I don't know why people were so high on him to begin with. He wasn't impressive at the Nike Friendlies, DA games or the U17 World Cup.
Not true, Gomez is a much smarter player who thrives off of being technically proficient and smart off the ball movement. Bello is a player who heavily relies off of athleticism and has good enough ball skills to keep up at MLS level. The reason Kobe is so highly regarded is because he is a combination of both...he has the same amount of freak athleticism that Bello has and he is just as good on the ball (if not better) than Gomez. Long term Kobe and Gomez are the best LB prospects. If you needed a first choice team right now it would be Kobe and Travian Sousa followed by Bello and then Gomez. As Gomez develops more physically this will change over the next two years, but being the youngest year in a u20 cycle makes a big difference at the start because some kids cant physically keep up yet.
bello doesnt look nearly as quick after bulking up, isnt particularly instinctive defending, and gets docked more because atlanta seems like a development black hole imo
Kobe isn't fast, and not even close athletically to Bello. Bello can't play defense. Gomez is better than both of them today.
How much film have you watched on Kobe at left back, and have you watched Gomez in more games than just the Nike Friendlies? I have a feeling your answer would be very different if you did.
Plenty of Kobe. Nothing from Gomez, except for those 3 games. Don't need more than that https://twitter.com/Watke_
I like that Gomez scores goals but it would be awesome if he could score goals like this famous left back:
Certainly not. I personally still think you find a spot for him on the roster with the U-20's because he's a very talented player, but I think in his age group, he's been passed by KHF in the last year. There's also Gomez from the year after him. It's not often that we produce three LB's of that caliber in a two year span. Being the third best of the three (IMO he's third best) doesn't mean he wouldn't have been the best in a different cycle.
I think we can find room for Gomez and KHF in the same lineup. Play one at RB and the other at LB. You could also play one of the two as a CM or if you are playing 3 at the back, one can play as a LCB and the other as a LWB. That's if Gomez shows he can keep up playing up a cycle. This is often a problem, no matter the caliber of prospect a player is.
He has made more than a couple of very fast emergency recovery runs inside his own box while playing as a left center back. He shows great quickness, if not tons of top end speed playing as a left back. Finding holes in Kobe's game is really hard. You could certainly ding him for his lack of a right foot, but that's about it. EDIT: And lack of an aerial game....
I know it's not ideal, but I really don't mind Kobe playing as a center back. Gomez/Kobe/Richards/Dest.......... we are cooking. EDIT: This is obviously not a team for 2021....
Recovery runs from the middle are more reaction than top speed. Never seen him going up/down the field the way Bello and Gomez can.
Sousa is a good shout. I can’t believe I forgot to list him. That’s what you get when you try to make a list too quickly. I wouldn’t consider either Bello or Gomez to be locks, so he could definitely factor in. There’s going to be a lot of competition at LB. How times have changed for our YNT’s. Unfortunately, 2004 and 2005 look extremely weak at LB early on, so it’s probably more cyclical than anything. The fact that it’s even cyclical shows a big improvement. LB has always been an issue for us at all levels.
I'm liking that people are arguing over which left back is better. Can't ever remember that happening any cycle. I also don't care which is the best because odds are one is always going to be hurt or missing for some reason and it's just nice to be able to rotate and even game plan because of differing abilities that match perfectly against one opponent while someone else is perfect for another.
Hell, Stuart Ritchie is eligible for this cycle as well and most cycles he’d be a competent LB option.
FORMAT: the top 3 teams from each group advance to knockouts. Those 12 teams will meet the 4 qualifiers from a prevous tournament of smaller teams in the round of 16. The R16, QF, SF, & Final are single elimination. The 4 semifinalists qualify for the 2021 U-20 WC in Indonesia— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) November 20, 2019
I don’t like this format. We play a lot of games to accommodate the smaller nations, and then have single elimination games for a few rounds. We could easily draw Mexico, Costa Rica, Canada, Honduras or someone like that in the Round of 16 or Quarterfinals, unless I’m wrong about how those games will be seeded.
The Group winners will likely play one of the 4 minnows that advance from their groups in the R16. It’s the same format as the recent U17 qualifying. However, I wish the Caribbean could just be their own confederation like Oceania. These tiny island countries hold too much power in CONCACAF for what they bring to the table.
Mexico, the USA, and Costa Rica should really try to join CONMEBOL. Until changes are made we’re all getting held back by a weak federation.