Slightly disappointing, but ultimately solid draw. Points on the road in CONCACAF are golden, especially when you give a contender two fewer points than the three for a win.
Classic Hex road match, though things are much more precarious when you start the match in 5th place instead of 1st or 2nd.
I'll take the point, especially with the depleted roster Best thing is getting Pusilic, Nagbe, Arriola, and Acosta some Central American qualifying blood.
So, is there anyone left on this board who does not put Pulisic as number one on the team sheet for every meaningful game going forward, period?
1. Never call up zusi again 2. Jones is done for 3. More Hyndman and Acosta please 4. Bobby come home!
Quick thoughts... No more Bradley free kicks. No more Zusi at RB (anywhere, really) It's still a qualifier in Central America - a point is ok, especially with all the missing players. Jones/ Bradley doesn't work. No more Bradley free kicks. ETA: No more Bradley free kicks. Thanks USSoccerNova...
Not too fun on the eyes, but given the many injuries and the road match, I'll take the points and move on.
Some solid things to build off of, especially when you consider all of the injuries. Some shaky moments from the back 4, but also some good defending. No disrespect to Jozy, but these are the type of games where not having Bobby Wood or even Jordan Morris hurt. Jozy is a willing worker, but isn't as effective as others in the pool would be in this type of game.
I think we need to give the Bradley-Jones combo another 100 games or so together to see if it's going to work out. Zusi at RB. That is not going to work out.
Jones and Bradley both need to look in the mirror because they are severely hampering the team. Zusi is garbage as well. May as well just hand Pulisic the armband at 18 because he's one of the only ones that looks like he gives a damn. Give me Bobby Wood over Jozy any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
Point on the road is always good. As the game was winding down I realized we were actually pretty lucky to come out with a draw as they had the better chances; if it wasn't for a few good saves and defensive plays this could have been bad. Offensively WTF? We couldn't get off any shots and constantly bungled it when we got near the box. Bradley had a real off night delivering set pieces. With the amount we had we should've at least came close to something dangerous once.
Jones and Bradley can't start together if we expect to create anything going forward. One should be backing up the other. The decision to start them both killed Pulisic and neutered Dempsey and Altidore. Bradley is so flipping bad on set pieces. How have two managers not seen this? Finally, the officiating in this game was extremely questionable. Like, borderline match fixed questionable. Like someone had money on 1-1.
-No more Jones and Bradley. I don't have any answers but I'm not being paid to figure it out. Arena has too. -Otherwise, I thought, performances besides Ream's and Zusi's were solid. Altidore (and Dempsey and Pulisic) had to suffer with no midfield. IF you are not going to call in Chandler start calling in Rosenberry as the third option. I don't care how many people at mlssoccer.com are pushing this Zusi as a RB meme, I don't care about how few goals his club has let in. Zusi at RB with the national team is a waste of time. -Villafana is probably our starting LB at the WC if he continues getting consistent PT and stays healthy. -It will be fun wathing Nagbe and Johnson battle for that left mid field spot.
No, he's clearly arrived at the international level. He wasn't great in the fall qualifiers, but now, he's proven he can carry the offense in vital games against decent opponents. Next step is a backbreaking goal against Mexico to move closer to the Donovan level.
Amen on Bradley not taking anymore free kicks, but it's like in Beetlejuice. You have to say it three times for it to work. ;-)
I'll take the result, but I don't like how the team arrived at it. Poorly-managed game from Arena, IMO. A few bullet points... 1. Bradley & Jones just can't pair at CM. We know this already. Arena needs to get it. 2. Someone besides Bradley needs to start taking FKs. 3. While Ream & Gonzo made some clutch plays at the end, this team can't field two CBs with zero ability to distribute. Best part of Brooks' game is his ability to play to feet and spring forward play. I'm a firm believe that your 4 and 5 need to be lynchpins for starting your attack. Gonzo & Ream offer zero distribution. I can live with the fact that this pool may be limited to the point where Gonzo may be one starter, but you can't pair him with someone else who just panic-boots the ball. 4. I would be fascinated to learn what Altidore's instructions were tonight. 5. A poor game overall from Pulisic ... but he's still the most dangerous player on the pitch and singlehandedly created a goal. Not trying to invent superlatives; I'll call a spade a spade. He had some poor touches tonight for sure. But I love his fearlessness and creativity. He keeps trying. Other guys, like Altidore, have things go against them and lose confidence or fight. Pulisic is relentless. That's an attitude you hope can become infectious. I like that he's clearly a gamer in defending himself, defending teammates and calling BS on refs, too. Kid wants it badly. 6. Puzzling to see Nagbe subbed off. Some argued he wasn't tracking back enough defensively. Disagree here. With central midfield out of the picture, he was picking the ball up and advancing into promising attacks. Dispossessed too often, yes, but that was a disappointing sub in that it was clearly playing for the point and not three. 7. And Jermaine Jones should have been subbed off far sooner. I knew this would be an ugly performance when he went to ground so easily in the first half. Embarrassing performance, really. Offered nothing. 8. <3 Tim Howard.
No hiding in these type of attrition games. We'll take the point and regroup for the next qualifiers. Panama had much the better soccer athletes. Good to get the youngsters some "hands on" experience in the CONCACAF cauldron.