not bad considering it was posted Feb 2017. I think you over-rate Agudelo, under-rate (current) Altidore. But this one was a beauty: 14. Current Arena is the second worst coach we've had since Sampson, first being Klinsmann.
It shows how bad Gulati is. Those were his two preferred coaches. Both were terrible. There were many good MLS coaches he could've picked when Klinsmann got fired, but instead he picked one of the worst coaches in the league.
Anyone who had been following the post-Donovan Galaxy knew Arena was a tactical dinosaur. I must admit he surprised me getting that point in the Azteca though. I expected him to get us destroyed there, with an initial lineup everybody here thought ridiculous.
You aren't a real US star unless you have a devastating STD named after you: https://www.kron4.com/news/world/-flesh-eating-std-reported-in-uk-for-first-time/1389420994 You could have the dempsies for example where you lay flaccid for 60 minutes then flare up for an intense 3 seconds then go back to start.
True, partially. Plus Acosta not having any clue where the counter was or the severity of the threat with all our defenders in the Mexican box to receive a corner kick.
ding ding ding all three cb were in the box ...while taking a short corner....terrible idea. if they are going to play short corners you have to keep them back there is no reason for them to be up there.
I was just reading this thread https://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/chicken-or-egg-who-is-responsible-for-youth-development.2084390/ and here's a highly unpopular opinion: Our best young players (CP, WM, Sargent, Adams, etc.) would have been just as successful even if MLS didn't exist as I'm assuming that other developmental systems around major metropolitan areas would have increased their role in development. However, the players in the large subset of less talented players have clearly benefited from MLS and their Development Academies. [ducking]
I'd have to know why MLS doesn't exist in the alternate landscape before making any assumptions about an abundance of developmental systems in the same scenario. Until then I'm fine giving MLS credit for a player like Adams, or their academy credit for identifying Mckennie.
I’m happy to give credit but just wanted to temper strident voices singing hosannas. I think the academies have been and are going to be quite helpful in establishing true depth for the USMNT and late bloomers; conversely, the interest from top global teams would be heavily scouting top US prospects irrespective of MLS IMO.
My unpopular opinion is that the team would be severely compromised if it didn't play a bunch of dedicated defensive specialists in attacking positions. I personally don't think the team needs dedicated defenders in midfield or attack. I am in the minority when it comes to the best approach to playing big teams - i say put out a full attacking lineup - but most think that is suicide and that even the most aggressive attacking lineup that the USMNT could muster wouldnt be good enough to threaten good teams while also leaving the team open to the opponnents' attack. Personally, I think a lot of people equate poor attacking skills with good defense and it is a vicious cycle of mediocrity - the team isn't good enough to even try attacking - only the good teams are allowed to do that - but that line of thinking is self-defeating and only perpetuates mediocrity, imo. Alas, I am in the minority in this way of thinking - someday I think it will be different and the USMNT will be "allowed" to put out lineups that don't come from a scared place....
I’ll again say that, other than CP, we have no major league attacking talent and try to attack vs good teams is like walking into a gun fight with a butter knife. Find me half a dozen attacking players who could start for Mexico and perhaps we can have a discussion but your latest lineup has us building around 33-year old Lee Nyugen who shares AM duties for a team ranked in the mid 200s with a second back-side-of-career vet who wasn’t able to make it in the major leagues.
1. the teams that cower and refuse to fight and play super defensive are doing the work of their opponents for them. there's no team out there that goes super defensive that actually does anything when the lights are on beyond one or 2 lucky results before getting smashed. all the big countries should be thankful that most smaller countries setup super scared vs them. 2. club success is not equal opportunity for all nationalities. france, spain, portugal italy England DISCRIMINATE against USA players - openly and with HOSTILITY. so I am not going to hold that against usmnt players like you do. does it make it harder for USA players to reach the top of the club ladder? surely. pretending it doesnt makes no sense to me. As CLint Dempsey said: as an american in Europe I have to be great just to be considered good. Your view of american soccer success in europe is like the views of white baseball observers prior to integration and jackie robinson just without the racism. instead there is a cultural bias at play. I recognize I am in the minority in my views but I also have not had them refuted by a COMPETENT TACTICAL MASTER LEVEL international coach. Just b/c Arena, JK, Sarachan and Robo-Bob couldnt coax beautiful soccer out of the USMNT does not make me waver in my belief that it is indeed possible with the USMNT player pool. The USMNT has never had a GREAT international coach - a poppovich or belicheck type - who can work his magic on the team. All of the past 5 or even more USMNT coaches are simple-minded and not known for tactics or international success....why should I count out the team's ability for greatness when they've never been put in position to succeed?
Adam, You are, of course, entitled to your opinion. Who are today's great American attacking talents who are being discriminated against in france, spain, portugal italy and England? To use your vernacular, who's our Jackie Robison? Is it your perspective that Nyugen and Benny are top level international attacking talents? who are the attacking players who would start for Mexico (other than perhaps CP)? Finally, to answer your first point, Greece won the UEFA championship with a defense first strategy as did Leicester City when they shockingly won the EPL.
