USMNT: best passer out of the midfield - M.Edu

[Sam Hamwich]

Just re-watched the argies match and man, this kid puts three 35 yard passes on the money. He did a very effective job of breaking up plays, passing out well in tight situations and has nimble feet.

The match changed drastically when he entered the picture. I would put him ahead of everyone in the middle right now and if I had my way, would bounce Donovan out wide (but with free reign) Dempsey in the middle, Beasley out left, then kick Adu up with Jozy and drop Edu back and allow him to attack at his discretion.

Based purely on the last two friendlies, there is no way I would play baby Bradley ahead of Edu.

If any of you recall it was Edu's pinpoint pass to 'Dolo that set up the goal in South Africa as well.

He also played a a very good match first time out against the Swiss. This kid is quite good and has shown the biggest upside of any midfield player I have seen in the US squad.

[Adam Zebrowski]

as long as feilhaber is out of the equation, i agree, edu is the better passer amongst a group not known for passing

[Nutmeg]

Just re-watched the argies match and man, this kid puts three 35 yard passes on the money. He did a very effective job of breaking up plays, passing out well in tight situations and has nimble feet.

The match changed drastically when he entered the picture. I would put him ahead of everyone in the middle right now and if I had my way, would bounce Donovan out wide (but with free reign) Dempsey in the middle, Beasley out left, then kick Adu up with Jozy and drop Edu back and allow him to attack at his discretion.

Based purely on the last two friendlies, there is no way I would play baby Bradley ahead of Edu.

If any of you recall it was Edu's pinpoint pass to 'Dolo that set up the goal in South Africa as well.

He also played a a very good match first time out against the Swiss. This kid is quite good and has shown the biggest upside of any midfield player I have seen in the US squad.

Some more thoughts on Edu's passing:

- It is accurate (as you've noted)

- It is fast - Edu plays the ball quickly and keeps play moving

- It is varied - whereas Michael Bradley far more often than not will only look to pass to a player checking to him (I call this Reynitis), Edu will just as easily play balls to players making runs away from him. This is important because it takes advantage of Beasley and Donovan's best attributes.

- It is weighted properly. Edu plays the ball hard in the right circumstances, and he knows when to take some off of it. Bradley, by comparison, often puts the wrong weight on his passes and leaves his recipient in a tough spot. For example, he dribbled a square pass early in the Argentina game that allowed an Argentine to jump all over it and created a turnover/fast break opportunity. You don't see that much from Edu.

I agree that Edu has no business being on the US bench, but obviously a certain coach sees it differently.

[IndividualEleven]

The ballers who have demonstrated that they can hold it down centrally in a 4-man set are Mastroeni, Clark, Bradley, and Edu. Of those four Edu is clearly the best passer and player.

Another name I'd throw out of a player who gets in done centrally in a 4-man set is Stuart Holden.

[TrueCrew]

I'm assuming we are only talking DM's.

Because the best passers out of midfield are: Adu, LD, Dempsey, Kljestan, etc. Should BB ever choose to employ anyone in that role.

Also, don't forget Mastroeni, he's a proven DM commodity.

[IndividualEleven]

None of those guys play centrally in a four man set.

[KALM]

I agree. Maurice Edu is probably the best fit right now for that deep lying distributor role, and he's making me miss Feilhaber a lot less. But, I'd still rate Adu and Dempsey slightly above him in playing the mid to long range through ball.

[Sam Hamwich]

We wont see a creative midfield player play centrally for Bradley. Somewhere along the line he has decided to confuse defense for possession.

He might be right, but I would like to see Edu - Dempsey play centrally.

This gives us two creative, passing mids who can also win balls and keep possession, thereby alleviating the need for 6 defenders on the pitch and relieving the defense of pressure by simply holding the ball.

We wont see it during the BB reign though. As I said, he might be right, but it would be nice to see the proof.

[mattjo]

Well, if he does that, I wouldn't expect as much offensive production from Edu. Frankly, Dempsey's defensive ability is not his forte. He doesn't track back incredibly, and when he does, his positioning isn't as solid as many of teh otehr individuals who have played Central Midfield. As such, Edu will have more defensive responsibilities and will likely be unable to track forward as much. Frankly, I don't think our personnel fits Bruce Arean's old system of a DM/AM or HM very well right now.

[cc-atl]

I'm assuming we are only talking DM's.

Because the best passers out of midfield are: Adu, LD, Dempsey, Kljestan, etc. Should BB ever choose to employ anyone in that role.

Also, don't forget Mastroeni, he's a proven DM commodity.

I've never really been impressed with Dempsey as a distributor He likes to put his head down and beat the man in front of him.

