Needless to say, this was a great result and a nice throwback to the gritty, "never say die" mentality that our team has traditionally been known for. Couple that with the tactical nous that this group has shown and you end up with a win like this. The most encouraging thing about this result, in my opinion, is that team didn't play their best and there's still plenty of room for improvement. Despite the large possession advantage, it rarely felt like we were holding on by a thread and defending with our backs against the wall like we've been accustomed to seeing with the senior team against tough opposition. The team had a game plan and stuck to it even when faced it adversity, they pressured France all over the field and were decisive when they needed to be. This is especially impressive when you look at the gap in experience in first team football (not including USL appearances): France - 348 (210 Ligue 1, 90 Bundesliga, 36 Serie A, 12 Belgium) Lafont - 132 (98 Ligue 1/34 Serie A), Basila - 2 Ligue 1, Zagadou - 28 Bundesliga, Kamara - 37 Ligue 1, N'Dicka - 27 Bundesliga, Cuisance - 35 Bundesliga, Fofana - 17 Ligue 1, Loiodice - 16 Ligue 1, Diaby - 27 (25 Ligue 1/2 Serie A), Gouiri - 7 Ligue 1, Alioui - 12 Belgium, Adli - 8 Ligue 1 USA - 62 (41 MLS, 13 SPL, 5 Ligue 1, 3 Bundesliga) Pomykal - 17 MLS, Servania - 2 MLS, Weah - 18 (13 SPL/ 5 Ligue 1), Soto - 3 Bundesliga, Rennicks - 1 MLS, McKenzie - 21 MLS The experience gap is even more lopsided when you consider how few minutes McKenzie played and the level of clubs some of the French starting XI play regularly for (PSG, Dortmund, Gladbach, Eintracht Frankfurt, Lyon, Marseille). while some of the US' key players have only played at the youth or lower division level (Richards - u19 Bundesliga, Gloster - Regionalliga, Dest - Dutch second division, Llanez - USL, Ledezma - USL). Some observations from a second viewing: Scott - I agree with a lot of the criticism he's been receiving. He needed to make himself bigger on both goals and his decision making when coming off of his line is too slow and hesitant. His distribution, for the most part, is quite good. Dest - After a disappointing group stage, he lived up to the hype in this one. I was concerned about his defensive ability and while he was caught out once or twice and really should have done better on the second goal, he won several one on one duels and was generally positionally sound. His comfort in possession makes him a key cog in building up attacking moves and I loved that he had the confidence to blast that shot from distance at that point in the game which lead to the winner. Richards - Apart from losing his mark for the headed goal against Ukraine, Richards has been impeccable this tournament. He never looks rushed and always seems to be in the right place but has shown that he has the composure and ability to put out fires with a last ditch tackle when necessary. His comfort in carrying the ball forward, pressing high up the field when the opportunity presents itself, and breaking lines with his passing are all traits needed for a CB at the highest level. Keita - Wasn't his best game, but he was also hung out to dry several times. I see a lot of promise in his game but he lacks high level experience and it shows. I thought he should have done better on the second goal, Diaby was getting closed down and rather than mark Gouiri, he chose to stick with Diaby and it let Gouiri clean through on goal. He also got caught flat footed against Diaby on the run that led to the second goal. That being said, he did have some nice defensive moments as well. If McKenzie is fully match fit, it may be time for him to start. Gloster - One of the rocks for the US in this tournament and was good defensively in this game, but made a costly errors. On the counter that led to the first goal, he was high upfield and hoofed it into the middle where France had numbers and allowed for the large gaps left by the US to be exploited. Servania - On second viewing, he was quietly one of the best players for the US. He won back possession several times, made key interventions, and worked well in tandem with Pomykal to press the French midfield and defense. His passing isn't the most accurate, but he's shown that he can spray passes out wide and is generally clean in possession. I think he offered more in this game than Durkin or Cerrillo could have. Ledezma - Excellent in the first half. His runs through midfield and quick feet to get out of pressure produced some of our best chances. His vision and weight of pass on the assist to Soto after a 30 yard run through the midfield was phenomenal. He should have scored on his early opportunity and seemed to gas out early in the second half, but he was a marked improvement over Mendez. Pomykal - Unsung hero of this game. Despite his small stature, he's an absolute workhorse and isn't afraid to go full force in the challenges (a big reason we scored the third goal). He's a tireless runner and any time France had the ball, he seemed to be challenging for it or closing down the passing lane. His speed of thought or and quick feet in traffic make him invaluable to the team. I don't know if he has the most long term potential, but he's the most important player on this team. Konrad - He was the youngest player on the pitch and it showed. He struggled to produce against a vastly more experienced and physically imposing Evan N'Dicka. Worked hard to track back defensively. Weah - Closed down the French defenders all game and was full of energy, but struggled to get on the ball in the first half apart from that moment of brilliance where he split two defenders and almost go through on goal. His outside of the foot, defense splitting pass to assist on the second goal was exquisite. Soto - Impressive workrate (starting to see a trend here?) and clinical finisher -- he's having an excellent tournament. Llanez - Second game in a row where he's changed the game with his direct dribbling and ability to draw defenders and fouls. Like Dest, I liked the confidence in unleashing from distance. He was key in the build up for the third goal. If he's fully match fit, I think he needs to start against Ecuador. Rennicks - Not as flashy