Let me start by saying that BigSoccer is possibly my favorite site on the internets, and you all are the reason why I feel that way. So, don't take offense at what I'm about to write. Now, with that said, it's amazing to me how ridiculously underrated Jozy Altidore is by many fans on BigSoccer. I find myself bemused by his absence in starting XI threads and continually defending him in random other threads, so I thought it might make sense to make a case for Altidore in a consolidated place. The guy is 26 years old and has 34 goals in 93 caps. That's a better strike rate (.366 goals / game) than Brian McBride or Eric Wynalda had. It's a better strike rate than Landon Donovan had. It's a better strike rate than anyone in the modern history of the USMNT not named Clint Dempsey has ever had. Altidore is already tied for 3rd on the all-time goals scored list for the USA behind two legends of the program, and he's just entering his "prime" in the classical sense (if you assume the average player's peak years are from age 26-29). I get that he hasn't lived up to the exceptionally high expectations many of us placed on him when he was 18 years old, myself included. He isn't starting for Manchester City or Real Madrid today. I get that his production at the club level has been inconsistent throughout his career. I get that he got injured at the worst times for three critical tournaments - the 2011 Gold Cup, the 2014 World Cup and the 2015 Gold Cup. But the guy has straight up delivered for the USMNT more often than not when healthy. I've heard the argument that Altidore only plays well in friendlies. But his strike rate is fairly similar for games that matter (World Cup + Gold Cup + WCQ) as it is in friendlies. He has 16 goals in 47 official, cap-tying matches (.340), and 18 goals in 46 friendly matches (.391). If you threw away all of the friendly matches, Altidore's strike rate would still be superior to that of Wynalda and McBride. Beyond the statistics, I believe that Altidore has consistently made our team better when he is on the field. He draws a lot of fouls in dangerous places in the attacking third. His strength enables him to hold up the ball and relieve pressure in ways that other recent strikers (Aron Johannsson, Bobby Wood, Chris Wondolowski, Herculez Gomez, Jordan Morris, etc.) can't. He has a powerful shot and seems to put a high percentage of his shots on target. Despite the pervasive belief that he is lazy, I actually think he shows great energy and hustle with the US - he makes runs, he tracks back to defend, he opens up space, and he presses. And on a more subjective level, he bleeds for the crest and I don't think you can question his commitment or passion for the program. We're lucky to have Jozy Altidore in our pool (especially given our dearth of striker options during recent years), and I don't think he gets the respect he deserves. Nor do I think fans truly appreciate just how statistically productive he has been with the USMNT during his career thus far. I'm curious to hear your thoughts after reading this.
If Jozy Altidore is the best forward we have,we're not any better at finding and playing talent than we were in the past,and aren't going anywhere past R16 at the WC. So some people are desperate to prove in their mind he's not the best we have. I will say,he's dreadful in the air for his size.That is just annoying.
The dearth of forward options for the most recent U23 and U20 national teams indicate Jozy will continue to be at the top of the pool for quite some time. The American version of Zaltan Ibrahimovic isn't coming in the near future folks......................... When it comes to Jozy, he really does have a better goals/game rate than McBride. There's a nostalgia for McBride as people really loved him as a player and as a person. And of course, when you have a good season or two in the premier league, that helps your legacy (as Jozy's struggles with an awful Sunderland team have done the opposite). I hope people realize that Brian McBride didn't move to Fulham until he was 31-32. Jozy is only 26........................ I happen to agree with Oleophil. Folks dislike Jozy for what he isn't and what he didn't become. There's a lot to appreciate about Jozy for who he is, however. If the American version of Robert Lewandowski existed, we'd call him up instead. Not only does he not exist, but the forwards we do have can't stay healthy (see Johannsson, Boyd, etc.) or underperform (see Juan Agudelo). Chris Wondolowski stays in the pool for Christ's sake, because he consistently scores in MLS. He actually does SOMETHING. We called up Alan Gordon for World Cup qualifiers last cycle. Alan Gordon!!!! Our dearth of forward options last year was so severe that Klinsmann called up an NCAA player! Jordan Morris is fine and all, and his future is "to be determined," but that tells the story. How many nations that fancy themselves as contenders for the World Cup knockout stages are calling up amatuers?
