Do we have the right offensive capability for the World Cup?

Discussion in 'USA Men: News & Analysis' started by LouisianaViking07/09, Aug 14, 2017.

  1. LouisianaViking07/09

    Aug 15, 2009
    We have Pulisic, Wood, Dempsey, Jozy. Throw in Morris as well.

    How do they compare to past attacking line-ups in the World Cup rosters for us?

    Our top scorer in a single WC was 3 goals in 4 matches by Landon in 2010, who is still our top WC scorer with 5 goals in 12 matches across 3 World Cups. David Villa scored that many in 2010. Just as a comparison.

    We've never had a player score a brace in any WC match. And only in 2002 did we have 2 players to score at least 2 goals.

    Is it simply that we can not score goals at the WC? is it the line-ups or the formation?

    Next summer, with the right draw could we score goals? Could our strikers/attacking mid-fielders be counted on to put the ball in the back of the net?
     
    SamsArmySam repped this.
  2. ussoccer97531

    ussoccer97531 Member+

    Oct 12, 2012
    Club:
    --other--
    No, we don't. We have a one man offense right now. Depends how he plays. He could create a bunch of goals or he might not. Its a lot of pressure for one player to do everything. The help is not yet playing pro games, so we'll have to wait for these guys to help out Pulisic. Might not be this cycle.

    The others have proven their level, for the most part. Its not a very high level.
     
    DHC1 and LouisianaViking07/09 repped this.
  3. Cliveworshipper

    Cliveworshipper Member+

    Dec 3, 2006
    David Silva is cherry picking a bit. Here's some other comparisons:

    Pelé- 12 World Cup goals in three cups. 14 appearances. Won all three cups.
    Beckham. Three goals and a red card in three cups.
    Rooney- 0ne goal and one red card in three cups.
    C Ronaldo- three goals in three cups.
    Messi- five goals in three cups.
     
    Dirt McGirt, WrmBrnr and HScoach13 repped this.
  4. LouisianaViking07/09

    Aug 15, 2009
    The point of my comparison was that our best scorer scored as many goals over 3 WC's as 1 player did during a single WC.

    Also I said David Villa.
     
  5. Susaeta

    Susaeta BigSoccer Supporter

    Apr 3, 2009
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Not yet. But, there is time to get there, and more importantly Bruce Arena has done a good job of improving the defense. So there is a foundation to build from.

    We have seen a lot of pieces tried in the attack. Aside from the home game at Honduras, the US attacking numbers are more or less where they were when Klinsmann was fired. And the biggest issue remains the issue that Arena identified early on - midfielders who can create scoring chances by connecting with the forwards.

    We have seen a number of auditions. Personally I thought Rowe showed some promise. Nagbe will never be a consistent last ball player. Bedoya and Acosta are more worker bees than creators. Corona disappears when spaces get tight. Zardes is not, IMO, that guy. And disappointingly, Feilhaber seems out of favor. Dempsey sure can create, but it is a pretty big risk to count on him for the rigors of a World Cup.

    Arena is turning over the rocks. I wish/hope Rowe and Feilhaber get more looks.
     
    IndividualEleven repped this.
  6. Excellency

    Excellency Member+

    LA Galaxy
    United States
    Nov 4, 2011
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    We have forwards up the gazoo but they aren't scoring a goal without mids to get them the ball as Arena is about to find out to his dismay.

    Jones got the ball to Dempsey for an early goal against Ghana. Then Jones stepped up and smashed one from yard, against Portugal I believe. In that same game, Zusi pulled a Donovan diagonal run that brought him to the 6 yard box for an assist to Dempsey.

    So ask yourself who is getting the ball to the forwards. Dax has done it enough to know that he's a guy we can count on for that. Arena hardly played him so far. Obviously Pulisic can, but let's say he makes up for Jones' absence and we ask ourselves who else can do it.

    I could see Dax with a couple of assists in the WC and Pulisic with a goal and assist. Right there you have made up for Jones' assist and goal and Zusi's 2 assists. We have to continue looking for others. I'm pretty sure Zardes scores a goal or gets an assist coming out of midfield. I'm guessing Jozy will be swamped as usual. Maybe we could get a goal from Wood and an assist from Morris.

