USMNT time at this point just like Quaranta. Adu will learn and grow quickly if given the opportunity. Bruce should give him the opportunity.

[sidefootsitter]

With the MLS crew out there, Quaranta showed no initiative and either stayed back or just trotted at half speed throughout the game.

When playing with the veterans, he is a different player. He becomes more aggressive and takes players off the dribble.

What you saw last night was a sink-or-swim experiment by Bruce Arena. Half of these players will get a chance to audition with the A-roster next spring based upon their performance from now through the winter camps.

This squad looked what I thought an MLS squad would look like. The WC'06 roster time on the pitch, I reckon, will be heavily in the Euro based players' favor.

[DCFAN96]

With the MLS crew out there, Quaranta showed no initiative and either stayed back or just trotted at half speed throughout the game.

When playing with the veterans, he is a different player. He becomes more aggressive and takes players off the dribble.

What you saw last night was a sink-or-swim experiment by Bruce Arena. Half of these players will get a chance to audition with the A-roster next spring based upon their performance from now through the winter camps.

This squad looked what I thought an MLS squad would look like. The WC'06 roster time on the pitch, I reckon, will be heavily in the Euro based players' favor.

Exactly, Tino's performs better when he has better players around him making better runs and getting him the ball faster and in better positions.

[EEUU]

I thought he played well in all of his recent MLS and National Team matches until last night. Dempsey, on the other hand has been looking pretty green for a while.

[KCWiz]

I'm wondering how Quaranta fell ass-backwards into the USMNT. He hasn't proven anything this year.