I think this is a pretty good one. It probably is a pretty unpopular opinion. My first thought is El Salvador. I couldn't remember when or who they got killed by but it was Hungary in the 1982 WC and the score was 10-1! After that, they just bunkered and ended with a -12 goal differential (an 0-1 and 0-2 loss) against Argentina and Belgium who won the group). they probably were relatively happy with the two results after the initial loss. I know that we are nowhere near that level but it is important because it illustrates the dangers of opening up against a team that is far superior. For us, we have teams that are above us and below us and any competent coach will plan a gameplan accordingly. He can and should be able to play more aggressively against a weaker opponent and more conservatively against a stronger opponent.
To be clear, mahtzo1, Adam wants to pin our ears back all the time and particularly vs good teams. He sounds like my friends who are Mexican national team supporters did 5-10 years ago. Even their tune is starting to change though towards a more defensive posture vs. the big boys.
Where are the US players in those countries? they are MIA! http://www.espn.com/soccer/blog/name/93/post/1851636/headline Jerome De Bontin, former President of AS Monaco: The net effect, in de Bontin's experience, is both stigmatizing and debilitating. "European clubs remain condescending when it comes to U.S. soccer," he said. "I saw that first hand at Monaco when I tried to help young American players join clubs in France or Austria. Any president who brought one in would face a fight with a coach who won't give an American the time of day, not because he is lacking skill-wise or physically, but because U.S. players are not taken seriously." De Bontin reinforced his point with a depressing hypothetical. "If I took two identically skilled players in the same position, one from Chicago and one from Ivory Coast, I guarantee the African will get a spot and the American won't, just because of the condescension of the European coach." When Stoke signed Agudelo, he was never allowed to even play in England. If you think he didn't make it there b/c he wasn't good enough you are naive. he never even got the chance to see what his merits were. Greece and Leicester are outliers. They don't prove the merits of their style....but that yes it is possible to bunker one's way to titles...if you want to win 1 out of 500 times, sure....does that mean any team should do that? no. their results, while laudable, are statistically insignificant. Is Bayern Munich going to start playing like Greece cuz they won a Euro title? NO! what has greece done since then? nothing. IMO, Fielhaber and Nguyen are good enough to be playmakers for the SUMNT. Benny's golazo that won the Gold Cup was amazing and he played well in the 2010 World Cup....I mean, are you just going to pretend like he never did anything at all at the top level of the game just b/c bradley preferred his son and J/K favored Dempsey over Benny b/c of their beef? Nguyen has never had his shot with the A-team of the SUMNT....he was damn near MVP of MLS one season and didn't barely play b/c JK saw things just as you do - that the only chance the SUMNT has is bunkerball. The USMNT has been whipping Mexico's a** for a while now...espeically with Donovan...and FEILHABER...there was a time for a while that mexico couldnt touch the US.....right now, mexico has the upper hand - but let's not pretend mexico is on another level than the USMNT - it's not. a bunch of players for the USMNT would make a 23 man roster if both pools were somehow combined.
el salvador vs argentina is not the same as usmnt vs argentina/belgium/brazil etc.... El Salvador has never won a single World Cup Game!!! the usa has made it out of the group 3 out of the last 5 World cups!!!! it is time for the USA to stop playing like they are El Salvador if they want to make the next step in their progression in the world of soccer. period. the usa has already beaten: brazil, argentina, netherlands, germany, portugal, spain etc....but they somehow still think of themselves as minnows. it is so insecure.
I mean maybe not ALL the TIME....sure, be measured and wise about it. but it should always be on the table as an option. Instead, it is usually never even considered. I disagree with the idea that you ALWAYS play safe vs good teams and open vs bad teams - it then becomes a self-fulfilling cycle of mediocrity. Champions are fearless. if the team just refused to bow down to anyone - yeah there would be some bad losses - but eventually the identity of the team would become fearless and superior over time. besides there are a bunch of bad losses with the bunkerball approach anyway - if you could gaurantee no bad losses by playing super defensive it might be worth it - but the USMNT loses most of the time it tries to be superdefensive anyway - so i dont get why people cling so tightly to that strategy - it is the strategy of losing teams! if the team took a stand and said we are not compromising. this is who we are. and stood by it...it would transform the team's identity eventually -but coaches are scared - they want to keep their jobs and get new contracts a la JK so they play scared and safe - just good enough to make the second round - JK even admitted it! that was all he was going for.....it was obvious anyway. and then people like you come along and interpret those results as inevitable - it is comical really. Instead we get youth coaches who play safe and have the team drop deep after scoring, etc.....
So our Jackie Robinson is Juan Agudelo, who for years after returning from overseas couldn’t start consistently in MLS? Now that we both acknowledge that lesser teams can win championships with a defensive style, let’s try the opposite. What lower talented team played a very aggressive style and won a championship? Maybe an FA Cup? Finally, it seems you want to implement an attacking style of play and then hope it’ll turn our less talented attacking players into something greater while I think we should wait until we have a deep pool of major league / international quality attacking players before we institute a style that we currently don’t have the talent for. To that end, I guess I’m not surprised that you wanted a new MLS team to consider signing Freddy adu even though he can’t get on the field for the LV Lights.