Played better than expected. Everyone except Sacha and Adu were par or a little above but with that said, don't think their best is good enough. Nigeria and Netherland were both watching and I'm sure watching the US game, they know they will get their chances. Bradley needs to move back more to win the balls in the air in for the backline.
Actually, Rogers has a very good right foot as well. Late in the game when he had set up the defender by having gone to his left, he cut back in to his right and was going to unleash a right footed shot. Unfortunately, the second defender stepped up perfectly and Robbie had to re-evaluate and pass the ball off instead. But make no mistake ... Rogers has a right. He was one of our better players out there today along with Wynne and Holden. I believe the game vs. The Netherlands will be on at 2:45 am on Sunday in the UK. Wynne might even be picked up before THIS transfer window closes. He was great out there today!
That's the reason Jozy didn't start, but McBride was not good at all out there. He should have been subbed off by the 55th minute ... Nowak has to eat some crow and leave McBride on the bench. Use him as a second half sub ... Unfortunately, Petr has painted himself in a corner because it's very hard to bench one of your over-age players. However, in this case, I think it is warranted.
Two attacking teams... slightly more bearable conditions. Doesn't surprise me. Also, lets worry about getting out of our group first.
That ref crew was just awful, in most every conceivable manner. No offside call on the first good Japanese chance was a tremendous mistake. Yellow on baby Bradley was a joke, and could get costly later when Mikie loses his head and does something truly yellow worthy. Persistent fouls on McBride probably merited a yellow or at least some sort of talking to. Probably missed one penalty call, but in that area was relatively consistent. Marcella Balboa was also awful, although he didn't start out so bad, he just got worse as the game went on. As for Nowak's coaching, if you bring McBride as your overage guy, you build your team around his style, and that didn't happen. Rogers should have been subbed out about 20 minutes earlier when he first started to go down. I think he was cramping up. Didn't see anything out of Szetela or Feilhaber when they came on, because by then the game was only going to go up our flanks. Edu played very well early on, but did get shakey when he needed to man mark. Parkhurst and he didn't really communicate well in the back. That first short corner by Japan was ghastly. Holden's goal was very nice. Nowak hasn't figured out how to get Adu the ball going forward (hint: he's not a target forward). Only saw maybe two crosses in to McBrides general direction. Left side of our defense will be exploited by a side that can finish. Great to get the win, we need to bunker against Netherlands or suddenly become a fantastic attacking team and hope for a result.
I thought Babel played on the left, no? In that case he would be the responsibility of Wynne and Edu. ...Although after seeing this game tape I'd have him running at Orozco.
Full time for the evening matches. The vaunted Oranje and scary Nigeria neutralized each other. |GP|Pt GD|GF GA| =========== Group B (Men) =========== 1. 1 | 3 +1 | 1 0 | USA 2. 1 | 1 =0 | 0 0 | Netherlands 2. 1 | 1 =0 | 0 0 | Nigeria 4. 1 | 0 -1 | 0 1 | Japan =========== Group F (Women): =========== 1. 1 | 3 +2 | 2 0 | Norway 2. 1 | 1 =0 | 2 2 | Japan 2. 1 | 1 =0 | 2 2 | New Zealand 4. 1 | 0 -2 | 0 2 | USA Who'd've thunk!
But Klejstan gave the ball away any time he won it. Edu did give the ref two real opportunities to call a PK. I'd say about half the time you get a call on one of those. Although I agree that if he called one of them he should have called the shove vs. Adu. Pretty similar level of foul those three. At least he was consistent. And on defending the lead... I think our guys got tired. That's more a substitution mistake than a tactical one. Japan had more chances in the first 70 minutes and they applied pressure at the end when they needed a goal like all teams should. They just didn't get off good shots. Its not that we weren't trying to possess the ball, its that Kljestan (and Adu twice) gave the ball away too easily when trying to pass or clear.
The US will never learn to kill off a game like Argentina for example. They managed to possess and keep away the Ivorians and at the same time appear as if they were attacking! Beautiful. Nowak's going to have to sit at least three players vs Nederland. The most gassed I'd guess. Holden, Rogers and Kljestan with Szetela, McCarty and Feilhaber? Mcbride with Altidore. Might work out if luck and generous refs prevail.
