Well they switched more than once. It may actually have been planned rather than a reaction to how it was going.
Left back There r two things that drive me crazy here. First, it has become apparent to me that Klingenberg is now (or at least was) the first choice back on either side based on what she accomplished against CONCACAF teams this fall. This is based solely on Klingenberg being their most offensively inclined back. I just cant see playing defenders who cant defend unless u have absolutely no fire power up front. This certainly isnt the case in the US. The forwards can hold their own with anyone if u can get them the ball and that starts with defending in the back and bringing the ball up the field. To me overlaps r a luxury the US cant afford at this point. The other thing is the numbers game. I still see them carrying four CBs and four OBs so as it currently stands they will likely cut either Dunn or O'Hara. The other way to go would be carry all the backs and cut Johnston. If Im the US I want speed in defense going into WC. Just looking at their group, Sweden has fast flank players and always give the US trouble and Australia and Nigeria r track teams. If u think u had trouble playing slow OBs against France it's only just the beginning.
This may be a fundamental disagreement on our part. I'm of the opinion that if the aim of a game is to try new things (we can debate the merits about if this is wise at this stage), you shouldn't immediately abandon it when things are not going well. That is not how you learn. Give the players enough time to correct their mistake before making changes. Use half time to communicate what they are doing wrong and give them a chance to correct. If it still can't be done, than you can admit that this experiment didn't work. The subbing in this game was a weird one for me but for a different reason. Chalupny obviously was only going to play a half as she is still not NT fit. That change should have happened at the intermission. Bringing in Kreiger immediately after the two goals looked like a panic move. Similar to the Wambach sub. She should have replaced Morgan who could not complete a pass in the second half as her legs where dead.
I know Ellis likes Kling but I don't think Kling is a starter over Kreiger. I think she herself is still being evaluated
I agree with what u r saying but not in this case. This wasnt tactical. The OBs werent failing because they were doing it wrong. They were failing because they were physically over matched. Chalupny did everything humanly possible to try and slow Thomis down but she got little or no help from the midfield. Sauerbrunn came across twice in the early going to snuff out opportunities but if she hadnt gotten there u now have Engen and Holiday defnding the middle against good strikers. Now I guess Lloyd being defensively challenged was tactical but that had to be apparent in practice. I cant believe when they used this formation in training that Lloyd defended the sideline any better. This is nothing but pure Ellis arrogance. Why will this formation work? Because the same midfield who couldnt hold the ball against Brazil would do better against France. Why play those forwards? Because they will get forward despite the midfield problems. Why throw Lloyd wide? Because she will make up for defensive liabilities in attack. Sorry Jill but u were 0 for 3 there. As to Morgan, she probably should have brought in Wambach, HAO and Rodriguez together and got Morgan, Holiday and Heath off.
Well it's the longest evaluation in history. Since the second France match last June Klingenberg has started 12 of 14 matches and came on as a half time sub in one of the two she didnt start. In fact the only match where Ellis thought she could get by without Kling was against Argentina. I think it's time to evaluate Dunn and O'Hara. Why not begin with England and evaluate them right thru July.
Well you answered your own question. We have no one such as Thomis on our team to tire out our defenders so my guess here is that in practice Lloyd/Heath was probably covering the sideline pretty well. Also, this was not the same midfield against Brazil. Lloyd played in the middle in that game. As I said before, I'm glad we are making all these experiments are failing because come June, we just may have run out of boneheaded experiments and will be left with only the right ones.
How many of those games did she start over Krieger at right back. The situation with Krieger is Ellis have used her as a place holder while she continues her search for a left back.
U give Ellis way too much credit. This is exactly the same thing she is doing in the midfield. She disregards the value of defending positions in favor of offensive players. That's why she doesnt play a true DM or favor defensive minded OBs.
Im not going thru the list again. I would guess the problem didnt really occur until Chalupny arrived so two or three there. Maybe a couple in CONCACAF but that would be normal to rest Krieger in a tournament. If it is an evaluation why isnt she evaluating the players she is competing against? Ud think Ud see an equal number of starts for KO if they were competing for a spot. Dunn's been hurt so hard to figure her in. I think in the same period O'Hara has the same number of starts at forward as she has at OB. What is also telling is the last three quality matches, Brazil x 2 and France, she started Klingenberg on the right and Chalupny on the left. Now Ill buy she is making a decision on Chalupny, but the fact that she chose not to start Krieger in any of those three tough matches tells me something.
Kelley Ohara and Heather Oreilly haven't been playing because of Meghan Klingenberg and Christen Press. Crystal Dunn is not hurt people. She is not playing because Jill likes the other out side backs more then her.
