Where does US soccer need to improve?

Discussion in 'USA Men: News & Analysis' started by Eleven Bravo, Dec 4, 2022.

  1. xbhaskarx

    xbhaskarx Member+

    San Jose Earthquakes
    United States
    Feb 13, 2010
    NorCal
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    In terms of personality and charisma, Marsch is the anti-Berhalter.
     
    Eleven Bravo repped this.
  2. The Clientele

    The Clientele Member+

    Portland Timbers
    Jun 25, 2005
    Portland, Oregon
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #202 The Clientele, Dec 10, 2022
    Last edited: Dec 10, 2022
    I always preferred 5 vs 5 small pick up games. Just put some shirts down as goals and have fun. Way more touches on the ball and unpredictable. For whatever reason, they always brought more laughs too.
     
    Eleven Bravo repped this.
  3. NewDadaCoach

    NewDadaCoach Member

    Tottenham Hotspur
    United States
    Sep 28, 2019
    Croatia: 3.9M
     
  4. Clint Eastwood

    Clint Eastwood Member+

    Dec 23, 2003
    Somerville, MA
    Club:
    FC Dallas
    Shrug.

    Have people noticed that since 1990, only 30 years ago...................we've made up astonishing ground on the rest of the world in this sport.

    So yes, go ahead and compare population size of the US to Croatia.
    Have people looked at Yugoslavia's record prior to its dissolution?
    They were awesome as long ago as the 50s and 60s.

    Now look at Croatia's record since it became an independent country.

    This is a nation with a long history of excellence in the sport.

    At the first US game I attended, we lost to Bermuda. That wasn't 1930.
    That was 1991 folks.........................

    I know its a boring answer, but one of the most important things we can do is stay on target and be patient. Don't become vultures tearing each other apart because the pace isn't fast enough. We were NEVER going to snap our fingers and be as good as France.

    The Revolution is alive, and its alive in MLS. That's where the iinvestment is happening in youth and player development. You cannot root for the USMNT and not root for MLS to continue its rapid growth. And we're seeing a lot of fruits of those labors with players like Adams, McKennie, Aaronson, Reyna, Richards, and company. They develop in MLS academies and move to Europe to be polished up. But the raw materials are there in spades. Unbelievable potential. We're just starting to tap into it.

    By the way, I know this is obvious...............but this is sports. There will be ups and downs. Just like your favorite NFL or NHL teams lose games that you think they should win. Sometimes I think fans on this boards don't get how sports works. We lost to Holland. Not Zimbabwe. Holland.
     
    Elninho, Marko72, Mahtzo1 and 2 others repped this.
  5. Fighting Illini

    Fighting Illini Member+

    Feb 6, 2014
    Chicago
    It is better for the development in the sport in this country if he has sustained success in the Premier League first.
     
  6. gogorath

    gogorath Member+

    None
    United States
    May 12, 2019
    This is absolutely true.

    It's worth noting that this is less true.

    Coming into this World Cup, since 1990, we had made 4 of 8 -- 5 of 9 now. Even cherry picking our timing, and going from 2002, it was 3 of 5 coming in and now 4 of 6.

    Now, that's better or equal to a lot of great teams -- Italy and Germany come to mind. But to your point, I think we don't much appreciate even this level. We assume it, even though we're actually closer to 50% than always doing it.
     
  7. gogorath

    gogorath Member+

    None
    United States
    May 12, 2019
    A few teams do. Dallas does. Some still come up a cost, I think, or have scholarship models, etc. We don't have the overall revenue structure to sustainably support a completely free systems. But the better players eventually get funneled up.

    Others build relationships with local clubs. Slowly building.
     
    Eleven Bravo repped this.
  8. Fighting Illini

    Fighting Illini Member+

    Feb 6, 2014
    Chicago
    I mean the thing is, there's a lot of non-linearity here.

    Brazil's 2nd choice national team would humiliate Croatia's. Their 15th choice national team against Croatia's would probably be a bunch of excellent professionals winning 10-0 against total amateurs.

    That reflects a much larger country with a much stronger, deeper development system. But, amid literal bombs and rubble a refugee kid named Luka Modric emerged, and Brazil can produce 300 quality professionals at that position, but zero of him.
     
    xbhaskarx and gogorath repped this.
  9. Eleven Bravo

    Eleven Bravo Member+

    Atlanta United
    United States
    Jul 3, 2004
    SC
    Club:
    Atlanta Silverbacks
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Worked on this a little last night, but to add to the discussion about yearly summer competition....


