I think he was referring to the "middle class" of sanity. I know that I am not considered rich by many but I am not poor either. I have a feeling most view my level of sanity in the same way.
I always felt Bradley was responsible for making sure Lee Nguyen never got a fair shot. Every time the two were on the field together, he froze Lee out, took over his position and made Lee look bad. Lee still is a very good possession #10 and still could contribute if given a chance. That being said... its time for Bradley and Jozy to retire from international soccer. Their time is over. The next generation needs to develop now and add to them, a good number of the U20s. They are also very good
Mike also tried to do that to Pulisic in the Panama away game we tied 1-1. Puli was supposed to roam inside from the right, but time and again Mike was just there demanding the ball from him, so in the end he was taking over the CM and AM roles. At some point Puli just took his chances and ignored him. Happy days.
I've been following this thread for months, as I thought many interesting positions were advanced. Three points: (1) As noted, MB's resumé is one matched by no one else in the USMNT player pool. Some obviously think his ego is in the same category. In my estimation, Berhalter has handled this touchy situation well by bringing Bradley onto the team but not making him captain. It recognizes that MB has something to offer, but also sends a pretty clear message that MB is no longer top dog. I suspect we'll see more and more of MB as a second half sub in the 2022 cycle. (2) As for Chad Marshall, my memory is still tormented by thoughts of our U.S. B-team playing in the Gold Cup final and getting toasted for five goals by Mexico in the second half. He's a competent defender at MLS level. By implication, however, 5 USMNT coaches - Bradley, Klinsmann, Arena, Sarachan and Berhalter - concurred that he is not a national team caliber player. (3) As for Klinsmann's ego, it ultimately was his undoing. We did better than expected in the 2014 World Cup, but our midfield creativity was at times non-existent and he left our best midfielder off the squad. It was downhill from there. In the end, Klinsmann's ultimate accomplishments as USMNT coach never equaled Arena's 2002 World Cup advance or Bradley's 2009 Confederations Cup final. Landon on the other hand is a USMNT legend.
I didn't watch it but I am reading lots of negatives about Bradley's performance in TFC's 4-0 debacle vs Independiente. Reminiscent of USA's catastrophe in Trinidad.
I think it was Klinsmann. I never could figure out why Klinsmann didn't rate Lee. Any suggestions appreciated. p.s. I suspect putting Lee at the 10 would move Bradley back to the 6 and Klinsmann knew Bradley couldn't play there (see Brazil u23's vs. USA Klinsmann selection in Maryland).
He jogged beautifully. All game. The 'team leader' led by example and to me the last 2 goals were on him in large part. Hope Berhalter was watching closely. I could care less about Toronto but that cancer isn't what I want to see with the USMNT.
You have two young and talented midfielders playing/starting in the BL, there should be no valid reasons to start Bradley over them.
Was he called up for the national team after this game? Who else was called up for this camp and when is this camp? FWIW, I agree with @smokarz
yeah they lost because he didn't sprint enough lol do people really not understand the game here or what.
One of the reasons we need Trapp as our 6 is to have an impartial and virtuous distributor of the ball. the Bradley's are always going to be about the Bradley's.
They lost because the team played like crap, and the team leader of that crap was Mikey. As for that last question, "A New Fan", it is certainly wise to seek to know thyself.
It takes a lot in a negative way to accept the arm-band and block future generations from getting a shot, after you were handed the team by your blood relative, 12 years ago.
i'm sure the 6 million dollars or so he gets every season to do so makes it more palatable..... for someone in that tax bracket...doing whatever you gotta do, saying whatever you gotta say to keep that gravy train rolling is a piece of cake.... the nightmare will get worse when he is named USMNT manager in the future...I'd put the odds at 90% of that happening...he is too cunning/opportunistic/diabolical to not go for that role(and have a great chance of getting it), imo..... hopefully he doesnt have a son who plays soccer
The animosity towards Bradley as a person (vs as a player and leader) is over the top. He’s a formerly good player who works hard but is fighting Father Time and injuries. The fact that he believes in himself is part of what made him a major league player at his peak. The list of athletes who know when it’s time to step down is far smaller than the opposite. Blame the coaches for chooses a subpar and aging option at the beginning of a cycle but there’s no need to character assassinate.
When soccer is no longer the reason for his continued selection and in many cases was never the sole reason, then there is really no ground to go to. It seems USMNT ticket sales are in steep decline. The product on the field is more plain vanilla than ever. Whereas MLS has turned almost exclusively to latin players to find better value and soccer at key positions, the USMNT has searched far and wide to avoid them. A second missed world cup and continued loss of core supporters might force change, but I doubt it as long as MLS margins move upward.