or skilled as many of his counterparts, but he was a pest to the French defense and was smart to hold his run follow up Lafont spilling Dest's effort from distance. Could have easily had an assist on the nice slipped pass to put Soto through on goal late in the game. He's justified his inclusion on this team. Tab - Credit where credit is due, he gets a lot of criticism on here, but I think Tab got this one right for the most part. Servania and Ledezma's mobility and drive through the midfield allowed for a more disruptive pressing game and helped initiate counterattacking opportunities. His hand may have been forced due to the suspensions of Durkin and Mendez, but starting Ledezma over a more defensive option in Cerrillo proved to the be the right call. The substitution of Llanez and Rennicks and switching to more of a 4-2-4/4-4-2 changed the game and swung the momentum in our favor. He has the team working hard and cohesively and believing that they can compete with and beat anyone at this level and it showed today. Reading the PBP thread from start to finish after the game was over was entertaining. Also, let's not underestimate Ecuador. They're the South American champions and despite finishing third in their group, they outplayed Italy while being a man down and had a heavy possession advantage against three teams that are known for keeping possession themselves (Italy, Mexico, and Japan). Edit: Wanted to add that I've enjoyed Mo Edu's commentary. Balanced and knowledgeable takes without speaking too much or going off on tangents.
If you went into the tournament expecting Marcelo, you were bound to be disappointed. But this was a very nice, complete, game from Dest on both sides of the ball. It also looked (very subjectively, since I try not to play remote psychologist) like his confidence was building as the match went on and if that's true, let's hope it carries over to the next one!
Looking at those club appearance numbers and the players who were in the game yesterday, it's becoming more and more obvious that breaking into an MLS club for a young player is too difficult. MLS-style parity may be bad for youth development. When every game is a dogfight, and every club has the ability to be relatively competitive financially, it's hard to bet your managerial career on academy kids.
Let's talk about GK for a moment. We've seen Scott v Ukraine, Nigeria and France; Ochoa v Qatar. Any chance of seeing Ochoa v Ecuador, or is Scott now our 'ride or die' GK at this point?
From a pragmatic point of view, Ochoa has appeared to be the better keeper. Benching Scott could have a negative effect on team morale and does not seem in keeping with what Tab Ramos likes to do.
Very good analysis. I loved the fact that Tab essentially conceded possession, but had the team so high up the field in our defensive shape. It looked like he insisted on always having pressure on the ball, which forced France to rush some things. I completely agree with you on Servania. As much I want to see Cerillo on the field, Tab's tactics were better suited for Servania to play. If we were to have sat much deeper to defend, then I think we would have seen Cerillo instead. Kudos to Tab for getting it right. Let's make a run at this thing.
Man, have been watching mostly BeIn Sports broadcast on streams but I could see Mo being very good at commentary. Hopefully he's the latest and best former pro who can eventually usurp the old guard of the terrible Twellman and lamentable Lalas. BeIn announcer was very complimentary to our squad though, saying we had "exceptional footballers". Also said even if Richards doesn't make it at Bayern, and most don't, he'll have a very good career regardless. Also said, and I'm not sure where it's been evidenced, that this USA team was the "toast of the tournament". It's been a great run so far and everyone has done themselves proud. Very eager to see what kinds of moves this generates for our guys
in the rewatch i love when they went in depth on when servania dribbled out of pressure with a french kid around his waste for like 7 yards and still no card was shown
also ledezma has a few times trapping the ball where he doesnt really seem like an american since its sooooooo silky
EXACTLY what I've been getting shot down for on other threads... If these French players can play for some of the biggest clubs in the world....why can't the best US players play for MLS teams?? makes no sense
soon after that llanez shot rennicks bull rushes cuisance as the frenchman tries to shield the ball. he ultimately gets called for the foul but damn was that a statement of purpose from rennicks. cuisance was furious
kamara kicks out at him too in obvious frustration with his nuisance-ing. zagadou swatted him like a fly
Great, great breakdown. I want to add a couple of points. 1. Gloster has looked great in the first 3 games, but this one was a letdown. On that goal, not only did he play the ball badly, but he was incredibly slow to realize the danger. He played the ball, he should have seen the danger first. It's like in basketball; the player who takes the shot can tell how he missed it and he's the first one going to where the ball will be. That's why jump shooters rebound their bad misses all the time. Better awareness from Gloster and he gets back and that play never starts. But here's how I rate defenders: they all make mistakes that are very similar to what Gloster did on that goal. I try not to overreact based on whose mistakes led to a goal and whose didn't. That's a matter of luck. The NUMBER and SEVERITY of the mistakes isn't. Because he made two mistakes on the same play, this one rates high on the severity scale. But it's a matter of luck that France executed the counter so darned well. 2. In a 4-3-3, you have to have forwards who work like that. If you don't, you get killed in the midfield. So kudos to Weah, and kudos to you for noting this. 3. Tab, to me, is a frustrating coach. He gets high grades for most aspects of coaching, but the things he doesn't get a high grade on (from me), he gets really looooow grades. One is his stubbornness. I was shocked he changed tactics, that's so unlike him. But hey, credit where credit is due. The 4-4-2 worked.
