Is Bradley now the victim of reverse-nepotism?

Discussion in 'USA Men' started by cyberthoth, Nov 11, 2011.

  1. Maximum Optimal

    Maximum Optimal Member+

    Jul 10, 2001
    Yeah, we did see more of that against France than in the other matches. That will happen from time to time and does not refute the fact we have much more disciplined positioning by the central mids since JK took over and Michael went to the bench.
     
  2. Otergod

    Otergod Member+

    Sep 20, 2007
    indianapolis
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    and we've had far fewer opportunities as well. JK has solidified our defense but at the expense of our offense.
     
  3. GVPATS77

    GVPATS77 Member+

    Aug 18, 2008
    Fullerton, CA
    The simplest explanation is often the correct one. Klinsmann is a moron.

    Well this is the "preseason" right? A time when Klinsmann should be expiramenting with players and tactics right?

    Well we've seen the same players called in. The same players start. And the same tactics. They aren't working, but Klinsmann is sticking to them as though his life depended on it.

    Its hard to imagine that if he isn't willing to try new things during "preseason" when it "doesn't matter", that he's suddenly mix it up "when it matters".

    But that's just me thinking logically.
     
  4. Maximum Optimal

    Maximum Optimal Member+

    Jul 10, 2001
    It could be that there has been a tradeoff involved in his decisions on how the team plays. At the same time, there are other factors that may be more important explanations for the offensive stagnation. Not having Donovan and Dempsey in there together is probably a more important factor. The odd decision to play Williams in a wide attacking role has really hurt the attack the past three matches. We'll see how it sorts itself out.
     
  5. ant0n

    ant0n Member+

    Jun 12, 2007
    San Jose, Ca
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Don't forget Brek Shea being anonymous.
     
  6. ignatz brick

    ignatz brick Member

    Dec 18, 2010
    Club:
    Real Madrid
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    We have mostly seen the same players called in, not the same ones playing as there was no Rodgers or Fiscal this time. But I wouldn't say we've seen the same tactics. USA vs France did not look the same as USA vs Mexico.

    Again... a year. A year (well, 11 months). That's how long our "preseason" is lasting. We have time to take it slow because all we have to lose is meaningless stats and our FIFA ranking (but I repeat myself).

    If by March we are playing the same roster then yeah, I'm concerned. But it's been three months, and we have three times that before we get ready for qualifying.

    Also: I think 90% of this complaining would not be here if Torres wasn't injured.

    Yeah, they were pretty stupid. I even remember someone in those threads saying that Bradley should go to MLS and that he would never play in the top leagues again, including Serie A. Hmmm wonder what happened to that guy :confused:
     
  7. Erlking

    Erlking Member

    Aug 7, 2007
    Club:
    Fulham FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    This is the thing I find puzzling. First two games you cannot fault him for the results, but you would think it is a process finding what works and what does not in the scheme you are trying to develop. Being objective, one of the only positives for me is the emergernce of Brek Shea. I see little else in improvement and it astounds me that there is no progression or development after six games.
     
  8. GVPATS77

    GVPATS77 Member+

    Aug 18, 2008
    Fullerton, CA
    This entire post demonstrates that you really don't have a grasp on the reality of the situation. Let me break it down for you.

    If the 23 man roster and the starting 11 are more or less 90% the same each and every time during an experimental stage, its pretty safe to say that Klinsmann has settled on the players he is going to take into qualifying.


    I'm not sure what calendar you use, but the Roman calendar, which the rest of the world uses, June is only 7.5 months away.


    Considering the last FIFA date on the calendar before June rolls around is in February, we have two games and about 3 months to get it right.

    The fact that you are saying how much "time" we have to get it right shows that you have no concept of reality.

    Torres' performances so far under Klinsmann (and it is a limited sample size, I admit) have ranged from pedestrian to downright shit-tacular. If he is the answer, we should disband the national team now and save a lot of consternation.
     