I would guess Dunn is fine now tho maybe not in top game shape because when u have a knee injury it tough to keep ur fitness. Still Dunn is certainly fit enough to go a half with O'Hara filling in the other half. But I do agree Ellis is down on any back who isnt offensively inclined. As to HAO, it's kinda the same story. Heath impressed against weak teams much like Klingnberg did and for some reason it carries a lot of weight with Ellis.
I'll make another observation. Had Rapinoe been in the France game it would have been a different game. She isn't as blazing fast as Thomis, but she can wiggle her way free for a cross or shot from the sideline as Thomis did. With Rapinoe on the left wing, Lloyd is in the middle and you have an offense that France has to worry about. Without Rapinoe (and to a lesser extent O"Reilly) on the wings, France could pretty much ignore the wide game of the U.S. and jam up the middle. I havent yet seen anybody on the U.S. team who is a good wide midfielder except for Rapinoe and O'Reilly. Maybe Tymrak, or Ohai, or Dunn eventually.
Here's the thing, if HAO has lost some of her pace and will likely see very little playing time with the NT moving forward, why not replace her with someone like Ohai. At least that way a youngster will get valuable experience with the NT at the 2015 WC as preparation for the 2019 WC. The same thing applies to A-Rod. I's really a wasted opportunity to have a couple of veterans keeping the bench warm if they have very little chance in competing in future tournaments. It's almost like Ellis has told these 2 players that they won't be seeing much playing action, but as a consolation they'll be chosen for the WC roster.
well, it depends upon which pinoe shows up, doesn't it? certainly not the one that wasted our time for two seasons here in lyon.
Pinot's failure in Lyon is a mystery. She came back to the U.S. in 2013 and played her heart out in meaningless games for a Seattle team that was last in the league. What happened in Lyon? My guess would be that she didn't get along with the coach. Pinoe (and Lloyd) are probably uncoachable in that they will do what they want to do on the field, and maybe that didn't go well?
Speaking of A-Rod it was my first time seeing her live at a Stadium and she looked so quick when she came...but also lacking the technical finesse of Press and Morgan. She might have a quick acceleration but not as good as the other two forwards when on the ball.
You keep saying that, but I don't see how you can think that true. There is no way that Chalupny and Klingenberg are more offensively inclined than O'Hara and Dunn. I don't even think Ellis is oblivious enough to think that. She obviously drank the same CONCACAF kool-aid that a lot posters here had at the time and thinks Klingenberg is a solid defender.
I believe it 100%. There r things to like about Klingenberg. She is very feisty, is decent with the ball and heartlessly goes forward. The price is she isnt overly fast, doesnt track back well and isnt a good 1v1 defender IMO. As for Chalupny, it's the lure of the left foot. I really dont know what to think about O'Hara. She didnt get any more of a fair shot before Chalupny than she is getting now. Somehow she is treated like a rookie despite playing every minute in a gold medal run.
that's probably a fair assessment, although she can show a good touch receiving the ball even at pace. Vis-a-vis Morgan and Press, the other key thing is simply who's putting the ball on frame? Of course compared to the A-Rod of three or four years ago, I would automatically take my chances with Morgan(A) and Press but after A-Rod's season in the NWSL that's no longer a gimme when Morgan(A) appears rusty and if Press looks slightly off.
I agree, Arod is less technical. Doesn't have the same feel for the ball. Leroux is in the same boat. Hagen and Horan both have a better feel for the ball and are more technical. Have we ever seen Press truly impress (Pun intended) on the Nat team against a team that's not from Latin America? Don't think I have, although I thought there were some good moments between her and Morgan last match...here's to hoping something prevails. Press put up some great numbers in Sweden, but people forget she had Marta on her team taking 2 defenders away, every single game.
My bad, epic beer induced fail on my part...my mind shifted gears to all options in the player pool. I was thinking if we played a 3-5-2 which CB would be an option to play at Dmid. Maybe Sauerbrunn would be a better option at Dmid with Rampone sweeping between Krieger and Engen.
Press didn't have Marta when she was at Goteborg and she put up great numbers there as well. I think people tend to forget that Press has hardly EVER played as a pure striker on the National team like she has throughout her career elsewhere. When she does get lucky enough to play up top, like against France, she instead has an inept midfield and is forced to drop back to receive the ball. I'm not trying to make excuses for Press, but just reminding that she has hardly gotten the opportunity to stay central and high where she excels.
The difference between Press and Morgan and someone like Rodriguez is the former can get their own shot against a set defense while A-Rod needs that good pass to spring her.