The scariest thing I've seen is Ecuador's defender run at an Uruguayan who is about to break out of the back and lay a block on him that would be illegal in the NFL, no hyperbole. Tab better do something before the game starts to alert refs to Ecuador's strategy of muscling people around illegally.
I'm not sure if a team in a FIFA tournament has ever switched keepers after a knockout round win when there wasn't an injury/suspension. The closest I can think of was the '14 WC when Van Gaal put in Krul for PKs in the QF against Costa Rica but Cillessen still started the SF against Argentina. There's nothing in Tab Ramos' history to suggest he would ever do that
I was yelling "WIN THE DAMN BALL" at that very moment. Cuisance is a ball magnet. I'm not sure why we can't produce ball winners. Waaay too many times did we fail to win the ball back in those challenges. The number of times our players lose that ball versus players for teams like France is IMO one of the biggest differences in our level. We lose the ball under pressure, whereas they don't. Luckily yesterday it didn't cost us the way it usually does at the senior level.
A switch is highly unlikely, I agree, but I assume - and if no one else does this research for me, I will check for myself - that it is also unusual to give your backup GK one of the three group games, especially with advancement not yet assured. Scott v Ochoa was much discussed before and after the Qatar match. I expect Scott to start the rest of our matches, but that doesn't make it the correct decision.
I disagree. It's not that the managers are under pressure to win games. It's that they don't work under a front office that emphasizes youth development. That's all it takes. Put any coach at RBNY or Dallas and you either develop young guys or you're fired. 7 teams make the playoffs. There's no relegation. If we're comparing just the parity set up vs a pro/rel system, MLS's style is definitely more forgiving. It's the attitudes of the franchises that's different, but changing.
Seems like the decision to give Ochoa a start in the group stages was made before the tournament. "Ochoa, 18, made his first start in the tournament against Qatar with the U.S. team needing a win. Brady Scott had started the first two games but head coach Tab Ramos told Ochoa that he would get a start in the group stages." http://americansoccernow.com/articl...keeper-ochoa-aiming-high-for-club-amp-country
If we had Adams who should have been on this team it might look totally different. Not even mentioning McKinney who is just a year older.
As unconvincing as Scott has been, I'd be surprised if Tab makes the switch this late in the tournament. Great point. I've felt this way about his coaching for some time now, when he gets it wrong, he gets it really wrong. Anyone remember that game against Spain in 2013 where he decided that we'd out possess and high press Spain at all costs which lead to Deulofeu and Jese Rodriguez being isolated against Javan Torre in the open field several times?
Jonathan Gonzalez is also age eligible for this tournament. Just saying... France built their entire team around possession for this tournament; they have a very deep talent pool to choose from and this is what they chose. There isn't a team at this tournament that would be able to keep them at under 50% possession because their whole system is designed around denying possession to the other team, even at the cost of shooting or breakaway opportunities. I don't feel too bad we struggled to win the ball.
I think everyone here would be surprised, to put it mildly, if Ochoa starts v Ecuador. As @merzbau pointed out above, Ramos had promised Ochoa a start in a group game, and Ramos delivered on that promise, even though that decision might have resulted in our early departure from the tournament. Now Scott is back in the saddle, but many observers have expressed misgivings. From the linked article above ... “We're confident in all of our goalkeepers,” central defender Chris Richards said. “But the game Ochoa had for us against Qatar - I mean he's really good with his feet and of course he's a very good shot stopper. You saw in the first half he saved a quick 1v1. It's pretty early in the game which could easily change the dynamic of the game. But it was really impressive from him. But just being so young it was extra impressive.” Scott may rise to the occasion and carry us the rest of the way, but I wonder how tempted Ramos might be to give the Ecuador game to Ochoa.