[DaPrince84]

Some more thoughts on Edu's passing:

- It is accurate (as you've noted)

- It is fast - Edu plays the ball quickly and keeps play moving

- It is varied - whereas Michael Bradley far more often than not will only look to pass to a player checking to him (I call this Reynitis), Edu will just as easily play balls to players making runs away from him. This is important because it takes advantage of Beasley and Donovan's best attributes.

- It is weighted properly. Edu plays the ball hard in the right circumstances, and he knows when to take some off of it. Bradley, by comparison, often puts the wrong weight on his passes and leaves his recipient in a tough spot. For example, he dribbled a square pass early in the Argentina game that allowed an Argentine to jump all over it and created a turnover/fast break opportunity. You don't see that much from Edu.

I agree that Edu has no business being on the US bench, but obviously a certain coach sees it differently.
as a holding mid, Edu is better than Bradley... better passer, distributor, and reads the game better... and can tackle well

[Parmigiano]

Hasn't Bradley been playing his real Dmid in a more advanced with position? Perhaps Mike and Edu could just swap places -- let Edu be the deep lying playmaker, let Bradley destroy more from an advanced position, which would also allow him to make more offensive runs when opportunity strikes.

[Kevin8833]

Hasn't Bradley been playing his real Dmid in a more advanced with position? Perhaps Mike and Edu could just swap places -- let Edu be the deep lying playmaker, let Bradley destroy more from an advanced position, which would also allow him to make more offensive runs when opportunity strikes.Oh no no Bradley has to play d-mid.:D

[Flipstar508]

The thought of Edu with Adu or Feilhaber in front of him seems too good to be true...thankfully BB is the coach.

[onefineesq]

I'm assuming we are only talking DM's.

Because the best passers out of midfield are: Adu, LD, Dempsey, Kljestan, etc. Should BB ever choose to employ anyone in that role.

Also, don't forget Mastroeni, he's a proven DM commodity.
Dempsey? Not a chance. I don't find him to be a very good passer at all.

[appoo]

Dempsey? Not a chance. I don't find him to be a very good passer at all.

That was my thought as well

[KALM]

Dempsey? Not a chance. I don't find him to be a very good passer at all.
Short range passing? You're probably right. His consistency is lacking.
But long range passing? There isn't a player on our team who more consistently put players in on goal last year than Dempsey (and even more so during the first half of the season at Fulham).

3 quick examples I was able to search on youtube off the top of my head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBRrvlDJBo8&feature=PlayList&p=B6AEBBA501E63E37&index=2
20:47 into this video (just scroll through it)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7T9TZVLgZA
33:00 into this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cILbf5_DKNM&feature=related
3:15 into this video

[gmonn]

Short range passing? You're probably right. His consistency is lacking.
But long range passing? There isn't a player on our team who more consistently put players in on goal last year than Dempsey (and even more so during the first half of the season at Fulham).

3 quick examples I was able to search on youtube off the top of my head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBRrvlDJBo8&feature=PlayList&p=B6AEBBA501E63E37&index=2
20:47 into this video (just scroll through it)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7T9TZVLgZA
33:00 into this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cILbf5_DKNM&feature=related
3:15 into this video

I hope this post will open some people's eyes. I've been blown away by these and other penetrating passes from Dempsey. Those passes were world class, just what some people think our players are incapable of.

[appoo]

Short range passing? You're probably right. His consistency is lacking.
But long range passing? There isn't a player on our team who more consistently put players in on goal last year than Dempsey (and even more so during the first half of the season at Fulham).

3 quick examples I was able to search on youtube off the top of my head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBRrvlDJBo8&feature=PlayList&p=B6AEBBA501E63E37&index=2
20:47 into this video (just scroll through it)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7T9TZVLgZA
33:00 into this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cILbf5_DKNM&feature=related
3:15 into this video

Not saying he doesn't have his moments, but I don't think he's very good on a consistent basis...just like the rest of his game.

[onefineesq]

Short range passing? You're probably right. His consistency is lacking.
But long range passing? There isn't a player on our team who more consistently put players in on goal last year than Dempsey (and even more so during the first half of the season at Fulham).

3 quick examples I was able to search on youtube off the top of my head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBRrvlDJBo8&feature=PlayList&p=B6AEBBA501E63E37&index=2
20:47 into this video (just scroll through it)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7T9TZVLgZA
33:00 into this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cILbf5_DKNM&feature=related
3:15 into this video I can spend time putting a highlight reel together of even average players and find a few times that the proverbial squirrel found a nut. I've watched him since he was drafted by the Revs, and he isn't a very good passer overall.