Pre-match: USA vs Paraguay (Saturday, June 11)

Tony Sanneh 2.0

 

I can't agree with this. I like Nagbe, but Jones is like a mix of Dempsey, Hedjuk, Wynalda and Armas. Only prettier. Nagbe for Zardes if he can do the work. Or for Bedoya. JJ out only if he can't go.

Edit: Sorry this reply is behind the evolution of the thread.

 

They will attack us because they have no choice. Press and counter or just direct assault on MB's zone. If we can weather this initial push and not do anything stupid in our own third then they will be forced to chase the match and their legs will fail. The only question I have is do we go with what will be tired vets or was the plan to play bench guys for their fresh leg advantage over what must be a tired Paraguay?

 

Same thing on the Pulisic goal.

 

Which makes sense if there are different kinds of speed. You had one school kid with an A in math, another had an A in English. Which one is above average?

 

We play close to the same guys because the schedule is pretty favorable for us. Four to five days rest between games is pretty ideal. Also, travel has been kinder for us. The toughest leg was the California to Chicago trip in the last game. Next is Philly. Paraguay will have to deal with a flight from California after just having come from Florida.

 

Your racial innuendo is very irritating with regard to Zardes. This is at least the second time you've done that so now I am moved to confront that s*it. Have you polled people on here to determine that most folks think he's black so he is fast"? You say its true so please provide your evidence. What is more than likely the case is that your own deep seated racial stereo-types are being reflected in your comments. "Out of the overflow of the mouth the heart speaks" Zardes has good speed. He has long legs so he looks slower than he really his. I suspect he is faster than MB but slower than FJ. unless they lineup and race we will not know for sure.

 

Tough to find value anywhere here if you're betting on the US. What is Paraguay to win?

 

"alla ka zu, alla ka zam
I was being argumentative for argument's sake
How do I make it seem like a reasonable take"

 

Paraguay is widely available at anywhere from 2.5/1 to 3/1.

I don't think there's value in either line, but I'd take Paraguay with a gun to my head I suppose.

 

Looks can be very deceptive. There were posters last cycle making the same claim that Fab did not seem very fast. Well in the BuLi where they do record speed measurements Fab (2011-2012) was clocked at >35 kph, JJ > 34 kph, and Chandler > 33 kph.

Here are WC2014 timings: Fab 33kph, Bedoya 32.3, Dre/JJ 31.6, MB 30.9
http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/brazil2014/statistics/players/distance.html

If Zardes gets to WC2018 and opens up we will see how fast he measures.

 

This implies that we haven't seen him at full speed enough times to already be able to judge this. I'm not the only one who's seen this guy in a dead sprint over more than 20 yards multiple times. I don't think it needs more examination 2 years from now to know how he measures in that department.

Not that this needs to be argued for another page, just pointing out that it's fairly obvious.

Also, it's not that people are calling him slow (this isn't directed towards you, HHF), just that some posters are implying he's out there specifically for his speed, which simply can't be true because he's hardly if ever used it to separate himself adequately from a defender in an NT jersey despite making the effort to do so on multiple occasions. When guys are "out there for their speed" as has been implied more than once in game/pbp/pre/post-game threads, it means they are burners.

Robbie Findlay, for instance, was out there for his speed.

 

Great. I hope he's fast. I just don't see him using his speed to gain an advantage, or to press an advantage.

I like the guy. I just think his speed is (way?) overrated by many on the board.

Edit: I've never been in the camp that said Fab didn't look fast. I've long thought Chandler has lost a step. He doesn't seems as fast as he used to.

Is "Dre" DeAndre? If so, that surprises me that he's not higher up that ladder.

Most pleasantly surprising thing out of all that is that JJ is really fast. Not Fab fast. But, really fast.

I'm surprised that MLS doesn't employ the speed tracker. It can't be very expensive and seems like the kind of thing that us dim-witted stat-driven Yanks (like me) would really go for.

 

I suspect we will not see any starting lineup changes unless Bedoya is not 100%. Ale came off with a slight knock.

 

My concern about Zardes isn't his speed, the guy is that type of frustrating player who gets in the right places and does good things, but has such bad touch that he can't do anything about it, at least at the full international level that matters.

 

All this talk of rotating players presupposes we advance. This is NOT the case.

You play your best XI that can go, period. If one of the older guys (Jones, Dempsey) has deal legs and can't go, then you have to sub them. Ditto Bedoya if he has a real knock.

The problem is, there is a drop-off in experience if we take off Jones/Dempsey. Nagbe has a bright future, but is nowhere near the proven commodity at this level than Jones, Bradley, or even Bedoya are. If Clint sits, there is a similar drop off at striker.

The only guys who could be realistically said to be proven players at this level are Beckerman, Zusi, and Besler. With the way the Brooks/Cameron pairing is evolving, I'd keep that the same. And Fab is playing LB. Zardes' work rate should keep him in the game. I could see Beckerman at the six with MB/JJ at the top of the triangle. Bedoya could be moved to a wing spot (as could Zusi).

But baring any injuries or undisclosed dead/leg syndrome, I think we start the same XI. And I think we should. We have 1 day short of a full week off between matches (assuming we are runners up). We should be good to go. Realistically, if we are playing Brazil, all the squad rotation in the world isn't going to help. If it is someone else (Ecuador, Peru) then we can, perhaps, rotate IN the QF, but only a player or two.

 

While I can understand your frustration at my post, and while I am sorry you were so worked up by it, you're unfortunately going to frustrated by my response:

I think I make enough levelheaded posts on this forum to occasionally theorize, without proof, on the reason why an opinion exists when on-field evidence points to the contrary. So, you can take it or leave it because I rarely, if ever, present my own opinions unless I have a hunch there's some truth to it. Especially when my hunch is based on a phenomenon which runs rampant within the generalizing nature of our society as a whole, and which I've seen countless times to describe everything from the "American way of playing soccer" to the "bigotry of Texans." See why those generalizations exist?

Now that I'm done "keeping it real" (as the kids would say), without employing any concrete evidence nor polling the BigSoccer brain trust, I'll get back to talking about this game and I'll let Zardes' lackluster speed and skill speak for itself.

 

Agree 100%. Just about 0 chance that is what we see but I think that would be perfect. I expect to see something far, far more conservative -- likely including Beckerman.

 

I will continue to confront racism and racial profiling whenever and where ever I find it with gusto. I have also been on these boards a long time and have earned the right to call you out. Thanks for admitting your opinion is just a hunch and just a reflection of your character who views people through the lens of racism.

 

Zardes has really good touch though.

 

A draw is enough for us to advance. To win the group is nice but are we capable of beating a tough Paraguay whose back is against the wall? Looking back at the game against Colombia, Paraguay almost evened th score. That means we should a different team out there.

 

I don't agree with this watching him play in LA. To each their own, I know you don't rate him and I do.

Know we saw 2014 Zardes with the finishing yesterday but I still don't think he gets enough credit for the dirty work, and I'm not comfortable starting the 17 year old.

 

I think that if Klinsmann looks at this team right now and asks himself who to bench, there are very few choices. He's not benching Guzan or the back 4. And there's absolutely no chance that he will bench Bradley, Jones or Dempsey. So that leaves Bedoya, Wood or Zardes.

Thus, I expect little, if any, change to start on Saturday, unless it is forced.

 

All good, people see some players differently.

 

I just edited my post to say the same thing.

Wish he had finished the goal to make this moot.

I think he still gets nervous when he plays for the US or feels the pressure more than in LA where he's a better player. His passing game lately has been really good for his club.

Wonder if he is in his head a bit when it comes to national team play.