zero shots on goal against Argies and zero shots on Colombia in first half. As bad as we were in the worst of the years 1990-2010, I don't remember this much time with no shots on goal. 2 total shots in both games.
i was in the stadium for that game ....98% colombian fans all wearing jerseys...it was LOUD ..felt like a world cup game. second half the US was doing NOTHING. Nguyen single-handedly created chances totally against the run of play....I was POSITIVE he was on the way to becoming a real part of the team after that performance.... alas, he is still out in the cold...and I'm sure his relative dip in form since then has a lot to do with not being given a real chance....he was quoted as saying he came back to MLS with the intention of playing on the USMNT....after nearly being MVP and still not getting a run of games....gotta be disheartening....kinda similar thing going on with b.feilhaber...he has really worked on his defense and pressing under SKC.... my starting midfield for the US would be: Nagbe, nguyen, feilhaber, lletget.... guarantee they wouldnt get zero shots in 90 minutes versus anyone...also doubt many teams would pin their ears back and high press the us with those four to contend with..... i'd play them behind speed forwards like manneh, wood, davies etc....... then just pick the best four lock down defenders......
Not what I'm saying. Beers Langer23 is in to absolutes. I'm just trying to point out that soccer doesn't work in those terms. He's apparently a straight up blame the players perspective which does not entirely fit into this thread topic
I'll give you Bedoya, but Wood, really!? We get it, you don't like the coach, but just the fact that you wanted JK to sub Wood in the 49th minute which was right after Yedlin's red card is absolutely ridiculous. How can someone take you seriously after such a comment?
What the heck do you guys want us to say? "We don't win because our players suck"? No soccer fan in the world ever says that about their NT. You may say your players don't put the effort, that they had a bad day, that the coach is inept, the referee was biased, the game didn't really mean anything, the tactics were wrong, or the weather/altitude/heat affected them. What you never, listen to me, NEVER say as a fan of a national team is, "our players are just not good enough." That'd be like people saying "the economic situation is bad because idiots like me keep electing the same thieves," or "women don't like me because I'm uninteresting and annoying." That's taboo. You NEVER say it. Geez.
So we are to be delusional and say everything is OK, it was just an off night and we'll beat Argentina the next time? If you are not willing to acknowledge the mediocrity of the US players, perhaps it's time to find another NT to support.
No reason for you to be an arse. I could give a flying f*** if you take me seriously or not, but would appreciate it if you play the ball and not the man. I can concede it is early for Wood at 52, and Wood's yellow was just lack of composure and a bad decision in the heat of the moment. He needs to be more composed than that and know that the next foul is bringing a yellow. Bedoya's yellow was easy to see coming...tired players often make poor decisions.
The more at this level includes full team pressure to regain possession when lost, and constant mental engagement and intelligent movement(like you said). All three are necessary: 1. Intelligence and mental focus for 95 minutes 2. Triangle possession under pressure 3. Full team pressure to regain possession when lost What disturbed me against Argentina and throughout this tourney was the occasional loss of mental focus, particularly during dead ball situations. One of our traits had Ben staying laser focused because we have to due to our lower technical skill set.
We still need to work at youth level identifying the kids that have it and continue to focus on them and groom them. We just need twenty or thirty Pulisics at age 8 - 13 (where is Lederman these days and where are 20 others like him). It has got to be focused on development first and foremost.
I would love to see this too. I'm very dubious it will provide the outcome you imagine but it would be awesome to see. I have long advocated for more friendlies and more variety in US line-ups. This kind of stuff would be fun.
This, to me, is the biggest problem with this manager/team. I appreciate and applaud trying to play better ball control and movement against teams where it is, or at least is somewhat, succeeding. But we seem not to have the ability/desire to adjust the game-plan on the fly and switch to direct/athletic mode in games like the recent semi (although we did a better job of it v. Belgium - got way more chances relative to opponents play in that one.) The Argie game seemed particularly off, and we didn't have Howard putting in a "career top 10" performance, but I think we need to know when to shift to a long ball/direct/counterattack. Of course, it's hard to play that game with Demps and Wondo as your top-side targets - but Zardes can play that game.
You are way off the mark concerning CRC. In WC14 they did not bunker against Uruguay and won, they played a high defensive line and offside trap against Italy, while harassing the hell out of Pirlo in midfield and won. The England game (a throwaway) was not bunkering. They had a bad game against Greece. Holland just pushed them back. Only the Holland game could be considered bunkering. They did not just defeat Colombia by bunkering. They were all over us for the first 1o minutes of our recent match and had they scored first or not given us that stupid PK it could have been a very different game. Their 02 WC team did not bunker when they won the HEX with a still record setting number of points or in the WC where they went toe to toe with 3rd place Turkey or when they lost a 5-2 offensive slugfest against Brazil. Where do you get the idea that CRC bunkers? Pinto did have a defense first approach, but it was not bunkering. Iran 2016 was bunkering. Paraguay in 98 was bunkering. CRC was not.
We aren't using an attacking mid at all in our current setup. The people who wanted to see Nguyen was during a time when we were using one. Well, we were using a player at the attacking mid position is a more accurate thing to say. Lletget's another good player. As a Galaxy fan I hope to see him get an opportunity. I think he could be very effective if used correctly.
TBH, our current team leaders, Jones, Dempsey, Howard, Altidore, Bradley, don't come across exactly as the sharpest tools in the shed. We're missing a lot of intelligence in our play, with Donovan gone.
Mike is smart but in the heat of the game, he loses it. Besides, he's the type of studious smart, the kid who gets top grades because he studies a lot (=the player who looks very involved because he runs everywhere). What we need is a different type of brains. The type that sees the defect in the rival's plan on the spot. The Mexicans had that until recently with Gio dos Santos, who for all his disciplinary problems has a good brain in his skull. One really needs one guy like that. To do some in-game coaching if needed. Of course, an egomaniac coach is bound to hate that.
Canada's fans do. But to your point, there is an element of honesty. I'm a Kings fan and a Raiders fan. I sure as hell expect neither to win the NBA championship or Super Bowl next year. Why? Players aren't good enough. That's not taboo. It's reality. Boise State doesn't expect to be in the Final Four next year either.
Canada soccer doesn't have any fans. Remember: fan comes from fanatic. Only ice hockey has fans here. It's giving up, though. You can fix having a bad coach, players lacking motivation, a cheating referee, or even a bad roster for a given competition. You can't fix "our players suck" when talking of NTs. Not in one generation, and since everybody also improves, not in two or three. In a club it's different, you can buy new players. Not for NTs. Saying our players suck, even if honest, is basically admitting defeat.
All those in South America, though: '93 in Ecuador, '95 in Uruguay, '07 in Venezuela. That makes things completely different. One does not simply walk into CONMEBOL.