I like Jozy. One of Jozy's biggest issues is in his head and emotions. All forwards ride waves of confidence. Jozy is an extreme example. When he is hot and confident, he works hard for his teammates, he is aggressive going to goal, and he can finish even difficult chances. When he is down, he gets lazy, lethargic, and his finishing suffers. Jozy also suffers from not being the target forward too many coaches wished he were. His strength and size lure coaches into dreaming he can be a physically dominant target forward in the mold of Brian McBride. Yet his two worst stretches as a professional, both in the Premier League, came when coaches played him in that role at Hull City and Sunderland. It is important to remember when Jozy excelled. In my memory, Jozy's two best stretches happened during his time at AZ, and also for a brief stretch with the US Team when Charlie Davies emerged as his strike partner. The formations and Jozy's role were different, but they had one key commonality. In both situations, Jozy had capable teammates that could share the attacking load. They created space for Jozy, and allowed Jozy to isolate against defenders. For Jozy to be his best, those two points must be true: 1. He has capable partners in the attack. He is not single-handedly trying to both act as target forward and finisher. 2. His teammates create space around him, so he can isolate against defenders. When you get Jozy in those conditions, and when he is at his most confident, Jozy is a nightmare match up for any defender. For the US Team, the emergence of Bobby Wood as another striking option and Fabian Johnson as a legitimate attacking threat out of midfield can create the best conditions for Jozy to play his best game. Jozy also must get his head straight. He started the year off well by reporting to the January camp early and focusing on his fitness. The hamstring is a concerning set back. How he recovers, and whether he comes back aggressive and confident, will be important leading indicators of how effective he will be for the US Team this year.
His terrible aerial abilities bother me. Plus he doesn't so the defensive side of the game very well. Will not run anyone down. Also his off the ball runs are not great. Morris does that much better then him. I watch a lot of Leicester City this year and man I love how Vardy plays when he does not have the ball. So basically my issues are when he does not have the ball whicj in our modern JK style of "possession" means most of the game.
I've been saying for a long time that Jozy is and has been for many years consistently been the single most underrated American player on this site, and that by a clear margin.
We get it, Jozy, you want to be loved. Work harder, get lighter (I'm not calling you fat, take it easy), stop whining all the time about fouls and not getting the service you hoped for, stop going down so easy, and for the love of God, make a near fudging post run from time to time. Get fudging across the face of the fudging defender once in a while. Watch Robbie Keane. Play with his intensity and leadership. Know when to be selfish and when to be selfless.
Some of you may recall how many people had it in for Reyna because he never turned out to be Zidane (many still haven't forgiven him for it). Well, now we see the same kind of frustration because Jozy hasn't become the next Drogba. It's a classic mentality that's always been prevalent on BigSoccer: complaining when our good players aren't great.
Jozy gets unfairly stigmatized because of his difficulty in England. When he was excelling at AZ, some fans were bragging he was the best forward in CONCACAF, which just goes to show what some folks care about. In reality, Jozy's almost always been good for the US and is likely surpass Clint and LD as top scorers. He's been contributing consistently in WCQ since his first caps, which has helped us transition from the "Donovan Era" pretty seamlessly -- he doesn't get enough credit for that. The legit knock against Jozy is that after showing so much promise in the Confed Cup and WC10, he's been injured or underwhelming at every major tournament since. He doesn't have those big game performances and magical moments people associate with Donovan and Dempsey
He's not TERRIBLE aerially. That shows how expectations and emotions shape people's perception of reality. He's only alright in the air, which is worse than you think he'd be by looking at him. But fat chance Wood would ever equal his header goal rate for country and club. I still feel like you can throw Jozy in there as a lone CF, and at least that's an option, whereas with the likes of Wood, and probably Morris, it's not really. But I think overall fan opinion of him reflects what he is as a striker - hot and cold. You never know what you're going to get performance wise. And that unreliability, his fault or not, is compounded by the hamstring injuries. So understandably many fans are looking to better deal him, relegate him to backup where being hot/cold is more than fine, but we haven't found that option yet. Part the pool at this position and part Klinsmann's lack of trials.
