This has been one of the most useful threads on BS because it collects the picture of the clueless or maybe desperate state of soccer-fandom in the US. The number of posters, some with multiple personas, talking about plans and systems which justifies a gimmick which puts Adams at RB in order to build around Trapp/MB90 will provide us with laughs for years to come. Doyle who has represented that mind boggling view seems to have come to his senses. He is trailing the general fanbase but give him marks for getting educated. https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2019...uggling-ahead-concacaf-gold-cup?autoplay=true 'In the modern game you have to be able to win the ball in midfield". Really, that is a new revelation! Thank the stars the media is finally starting to understand modern soccer!
I don't really know if you're being sarcastic or not, but either way the answer is yes. It's pretty clear he's been employing a stay at home LB, and with the RB often times sliding into defensive midfield when the team goes forward, that means the RB is overlapping a lower percentage of the time compared to other systems.
He also played with a single 10 in Columbus which he has changed. He is absolutely not transplanting his Columbus setup directly to the US.
First, I am not necessarily a Gregg fan, although what he did here in Columbus, considering the circumstance, was incredible. What Columbus had was two outside backs in Afful and Valensuela that were regularly overlapping, making the two centerbacks cover and keeping Trapp in a deep holding mid. I haven't seen enough repeat call ups to figure out exactly what Gregg is trying to do. I would have to believe it would be similar to what he ran in Columbus, but until we see the same group of players picked for multiple call-ups, we don't really know. You may not prefer what the Federation is trying to do, and maybe I won't either, but you can't really say anything definitively at this point. If we tank at the Gold Cup we can begin the criticism with reason.
What an idiot! A few years ago it was tactics, tactics, tactics. All I have been hearing is tactics, systems, blah, blah, blah and now he thinks we need to get the personell right when that has been the obvious problem in 2017 and 2019. Interesting to see him turn though. I wonder if there will be much more coming.
Shirley, you're not serious? Please list these youngsters. No one has learned the lesson of Freddie Adu concerning outrageously overestimating the ability of our young players...
Well, Pulisic is still young and our most expensive player ever and Adams walked in and started for a Champions League team at 19. That's at least 2 who have early claims to that kind of status if they continue to develop, always an uncertainty. McKennie is a tougher argument for that high a level for me, even though I like him and consider him a lock in the current team. The kids younger than that still have a lot to prove for that type of consideration, but yeah there are 2 obvious ones to fit that description.
If we lose to Costa Rica or Mexico, then it will be undesirable, but acceptable. If we lose to anyone else, then GGG has to go.
I'm not an expert on how Berhalter played with Columbus, but it is pretty clear that that he is employing another system with the national team. I would prefer him to play the system you're describing with the national team as well. With that said, I agree with you that we should give him a chance to play through the gold cup how he wants, but if we don't comfortably get to the final with our player pool than I really think he should be replaced. The main reason I say this is because he's only ever proven himself as an above average MLS coach, and he's essientially trying to out smart far better coaches than him by implementing his strange system. With the team we have, they should easily be able to get to the finals or win the whole thing with a traditional 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1. These systems are proven, the best teams in the world play them, and our player pool has an understanding of how to make them work. I'm honestly hoping for the best, but I'm not expecting it.
