Dempsey won the Confederation Cup's Bronze Ball and finished fourth in the FWA's [EPL] Footballer of the Year awards all while playing on the flanks. He was an inside-wide mid. There is more than one way to play wide mid.
How was he smarter? A billion random step overs, hoping the opponent would bite on one so he could get that yard to have a lash or draw and dump? Lletget's moves are more coherent, and his interplay + passing more advanced. Dempsey didn't develop as a solid passer until he was older than Lletget currently is. If he indeed was better around the same age/experience-level, time will tell from this opportunity, and it would have been due to being about 4 inches taller, thus being a factor in the air, able to cover more ground in a single stride, and possessing better stamina due to workout choices that fit his style better. I guess that would be the one way he's smarter, in training off the field.
He didn't make it in England because Fat Sam, who isn't interested in blooding youth, took over as West Ham's manager when Lletget was breaking thru at an early age. You could only justly say he didn't make it on merit if his success in academy that led to him being highly rated was awarded accordingly with 1st team opportunity, which didn't happen. He played 4 minutes in a Cup game where they were already dominated. Good luck with that thin, fat chance, laddie.
Okay, make the case. Keep in mind Beckerman was an extremely useful player before and after the WC until probably last year. Also keep in mind that Lletget didn't come to MLS until the middle of 2015 so you're just talking out of your ass.
One thing Dempsey had was a knack for finding a space in the box and beating the defenders to the ball. He then finished using his head, foot, shin, stomach or butt..... Is that intelligence? maybe. He did that better than any player in modern USMNT history. Not saying he was JUST a poacher... Edit: sorry for the derail. I did not mean my comment above as a slight in any way toward Lleget and it isn't a thread about Dempsey...
Demps looked pretty good in the first half-minute of the Ghana match in Brazil from the left flank. (Yeah, I know that's not exactly classic wing play, but still...)
This is my opinion of why he's not quite good enough in the EPL, for pretty much any manager. He doesn't have the physical tools to differentiate himself.
The physical tools can be made up for by a seriously fast processor in your head. Some players just see things that are going to happen. Sort of like cars at stop signs in traffic. Some sit until there is a clear opening for half a block in each direction while someone else sees and slips into a tiny gap seamlessly. Pulisic is pretty athletic but has a great brain that reads things really fast. If Lletget has a quick mind he will overcome some lack of athleticism.
It's tough to say why he specifically didn't make it at West Ham, as few here have access to reserve games or coach's meetings. What was fairly obvious from watching his MLS matches was that Lletget clearly needed seasoning. Dempsey went to England after having played 71 MLS matches. He had a different experience to Lletget who was trying to break in from the youth and reserve ranks.
Pulisic has a world class first step and acceleration, and very good top speed. I don't think that's the right comparison, even if what you are saying about Lletget is possible otherwise. Note I'm generally a fan of Lletget, and think me might be useful for the national team. I'm just not surprised he didn't make it in the EPL. We've had quite a few decent guys who haven't.
I do not see many minutes for LLeget if you guys are looking at him as an attacking player which is really the only way you can make a valid comparison to the big Texan. In the midfield OTOH he looks useful. Can't really wrap my mind around why any comparison to CD was ever made in the first place.
I guess it's the comparison to Lletget that's throwing me in general. Lletget has been more of a traditional flank player.
There aren't too many Americans with Lletget's ball control in general, including Dempsey (although he's no schmuck obviously). And that's what I mean -- Dempsey finds and creates space more often despite being being less of a dynamo on the ball. Dempsey plays the way Lletget SHOULD play, with guile and hubris, while Lletget exerts a lot brute force.
Lletget has frequently been used as a flanker. Dempsey played much of his middle career as a flanker. So yeah, it's perfectly reasonable to compare and contrast the two.
I dont think lletget is a winger or forward....he should be used as a dmid or box-to-box player, imo. he's similar to nagbe...both dont really have a nose for goal...but can dribble, pass, keep possession under pressure...unlike most in the pool. thats what the midfield needs and hasnt had for a while.
He can't close down, take proper angles, and gets passive as a d-mid. But up high he interplays to break down a bunker, can beat a player 1 v. 1 in tight spaces, send decent crosses in, get balls to teammates' feet in and around the box, play the occasionally killer ball, and as an attacker scored in something like his first 5 games in MLS when played there, before being moved back in the field. Glad you aren't coach!
The snark at the end of your post was uncalled for. If your assessment of his weaknesses are accurate, then I don't see how he plays with the full A team.
They are a critique of him as a defensive midfielder, which he never actually was. A guy shouldn't be expected to play like 6 positions, and if he can't that's a referendum on his ability and therefore he doesn't have a role with the full A team. I think he already will be with the full A team, next set of matches, off the bench. So far the first indicators of him as a national teamer are positive, both in games and camp. He also could lose much of the muscle whenever he wanted to. That's a simple adjustment where he works too hard off the field without working smart. As far as the snark, it was called for, because he just said the same thing to me verbatim, due to assessing Agudelo as having played a poor game like a high majority of people. Turnabout is fair play. My subjective assessment of his on this matter is he's way off base, and I explained why. He tends to think we should have a virtually all offense no d front 6 because if you don't you're a wuss, and then tells me "glad you aren't coach", like he just has a much better handle on the intricacies of the game and that's why I didn't get Agudelo was objectively great tonight.
I hope we can keep the conversation civil in here. I missed his crack at you. I don't think Lleget or Agudelo either one, are all that. The team we played was pretty bad and neither of them covered themselves in glory IMO. He might have some bench role, but I think he is a solid B team gold cup type of player. We shall see, I hope Bruce gets it right because we have very little room for error.
We can quibble over definitions, I guess, but the two don't really play the same way and aren't utilized on the flanks the same way. The only comparison I can make is that if Lletget saw the game like Dempsey, he'd be a much better player, all around. Lletget touches the ball waaaaay more than Clint in a given match and is less effective. There were several times Friday where Lletget overlooked opportunities to combine with Feilhaber or Villafana and instead just ran at defenses, trying to beat two Jamaicans in a footrace to the endline. He was able to get some balls in, but that's still a lot of work to create a low percentage chance (a cross in to Agudelo and Morris?). Lletget's will be an upgrade over a guy like Bedoya on the wings, but there are some gaps in his game.