Who hates Jozy? I love Jozy and respect what he can do for the USA, but that doesn't mean I think he's a great striker. There are a lot of people who just don't think his skills are what we need however, and they're probably not wrong. His hold-up play is very average for his size, his work rate is about average, his aerial ability is supbar, and his first touch isn't always the best. With that said, he's the best we have right now, although Bobby Wood may be starting to cut into that a bit.
It is a total shame Jozy flopped at Sunderland. Terrible team for him. had hoped he would have taken that loan at Lille rather than ran home to MLS. Earning 4 million a year ain't bad but it looks like he isn't so hungry for the game anymore. it's like he knows 10 goals a year will be enough to continue being the US no.1 Had hoped he would achieve more in Europe before his career would have ended.
What do you mean? He hit his ceiling. Happens to everyone. An EPL flop but was one of the better Ered strikers which in relation to our striker pool, puts him well ahead of every other challenger.
Well, the other classic mentality around here is overrating mediocre. Our fan base is begging for actual quality, hence the excitement around Hershey's Finest.
Quality opening post. Brian McBride was a classic back-to-goal center forward who could control a match. He scored goals but his game was so much more. He also has 3 World Cup goals. Wynalda played during a different era. He didn't have the kind of support Jozy has had. Davies was involved a career-altering fatal accident. EJ was an immature knuckle-head who learned better too late. Mathis had the knee injuries and a Doritos addiction. Dempsey and Donovan played much of their respective NT careers on the flanks. That being said, Jozy has had a good career with the team. He has been a quality pre-Hex striker for the US. In about 10 competitive matches against the other major powers of the region Mexico, Honduras, and Costa Rica, Jozy has 1 goal. He has no World Cup goals. He does have the Spain goal, however. Whether he can kick on from here to become a truly outstanding international striker remains to be seen. So far, he has been mostly beating on minnows and unfancied sides. His competitive record against respectively Concacaf powers and non-Concacaf teams : 2009: Mexico(0) CR(0) Hon(0) Italy(0) Brazil(0) Egypt(0) Spain(1) Brazil(0) Mex(0) Hon(0) CR(0) 2010: England(0) Slov(0) Alg(0) Ghana(0) 2013: Hon(0) CR(0) Mex(0) Hon(1) CR(0) 2014: Ghana(0) 2015: Hon(0) Mexico(0)
What I mean is the people who write off Jozy for not achieving in the EPL are being narrow-minded. For one: the EPL is not the final arbiter of talent in the world. And two: Jozy could achieve more in a top league (including the EPL) under different circumstances.
There were people who consistently ripped Donovan in his prime years if he wasn't coming up with an assist or goal every game. Remember those post match threads?
Jozy has played with Dempsey, Donovan, and a pre-accident Charlie Davies. He has had surrounding talent.
We're smart and we can dig deeper than stats. He was 20-21 for 2009 and 2010 and did just fine for a player that age. The 2014 Ghana game was over before it started for him and you know it. While I agree that we can't use those stats to pump his stature up much, they shouldn't be used against him too much.
Is Jozy talented enough to be mention in comparison with Wynalda and McBride who were the best strikers of their day. Jozy scores but how important are his goals? Wynalda was the first Yank to score in a top European division. McBride was the first to score consistently. Jozy scored a bunch of goals for a mid table club in the Eredivisie. He just hasn't attained that level yet but I really hope he does. A lot of the problem is Dempsey scores more and several times Jozy has taken shots that rebounded for Dempsey to put in the back of the net. Had Jozy not been injured against Ghana I trust that he would have scored during the tournament.
20-21 isn't a precocious age for a non-center forward type of striker, certainly not one who was a senior club professional and first team regular by age 17.
if jozy gets service he finishes, period. klinsmann doesnt put teams out that can advance the ball to attacking positions consistently. theres a better argument that he overperforms for the national team than under.