  9. ant0n

    ant0n Member+

    Jun 12, 2007
    San Jose, Ca
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    We held France to ONE goal at home. It was also scored in the second half not in the first 5 minutes of the match. What we needed was Landon Donovan and another winger. Yesterday just showed that are most pressing needs are not in defense, but on the wing. Progress was made. The problem is Donovan didn't want to come and Brek Shea didn't want to take people on. Also Jozy is playing like a REAL target man. We aren't deep. We all know that. It showed yesterday.
     
  10. ant0n

    ant0n Member+

    Jun 12, 2007
    San Jose, Ca
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Do YOU seriously think that playing like we did yesterday vs T&T on the road will cause us much trouble? We'd win 3-0 easily. The first round of qualifying is also a bit of a test run for Klinsmann to try things. Not like he would in a friendly, but he could still experiment to an extent.
     
  11. GVPATS77

    GVPATS77 Member+

    Aug 18, 2008
    Fullerton, CA
    Well for starters, we wouldn't face T&T until the final round of qualifying.

    And if play the way we played against France means playing with 6 defenders and 1 striker and needing Tim Howard to prevent us from losing by 3, and not generating a single scoring chance, then no...I don't think we win 3-0 against any CONCACAF team.
     
  12. ant0n

    ant0n Member+

    Jun 12, 2007
    San Jose, Ca
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    This is ridiculous...We'd defend with 6 and attack with 5. France could stop us, but Barbados won't. Nor whoever else we get. We've also seen that when we play with similar quality opponents we have looked to dictate the play unlike the Bob years where we would sit and wait vs a team that would sit and wait. LOL. Qualifying in this region is a joke in the early stages.

    You cannot tell me that Brek Shea would be scared of running at the poor Cuban defense would you? Since when is playing France anything close to playing what we'd face in qualifying?
     
  13. ignatz brick

    ignatz brick Member

    Dec 18, 2010
    Club:
    Real Madrid
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Well, 90% of the players I think he is taking into qualifying, yes. Like Bocanegra, Cherundolo, Chandler, Gooch, Donovan, Dempsey, Shea, and Altidore are obvious locks for starters; Edu, Jones, and Bradley will definitely be there whether starting or on the bench. But is it so nutty and disconnected from reality, or whatever, to think that he might try using the latter two for starters at one point or another? Heck, for all we know he's planning on using them Tuesday. (Oh god I hope so.) The problem is who he's starting, not who he's taking, because there are a precious few real snubs so far. Kljestan and maybe Gomez are the only ones that come to mind. Obviously everyone has some favorite MLSer they want to see on the team, or a U23 they think should be playing with the senior guys, but idk if those are really snubs persay as they're not expected call-ups.
    But it's 11 months under this coach, which is overall the amount of time we have to experiment before qualifying, is it not?
    Oh, well that is my mistake. I believed we were going to have March friendlies like we did during last qualifying, but I checked the FIFA calendar and I guess I was wrong. My bad, yo ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
    Well... maybe that's your opinion, but that's definitely not what people were saying here when he was playing. Back when we beat Mexico 1-1 :)D) and it was all happy days and we were going to be the Germany of CONCACAF.
     
  14. Otergod

    Otergod Member+

    Sep 20, 2007
    indianapolis
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    agreed there are factors, however, one cant argue that the chances simply havent been there even when our wingers get into the attack. Crosses to no one b/c no one is in the box, bar Jozy and occassionally Dempsey.

    Donovan does play a factor, but are we to assume that if LD was in that we'd magically have more bodies in the box consistently?? perhaps... however our lack of bodies does not stem from the wings. They tend to push forward. Its the center of the pitch. It appears to me that our dmids are truly doing such, sitting back and defending the middle.

    When we played the 4-2-2-2 that bradley used it certainly wasnt pretty. In fact it got frustrating with the lack of possession. However we did manage to consistently have 3-4 players in and around the box pressuring for goals.