3. The problem is that Sacha does not do well in a possession, controlled-passing game. He looks good in transition, going forward he combines well with quick passes. But every time he needed to settle the ball, play a measured pass or complete one more than 10 yards; i.e. instances requiring greater precision, Sacha did not look nearly as good. He can be a very good player; but it helps him to be out wide, where he has more space. It also is problematic when the opponent is pressuring in midfield. That is more worrisome, since most international opponents do this. At his age, though, I expect a more well-rounded player and this may ultimately limit his opportunities abroad.
And their big defensive midfielder, Evander Sno, was sent off, which should mean he's out for the US match. A nice bonus.
I think this team, like our full national team is better at counterattacking than the possession attack so maybe dropping a little and countering will work. Sasha needs to find the bench unless he can make better passes.
I disagree. I think that this team is capable of playing very attractive possession style offense. HOWEVER, the entire team is far too easy to push off the ball. We've seen it in the past and we saw it today. Japan obviously looked at the tapes and decided to rough up our creative attacking players. Specifically Adu, and Kljestan's games are dependant on getting calls from the ref when they are outmuscled. Today they didn't get those calls, it showed, and it affected their game.
Capable, sure. I didn't say they weren't. More with McBride though than Jozy. I said I think they are better at counter-attacking. I'd be glad to hear reasons why you think they aren't and debate it. Balboa was wrong on a lot of things, but he was right about Adu being pretty bad with his back to goal and much better facing it. Holden and Rogers and Altidore are all good at running at people. Even Bradley... the best part of his attacking game is following attacks and cleaning up the trash. Even Davies' best asset is his speed and skills running at people. He may not see much playing time of course, but still. McBride is really the guy who is a lot better in a possession game.
I dont understand how folks think Wynne was MOTM... he got beat a lot (but his recovery speed made up for it)... he plays too defensive... he never ventured past the goaline (granted except for the one goal)... when he makes a clean tackle, instead of playing it to a teammate, he blasts the ball forward back to the opposing team... and his play is why Holden looked so poor, no link u... I thought he was just adequate, but against better teams, he will cost us... in saying that, he is tough...
Why does it matter that you get beat if your speed allows you to recover? And saying that he didn't get forward well except for the GOAL in a 1-0 win is a bit outrageous, no? He wasn't my MOTM (Bradley was) but it's hard to put him at lower that #2 or #3.
Not willing to read 135 pages, sorry for repeats: Who was worse, Sasha or Balboa? Adu did derserve some fouls. Wynne, Edu (minus one play), Rogers very solid. Lucky to win this one, but we've lost some by bad luck, so no complaints.
not really... considering his play hurt Holden and our attack suffered... same is true for Orozco for Rogers against faster players, or trickier players, he will cost us... he wasnt MOTM to me... just adequate... it was clearly Edu who deserves top honors to me...
Personally, I think his best position is withdrawn forward, but he's played out right (and left) a bunch. The other option out wide might be Royston Drenthe, who's also not slow. I think Wynne would give Babel a pretty good matchup, due to his size, speed and physicality.
I think Wynne would get ate up by Babel... Babel is very tricky and can match Wynne with pace... Babel usually plays out left, and he probably will with Makaay there... even tho he can play effectively at CF
You obviously didn't watch the game -- hah! Get your lazy arse up next time and support the red, white and blue!!! Were you out "clubbin'" last night and frazzled your brains?
Just in case no one else got to it before I catch up - they did call the offside (note Guzan put the ball back in play from the offside spot, not the six yard box.), just our announcers missed it. Like they missed everything else, thus proving my theory that a really lousy color guy drags down his partner - a little something I call the Ty Keough Theory.
The only way Edu was MOTM is if you ignore Wynne's contribution to the goal and ignore Edu's last 15 minutes. The two fouls by Edu, combined with the ball he let drop in behind him, were very bad and nearly cost us dearly. Wynne gotten beaten a couple times and recovered himself. Edu got beaten and was simply lucky that we weren't punished (i.e., he didn't make up for the lapses, poor finishing did). I'll grant you that Edu was awesome for the first 75 minutes. To the point where I was thinking he shuold start at CB for the full nats. But I won't argue any more about this point. We clearly root for the same team and should be celebrating a victory rather than bickering about who outplayed whom. Cheers.
C'mon now, we were inches away from being down 1-0 in the first half after the cross from the endline (off the corner) went right by him