    Yedlin? Lookin' good for an assist, as long as he keeps up the form in EPL. In any case, with Fab on the other fb side, I'd expect one assist from the fb position anyway.

    Mid is a black hole. I'd start working in Roldan and Delgado along with Rowe if Arena likes him.
     
  7. IndividualEleven

    Mar 16, 2006
    Wouldn't it be Pulisic's role to provide creativity out of midfield?
     
  8. Excellency

    Excellency Member+

    LA Galaxy
    United States
    Nov 4, 2011
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    If you want to move him away from goal, yeah. Personally I want my gunslinger 1 on 1 vs the keeper as often as I can set that up. don't you? goal vs Bayern a week ago, hello? You say you wanted him further back so he couldn't score that? Nah. Take a look at the goal he fired in against Trinidad. You don't put Billy the Kid in the chuck wagon.
     
  9. Jazzy Altidore

    Jazzy Altidore BigSoccer Yellow Card

    Sep 2, 2009
    San Francisco
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Jozy times Jozy squared equals Mcbride with a cherry on top.
     
    LouisianaViking07/09 repped this.
  10. Skandal!!!

    Skandal!!! Member

    Legia Warszawa
    Poland
    Apr 26, 2017
    Games are won by offence, tournaments are won by defence. US offence is quite good anyway, I'd say, so no reason to worry. Arena can balance the team, so US will have a solid performance next summer, or so I would expect. Pulisic, Jozy, Dempsey sounds like a credible firepower for mid-ranked team like US.
     
  11. butters59

    butters59 Member+

    Feb 22, 2013
    When your best offensive player is twice younger than the second best that's usually not a very good sign.
     
    largegarlic and ussoccer97531 repped this.
  12. Jazzy Altidore

    Jazzy Altidore BigSoccer Yellow Card

    Sep 2, 2009
    San Francisco
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    In America we spell offense with an s.
     
  13. DHC1

    DHC1 Member+

    Jun 3, 2002
    NYC
    We need an impregnable defense (notice the "s", Jazzy....) and a counter-attacking offense that is good at set plays (which I don't think we're good at atm).

    Above all, we need to limit turnovers in our back third, which makes us look even more defensively oriented. Actually, above all, we need a lucky draw......
     
  14. deejay

    deejay Member+

    Feb 14, 2000
    Tarpon Springs, FL
    Club:
    Jorge Wilstermann
    Nat'l Team:
    Bolivia
    The creative role is still weak. We have Pulisic and Dempsey. That's it. Maybe the next world cup.
     
  15. Ruben Rivas

    Ruben Rivas Member

    Madrid
    United States
    Apr 1, 2017
    Miami
    #15 Ruben Rivas, Aug 15, 2017
    Last edited: Aug 15, 2017
    Other than Dempsey and Pulisic no.

    Time to start talking about Luis Silva, finess players have been ignored for too long.
     
  16. largegarlic

    largegarlic Member+

    Jul 2, 2007
    Man, just thinking about this question bums me out a little. I don't think we have great personnel to be dangerous on the counter (can you imagine anyone currently on the team creating/scoring goals on the counter the way Donovan did in 09-10?). Maybe if Morris raises his game, he and Pulisic can make it happen, but I don't know.

    We also don't seem to be as dominant on set pieces anymore (in terms of headers off of corners or free kicks). Who on the team is a real aerial threat? Brooks? That's about it, right? On the plus side, maybe we're better at scoring directly off free kicks than in the past. Dempsey and Altidore both had nice goals in the GC, and Acosta has done it for Dallas.

    Then when it comes to generating chances from sustained possession, it seems like we still don't move the ball fast enough or creatively enough as a group to create chances that way and have to rely on Dempsey or Pulisic to manufacture something out of almost nothing. But Dempsey's too old and Pulisic is probably still too young to carry that whole load against high-level competition.
     