    I am not saying MB would fix that. But, in your words, i would take a CM who is aiming to be a "goal-scoring-hero" over a dmid who is not pressing an attack. Again, it could be JK's orders for them to do such, but like i said, it's sacrificing our attack to solidify our defense.
     
  15. Erlking

    Erlking Member

    Aug 7, 2007
    Club:
    Fulham FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Let's put it into perspective. That was a young team put out there by France, and frankly they looked only semi-interested in the match.

    Specifically what progress was made? We created few chances, and none particularly dangerous. I agree that Jozy had a good match, but again did he have a shot or create a bona fide chance on goal?

    I hope that qualifying will be as easy as you suggest, but I have an uneasy feeling we will be up against it this time. Results away in the Hex will not be automatic, and I can see us in trouble.
     
  16. Ironbound

    Ironbound Member+

    Jul 1, 2009
    Huh? They looked pretty damn up for it from what I saw.
     
  17. Otergod

    Otergod Member+

    Sep 20, 2007
    indianapolis
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    ... i hope im wrong, but at this point i honestly do not have the best of confidence in JK's team. LD will make an impact.

    Saying that we'll likely get into the Hex, though i wouldnt overlook Jamaica nor Guatemala. I'm concerned about the Hex though. Pretty much this same squad struggled against Costa Rica and Hondura's B-team. At the time we brushed it off saying it was our B-team to some extent, but at this point we must assume this is pretty much JK's squad. He is not experimenting, he is getting his troops ready for battle.

    They may prove effective come Quals and i'll gladly eat crow. But i simply do not have the confidence this time around.
     
  18. Otergod

    Otergod Member+

    Sep 20, 2007
    indianapolis
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    this has been our problem with the attack under JK. We are simply not getting the service. That does not take away from Jozy having a great game against France
     
  19. Erlking

    Erlking Member

    Aug 7, 2007
    Club:
    Fulham FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Look at it closely, it was a friendly and they wasted alot of chances and attacks. They were clearly a much more skillful side, and yes they looked disinterested. Also, they were missing several key components of their first team.
     
  20. Ironbound

    Ironbound Member+

    Jul 1, 2009
    They failed to convert some nice goalscoring opportunities. It happens to the best. Doesn't mean they weren't interested. There's enough to criticize about our performance without implying that it wasn't *really* France we played against. That was a very good opponent that was trying hard to win and impress its home fans.

    (Also, I think you mean "uninterested" rather than "disinterested," but that's a linguistic battle that I may have lost already.) :)
     
  21. Deep Wilcox

    Deep Wilcox BigSoccer Supporter

    Jun 5, 2007
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I think when JK took over he had a couple of thoughts.

    1; We have to defend better,
    2; I'd like to identify some overlooked players who can contribute.

    So he goes with Edu as an "8". He throws O-F, Kyle Beckerman, and Tim Ream out there. Robbie Rogers, and the German kids. Looking for the magic bullet. And Beckerman has kind of stuck. Though once the Bradley - Jones combo gets a look he Kyle may hit the bench.

    He is a new coach. He can go back to the status quo anytime. He is looking for new circumstances that click. We have many CMs, and Mike Bradley is a good option. He'll get his chance and I bet he does well.
     
  22. Erlking

    Erlking Member

    Aug 7, 2007
    Club:
    Fulham FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Agreed, but I guess the bottom line is that a less interested or motivated France without its first team was good enough to not really be troubled by our play.
     
  23. ant0n

    ant0n Member+

    Jun 12, 2007
    San Jose, Ca
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Apart from the fact that the French were jeering their team...
     
  24. Erlking

    Erlking Member

    Aug 7, 2007
    Club:
    Fulham FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Guess they expected their squad to mop the ground with us.
     
  25. xbhaskarx

    xbhaskarx Member+

    San Jose Earthquakes
    United States
    Feb 13, 2010
    NorCal
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    http://msn.foxsports.com/foxsoccer/...tes-attack-still-missing-for-klinsmann-111111

     

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