The absurdity of the system is matched only by the absurdity of the player pool. My biggest problem is that in our current state, we should look at our player pool in terms of are we trying to win now or build for 2022. We are currently doing neither. Either way our top tier talent, which is what all national teams should base their system on, basically screams for us to play a 4-2-3-1 with defenders that defend and the outside backs picking their spots to attack. We have defenders that can do that at a reasonably high level and isn't reliant on Robinson suddenly becoming Jordi Alba. No matter what the soccer media will try to shove on us, our best players right now are Pulisic, Adams, McKennie, Brooks, and Yedlin. Those guys all have very logical roles in a 4-2-3-1 whereas in Egg's system, Adams and Yedlin somehow play the same position and McKennie doesn't get to play to his strengths. I don't like him but you could throw Altidore into that group although I don't think his strengths are a very good match for Egg's system either. The problem is that the next tier of players we have are largely either not on the roster for illogical reasons or have been permabanned from the USMNT for political reasons. I posted this in the postmortem on Venezuela but it belongs here. Everyone has a few favorites but I think this win now lineup crushes what we're putting out there in the Gold Cup. Win now: 1 - Altidore 3 - Boyd, Pulisic, Weah 2 - Adams, McKennie 4 - A. Robinson/Garza (maybe injured?), Brooks (Miazga while he's injured), Besler, Yedlin (Lichaj while he's injured) GK - Steffen (Horvath if healthy) Bench includes Sargent, Morales, Cameron, Green, Alvarado, Morales, Hyndman, Holmes, CCV, A, Robinson/Garza loser, backup GK's Build for the future: 1 - Sargent 3 - Boyd, Pulisic, Weah 2 - Adams, McKennie 4 - A. Robinson, Miazga, CCV (Brooks if healthy), Cannon (Yedlin if healthy) GK - Steffen (Horvath if healthy) Bench includes M. Robinson (why have we not seen him in Cupcake?), Trusty, Lima (he can battle with Cannon to be Yedlin's backup or try left back), Cannon, Pomykal, Holmes, Canouse, Amon, Novakovich, Gall, Jesse Gonzalez, Klinsmann
That’s the thing...he HAS changed the system. The Crew had excellent wide play for an MLS team on that budget. Ggg’s Nats do not.
Incompetence: Incompetent Fed. Incompetent Coaching (in fairness, I think GGG was a competent MLS coach, maybe above average, maybe just average, but as a USMNT he's been a total incompetent period, and there's NO arguing the point). He has the right choices to make in front of him, and he eschews them every single time, from tactics and formation, to player selection. You have to try to make the mistakes he's making, and try really, really, hard and in an incredibly creatively wrongheaded way and yet every time he finds within himself the ability to make those difficult mistakes look easy to make.) Incompetent Player Selection. Incompetent Man Management. Incompetent Process. Incompetent Lineup Selection. Incompetent Formation Selection.
Sargent Soto Llanez Ledezma Richards Gloster Dest Weah Taitague (though he looks like a lost cause due to two years lost to a manifold of injuries). And of course there’s also Adams Pulisic McKenzie Curious w/guys like Mendez, Reyna, and some other U17 guys (Mendez being a U20 of course). Again this is about their being dozens of potential elite prospects. The problem wAdu and that era was it was limited to Adu, Altidore, Szetela and to a lesser extent Bradley. Not a lot of depth. Now we have vastly more depth in terms of high end prospects and second tier guys (and sometimes it’s second tier guys like Bradley, rather than 1st tier like Szetela, that actually hit, which makes the sheer quantity such a hopeful sign).
The time to really judge Berhalter is at the end of the tournament. The expectation is that the USA will win Group D, beat the Group C runner up, beat the Group C winner, and then face Mexico or Costa Rica in the final. Anything less and I think you have to move past GGG. If GGG doesn't get the team to the final, then I think Cordeiro and Stewart need to be quick in pulling the trigger and dumping Berhalter. One step at a time. Beat Guyana.
I don’t think the system has changed as much as Gregg is looking for players to fit his style. I will reserve judgement until after the Gold Cup.
You don't think a player who Chelsea value at $73 million deserves the same hype as a player who went to Benfica and got fat. Not sure why you guys are arguing here, while there are some highly entertaining Open Cup matches on ESPN+. St Louis just upset Chicago 2-1.
Candidly, I assumed he was referring to youngsters who had not yet broken through to the senior men's national team...
Local forecast: pessimism with a chance of early elimination, although a slight change of winds may give us a passable summer.
As mentioned above, I assumed the bottom 3 were not included in his statement, and was thinking more about the first 7. I like some of those players, but think it's a really long shot that any of them are going to be in our top 5-10 players of all time. I have doubts about the latter 3 as well, they all seem to have a significant injury history for really young players. There's an old saying that the most important ability is availability...
There is a basic problem with the US program and it is revealed by the saying: “A football team is like a piano. You need eight men to carry it and three who can play the damn thing.” – Bill Shankly The problem is that there are only usually two US players maximum that can play the damn thing and the remainder that try to carry it keep dropping it on their own feet and the US piano is out of tune anyway.
Thank goodness it is only Adams who is out. When I saw the headline "US Soccer Star to Miss Gold Cup" I was worried that it might be Trapp. There are a lot of other right backs out there to replace Adams, but who could duplicate Trapp's characteristics?