  17. Ruben Rivas

    Ruben Rivas Member

    Madrid
    United States
    Apr 1, 2017
    Miami
    If I am the coach right now, this is my starting 11, no more coward tactics.

    1. Howard

    2. Chandler
    3. Cam
    4, Brooks
    5. Fabian

    7. Luis Silva
    6. Jermaine Jones
    8. Benny

    10. Pulisic
    11. Dempsey
    9. Wood

    I don't think I am missing anybody that can make a bigger impact.
     
  18. goussoccer

    goussoccer Member+

    May 23, 2001
    Avon, CT
    This is a great question --- but I agree with what seems to be the consensus -- 'no'. The midfield is absolutely key here and while we are getting better, we aren't quite there yet. This gets to one of the goals that Sunil had in hiring JK - we need better development overall in the US. Some of this was echoed by Steve Cherundolo in his recent interview - though he focused on the 16-18 range.

    I do believe, however, that we should be competitive enough to expect to get out of our group (short of a horrendous draw -- IMHO, until we get ranked we will almost always be in a Group of Death, but we should expect to get out of them much more often than not) and win a knockout round game or two.
     
  19. ifsteve

    ifsteve Member+

    Manchester United
    United States
    Jul 7, 2013
    MS and ID
    Club:
    Real Salt Lake
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Once again all I can say to Mr. Rivas is I am dang glad you are not the MNT coach. Your midfield .....well just smh.
     
    deejay, Mr Martin, manq360 and 5 others repped this.
  20. DHC1

    DHC1 Member+

    Jun 3, 2002
    NYC
    you call it "coward tactics" while acknowledging that we have significantly less talent than our WC competitors (presumably even with this lineup). I'd call a defensive oriented strategy as highly sensible.

    I'm guessing you're not a believer in Moneyball type analysis where you try to maximize your percentages and that you admire Mexico fans' philosophy as it is essentially the same as yours (style is more important than actually winning games).
     
  21. Footsatt

    Footsatt Member+

    Apr 8, 2008
    Michigan
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I think other players will step up besides the obvious of Dempsey, or Pulisic....

    Examples:
    Zusi in 2014: 2 assists
    Brooks in 2014: Goal
    Young Bradley in 2010: Goal
    Young Jozy in 2010: Assist
    Sanneh in 2002: Assist

    Potential players to get assists or goals are...
    Goals: Jozy, Wood, Dempsey, Pulisic, Morris, Agudelo, Bradley, Cameron & Brooks
    Assits: Jozy, Dempsey, Pulisic, Agudelo, Zardes, Saief, F Johnson, Bradley, Williams, Feilhaber, McCarty, Kljestan, Arriola, Yedlin, Villafana
     
    LouisianaViking07/09 repped this.
  22. ifsteve

    ifsteve Member+

    Manchester United
    United States
    Jul 7, 2013
    MS and ID
    Club:
    Real Salt Lake
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Are we as offensively talented as a lot of teams? Heck no were not. But the other side of the coin is that most teams do not score a ton of goals in the WC, unless they draw a really weak team that really doesn't belong (expanding to 48 = joke). This is soccer. Goals are hard to come by and in the WC they are even harder to come by.
     
  23. Ruben Rivas

    Ruben Rivas Member

    Madrid
    United States
    Apr 1, 2017
    Miami
    We are not as talented as the Germans or Argentinians but to play defensive vs a non top 10 teams is def being a coward.
     
  24. Ruben Rivas

    Ruben Rivas Member

    Madrid
    United States
    Apr 1, 2017
    Miami
    If you never take risks you will never be great.

    To me coaches like Mourinho are simply a disgrace to soccer.

    Klinsmann took risks, he was a terrible coach but he did take risks sometimes, I respect that.
     
  25. DHC1

    DHC1 Member+

    Jun 3, 2002
    NYC
    You sound like my Mexican friends crying every time we beat them: "you play such an ugly game - it doesn't count!"

    I just laugh, say "scoreboard" and watch their heads explode. You may be too young to remember Cobi in the corner...

    Good times, good times.....
     

Share This Page