Pre-match: International Friendly: USA vs Mexico; September 6th

My curiosity with Dest is if he plays on the left or the right. We've always struggled to fill that left back spot if he can play there, and he did play there in a few games so far for Ajax. But, he seems to be settling more regularly on the right where we already have options. And then there's the notion that he may be more in the Adams mold of being skillful and mobile. If Berhalter revisits the right back tucking into the midfield, would he use Dest like that? Really curious how he will look wherever he plays.

 

GB did well calling Dest 2 weeks ago. He pretty much beat the Dutch U21 coach to the punch to invite him.

 

As a matter of logic you have an interesting point. Dest is the only one promised an unusual start. I would use McKennie at 6 with this roster, Morales off the bench, but given continuity I could see Trapp instead with McKennie pushed up. Morales to sub. Personally I think once it's Trapp starting you're wasting my time and I might as well see Morales to start.

At least one question here would be did we learn a thing about the mdifield from the last 2 Mexico games.

 

no, no no, that's like trying to make him a genius for leaving sargent off. the issue of nailing down a player who once seemed obvious has taken on its new urgency because of mouthing off after he was selected and in practice with us. he was being fast tracked for abstract reasons.

 

if GB watched his own team matches from GC he would be working on the left side rather than the right

if...

 

Then GB should have invited him to the GC. All of this would have been a moot point.

 

what's being overlooked here is the possibility of a young player using pressure tactics as the process progresses to speed up a call that shouldn't really be in distress. he has a line of US on his resume. this should be a formality. but debatably it should perhaps be a formality at a later date. he has put himself in play and then used that to push the process along. we have responded like a needy midtable coach would.

[The top of the table coach response would be this will be done on my timescale when I think you are ready. I will not be pressured. I have offered you some caps in exchange for your commitment. I think you have promise and are getting a unique chance to lay claim to a spot in the process. If you want to jerk me around you can go back in the pool and think about it all......]

i was ok with him getting to jump queue to secure his services. i thought that was fast track relative to what he'd earned, but it would lock him down and then we see what he has. but this is basically let me reactivate the seemingly resolved nationality issue to give leverage. i am surprised no one asked him if his agent had anything to do with this.

i actually advocated bringing some u20s across to GC but he wouldn't have been one of them. i did not see him as one of the shovel-ready senior types on U20 (Mendez, Weah, perhaps Soto and Pomykal). what has since followed, raising these post-facto questions of woulda coulda shoulda, ignores that up to now we were looking at a string of US on his resume and were fast tracking just to make it academic.

 

Yup, the RB tucking into the MF really worked well vs Mexico in the GC. Berhalter's "system" doesn't work.

 

He literally said he doesn’t know what he will do next. Likely cause he doesn’t know if he will even be called. However, his actions have shown he will come whenever we call. My assertion is on far better ground than yours.

 

Dest is a Yedlin clone? Have you actually watched both play?

 

Kind of funny that LAG is a good team and FCD is average since FCD is ahead of LAG.

 

woah woah woah. you're saying because he has previously acted we can presume. he just verbally said, despite all that history, don't presume. i have a decision to make. that trumps your theory.

if you like game theory it also bears reminding that jerking us around has inherent risks and thus one cannot assume an outcome when they are jacking around the other side. sometimes ezekiel elliott gets signed after his holdout, but sometimes jadeveon clowney just gets traded. i've personally said that playing the nationality card should get him tossed from camp. you're assuming i still want him eligible in October. i want his commitment first. everyone doesn't have to follow my thought processes but they are a reasonable response to his gambit.

i think this is horrifying precedent because this is a young team in flux and the last thing i want to be encouraging is players to go entice other teams' interest to jump queue. to the contrary, i want to be rewarding the ones who either definitively switch or were never in doubt. congratulations, you just encouraged marginal prospects to pick up the phone when other teams call. you will probably lose more people that way.

we have turned into a poorly run Fed.

 

---------------Sargent--------------
Morris--------Pulisic--------Boyd
----------Morales-Mckennie------
Dest---Brooks--Long---Cannon
---------------Steffen----------------

Is what I'd like to see. Play the young guns and see what happens. Should be an entertaining game.

*Whoever has the better left foot should play LB when looking at Cannon vs Dest. I don't know the answer to that question, does anyone have any insight? The only reason I put Dest on the left is because transfermarket lists LB as a secondary position, where as Cannon is solely listed as a RB.

 

No offense but I don’t care what you want commitment wise and we didn’t turn into a poor run Fed... we’ve always been one.

He can say he commits all he wants but until he actually plays and is tied it means nothing. You’re saying he won’t show. I’m saying he will. When he’s been called he’s shown up. That’s what he have to go on. He can say he’s open or not sure what he’d do cause he hasn’t been asked to do anything yet. Action trumps words all day every day.

 

Dest has more skill in his little toe than Yedlin does in his entire body.

 

I don't like that system either, but they didn't play it against Mexico in the Gold Cup.

 

yeah... it isn't even close. I am super worried this will be the only appearance we see from Dest on the USMNT. Double-edged sword right now... if he comes out and performs at a very high level against Mexico then it is more likely that the Dutch MNT makes an offer to him immediately... perhaps if he struggles a bit then we have a better chance at him staying with us? Ugh. It would totally suck for him to play his U20 with us and then bail at the zero hour just before the Cuba game.

 

I'm wondering if we can assume at least playing time if not starts for most of the guys who are only playing against Mexico and then leaving. There may well be some guys who get more minutes than they otherwise would tonight just to get a look at them while they are around. I think we can assume starts for John Brooks, Pulisic and Steffan. I'm guessing Johnson will just be wasting his time. That leaves Morales. It would seem really odd to bring him over for only one game and not even play him in that. Maybe he'll get a surprise start?

 

Crazy we'll all be surprised if a Bundesliga starter starts for our horrendous national team over will Trapp. Scary.

I think he starts though.

 

Bet the Dutch are sending scouts to watch Sergiño.

 

Because it’s his template and he will want to know if the template works with better talent is my guess.

 

Dest is more skillful but Yedlin has world class speed and heart. That goes a long long way as a defender.

 

I’d love to see Dest and Yedlin race. Dest might not be quite as fast but he is very quick.

 

i get "his template" but i also get we played them already this summer with a negative result.

i also as a dynamo fan who suffered wilmer cabrera feel like the coach needs to have a working Plan B for tough games. when GB tried a 3 man backline we got our butts kicked. i'm not sure what a coach with one note to play really offers. if that's what this is. part of coaching is the ability to sub or otherwise adjust when things don't go strictly to plan. and so far what I see is one semi-functioning formation, fairly consistent call sheets, and quite willing to sub the same people in every night. that's not very flexible. when you're down a goal to Mexico you need some bend, some other ideas.