The midfield you proposed for all their supposed "skill/possession" got mauled by Honduras in the L0-2 and did nothing on the offensive side of the ball. Colombia is much tougher than Honduras.
You may very well be right, but would add that the supporting cast wasn't at full strength either (and I get players might be released this time as well). Also, those guys are so young that 6 months can make a huge difference. Hyndman wasn't playing at the time and has put in some pretty good performances since then. Actually, Zelalem didn't play that game. Ethan Horvath; 2-Boyd Okwuonu (20-Gboly Ariyibi, 46), 3-Matt Miazga, 4-Cameron Carter-Vickers, 7-Dillon Serna; 13-Matt Polster, 8-Emerson Hyndman (14-Fatai Alashe, 64), 6-Wil Trapp (capt.); 17-Jerome Kiesewetter, 10-Luis Gil (11-Alonso Hernandez, 74), 9-Jordan Morris
The only thing Trapp has struggled with over the last two years is concussions........................... Not only is Trapp a lock starter, he could easily be our captain. It's probably either him or Acosta. Trapp suffers from the typical fate of a young MLS players that we see a lot. We also see his flaws.
I didn't imply it was a big struggle With all of the problems FCD has had with concussions, its taken very seriously. Our starting centerback combo in our 2010 MLS Cup was Ugo Ihemelu and George John. Ugo is still only 32, but had to retire due to concussion side effects. John had concussion side effects followed by knee injuries. He's only 28, and is likely done as well. There have been so many players recently that kind of fade away due to concussions. We don't talk about it. Davy Arnaud of DCU is likely to retire imminently due to concussion issues.
That's why he missed 3 months. I am actually really proud of the club that put his long term health before the team (something the NFL doesn't do). Concussions don't have to be a career ending injury but can easily become that when you don't properly manage them or once you start getting multiple concussions. They sent him all over the place to get the best care and gave him the time and support to fully recover.
Even one concussion is a problem, so Clint's not wrong there, but its a one off incident so far that doesn't seem to be impacting his ability on the field. I wouldn't consider it a big question mark anymore, unless it happens again.
Pelosi was on a ferocious pace with yellow cards when he joined the SJ Earthquakes. If you need a midfield enforcer, he would be the choice. He plays very physical (probably even more so than Alashe).
I see Pelosi as a better Polster. He offers similar athletic traits, but is a much more clean passer who sees the field better. I'm fairly surprised he wasn't called into camp cupcake to be honest.
Herzog on CC2016 and its impact on the playoff c Colombia: “I don't have the whole team together because we would have to get release of players from Europe, but we have 10, 11 players here, and that's really good for me ...,” Herzog said ahead of Friday night's friendlyagainst Canada at StubHub Center (10:15 pm ET; FS1, UniMas, UDN). “They have a chance to train every day on the highest level. Training with Jermaine Jones, Michael Bradley, Matt Besler, Jozy Altidore, Gyasi Zardes – it's huge for my players, and their shape is getting better and better. They look good against players like Michael or Jermaine or Jozy, and that's very good for this young group.” ... Colombia finished second to Argentina in last year's South American Youth Championship, the U-20 tournament that determined CONMEBOL's Olympic companion for host Brazil, and have a terrifically talented player pool featuring Rennes midfielder Juan Fernando Quintero, Deportivo Cali defender Helibelton Palacios, River Plate defender Eder Alvarez Balanta and Orlando City SC midfielder Cristian Higuita. http://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2016/...nal-team-hope-learn-mistakes-upcoming-olympic
Since Trapp captained the team during Olympic qualifying, yeah, I think that's his job to lose. As for Acosta, he obviously is making a great impression at January camp, so I fully expect him to be on field for the Columbia playoff. But given that he has never played for the U23 team, I don't expect him to waltz right in and be captain. The only guys who didn't play in qualifying that I could see joining and instantly be named captain would be Brooks or Yedlin, given their extensive experience with the national team having played in the World Cup and Gold Cup.
You've got it right: he was included in the original roster but he and Alashe were ruled out due to injury. http://www.foxsports.com/soccer/sto...oster-changes-brandon-vincent-selected-010816
Yup. You're definitely right that Trapp is likely to be the captain than Acosta. I think Hyndman could be an option if available. I believe he was our captain for the U20 World Cup. Another leader for this group.
The only player I'd consider besides Trapp would be Brooks (if he's available). I think he stepped up in friendlies vs Brazil and think it would be good for him.
Alashe may not be back in time for the Colombia games but barring further injury (knock on wood) it sounds like Pelosi will be. If he's healthy, he's on the squadIMHO. I watched the qualifiers and for me, he was the single most impactful player. When he wasn't on the field, the team struggled to dispossess the opponents. Fingers crossed he's available.
He said concussionS, plural. I was correcting/poking fun at him. Of course they are all serious. He could get one tomorrow and need to retire. At this point he isn't Chad Marshall who early in his career had 3 and was close to retiring. He has been healthy for years now.
The MLS writer here is speculating things without much evidence. Quintero and Palacios and maybe even Balanta will probably be with the Senior team for World Cup Qualifiers. I also don't think Higuita will be called in for the U23 team. But they are part of the player pool I suppose.
Yup. They've got WCQers on the 24th and 29th that are absolutely critical. After 4 games, they're in 7th place in the table. And they're not easy games. Its AT Bolivia and at home to the team currently in 1st place (Ecuador). They can't lose ground, so its "all hands on deck" for those games. The US games against Guatemala are also critical, but we might be able to afford to send a few of our key U23s to Olympic qualifying. In my opinion we can start Besler/Gonzalez against Guate, and send Miazga/Brooks to the U23s for instance. But that's just me I'm afraid.
I have read some of your comments regarding the game. couple of things. Our squad is a huge question mark. No one is super sure who will be called because this is a U-23 team not u-20. Our youth squad coach and National team coach are working together for this game since it will be at the same time as WCQ. Some U-23 players will be in both squads. Some players to look for in my opion are: Santos Borre who was bought by Atletico de Madrid and currently plays the Libertadores with Dep.Cali. and Sebastian Perez who just won the league last semester with Nacional being a solid player for the squad. Also Yerry Mina who is a damn good defender who won the Sudamericana last year. I have very little trust in Restrepo (Youth coach) he should of been long gone after last u-20 wc.(even before that) He is extremely inept and i only hope that our talent will break thru his mediocrity. I think the US has good tactical discipline and your best bet for the game in Barranquilla is a solid defense and a fast counter attack. I've read some ppl here say that the use should posses and be offensive. I think that would be suicide. the game is at 3.30 pm in a Caribbean city. If the US goes on an all out attack or intense game play by the 45th minute your team will be K.O physically. also the metropolitano pitch is huge.
I don't know if Borre is going to be called up. I'd like to see it happen but it looks like like Restrepo focused on Roger Martinez as the main striker. At least in the November tournament in Asia. But we shall see.