    CONCACAF Gold Cup
    • 32 Team CONCACAF-specific tournament
    • Top 24 FIFA ranked teams auto-qualify
    • Remaining CONCACAF members must qualify to enter.
    • Top 8 ranked teams in Pot 1.
    • 9-16 ranked teams in Pot 2.
    • 17-24 ranked teams in Pot 3.
    • 25-32 ranked teams in Pot 4.
    • Tournament held jointly between USA, Mexico, and Canada.
    • USA auto seeded in Group A.
    • Mexico auto seeded in Group D.
    • First year of cycle.
    • Held in June.
    Group A:
    • United States
    • Saint Kitts and Nevis
    • Martinique*
    • Bahamas* v US Virgin Islands*
    Group B:
    • El Salvador
    • Cuba
    • Guadeloupe*
    • Aruba* v Turks and Caicos Islands*
    Group C:
    • Canada
    • Suriname
    • Barbados
    • Saint Vincent and Grenadines* v British Virgin Islands*
    Group D:
    • Jamaica
    • Curaçao
    • Saint Lucia
    • Cayman Islands* v Anguilla*
    Group E:
    • Mexico
    • Nicaragua
    • Dominican Republic
    • Dominica* v Sint Maarten*
    Group F:
    • Panama
    • Haiti
    • Guyana
    • Belize* v Saint Martin*
    Group G:
    • Costa Rica
    • Trinidad and Tobago
    • Antigua and Barbuda
    • Grenada* v Bonaire*
    Group H:
    • Honduras
    • Guatemala
    • Puerto Rico
    • Montserrat* v French Guiana*/Greenland*/Saint Barthelemy*/Saint Pierre and Miquelon*

    Idea of this expanded Gold Cup in the first year of the cycle is to give all the little nations their shot.

    Plus, in the first year of the cycle, I’d rather have the “easier” games early on when we’re casting a wide net and bringing new players in the fold.

    The Group Stage will essentially be a warm up. But we should still expect the knockout rounds to offer a challenge.


    COPA AMERICAS - CHAMPIONS (or Copa Occidental)
    • North and South America
    • 16 teams
    • 10 CONMEBOL teams auto-qualify
    • USA, Mexico, and Canada qualify.
    • 1st place UNCAF (Central America) qualifies.
    • 1st place CFU (Caribbean) qualifies.
    • 2nd place UNCAF v 2nd place CFU qualifies.
    • Second year of cycle.
    • Held in June.
    Group A:
    • Brazil
    • Chile
    • Ecuador
    • Costa Rica
    Group B:
    • Uruguay
    • Mexico
    • Paraguay
    • Panama
    Group C:
    • Argentina
    • Canada
    • Peru
    • Jamaica
    Group D:
    • Colombia
    • United States
    • Bolivia
    • Venezuela
    If South America wants to keep their Copa Ameria CONMEBOL specific, then, they can do so in the first year. Hopefully, this joint Copa America will be successful enough that we continue it every four years.

    Both confederations should want this. CONCACAF gets better competition and prestige. CONMEBOL gets more money and marketing.

    CONCACAF CHALLENGE CUP
    • 16 teams
    • 8 CONCACAF
    • 8 Guest teams - 2 CONMEBOL, 2 CAF, 2 AFC, 2 UEFA (modifiable)
    • Top 4 ranked CONCACAF auto qualify (Mexico, USA, Costa Rica, Canada)
    • 5 (Panama) plays 12 (Guatemala) ranked team
    • 6 (Jamaica) plays 11 (Trinidad) ranked team
    • 7 (El Salvador) plays 10 (Haiti) ranked team
    • 8 (Honduras) plays 9 (Curaçao) ranked team
    • Third year.
    • Held in June.
    GROUP A:
    • United States
    • Panama
    • Japan - ?
    • Nigeria - ?
    GROUP B:
    • Jamaica
    • Costa Rica
    • Brazil - ?
    • Hungary - ?
    GROUP C:
    • Mexico
    • El Salvador
    • Argentina - ?
    • Czech Republic - ?
    GROUP D:
    • Canada
    • Honduras
    • South Korea - ?
    • Senegal - ?

    We do not need two identical Gold Cups. Keep one, the first one, CONCACAF specific. And make the second one much more difficult by requiring the lower teams from CONCACAF to qualify and by inviting quality guests around the world.

    If we’re not going to have the Confederations Cup and we’re over reliant on FIFA and CONMEBOL for this competitive tournament, we can make our own too. And highlight CONCACAF in the process of doing so.

    Ultimately, we want this tournament to be the best warm up that we can get before the World Cup.
     
    Fighting Illini repped this.
  10. Fighting Illini

    Fighting Illini Member+

    Feb 6, 2014
    Chicago
    Just as an aside, aren't FIFA claiming there's going to be an imminent re-jiggering of the international calendar?

    God knows what they'd do and on what basis, but that would certainly be relevant to any future plans.
     
    Elninho, Marko72 and Eleven Bravo repped this.
  11. Shaster

    Shaster Member+

    Apr 13, 1999
    El Cerrito, CA, USA
    The change of coach:

    Before: Morocco 0:3 USA
    After: Semi final of World Cup
     
    xbhaskarx and Eleven Bravo repped this.
  12. Eleven Bravo

    Eleven Bravo Member+

    Atlanta United
    United States
    Jul 3, 2004
    SC
    Club:
    Atlanta Silverbacks
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    We need to work on striking the ball at an early age, that’s for sure.
     
    The Clientele repped this.
  13. RalleeMonkey

    RalleeMonkey Member+

    Aug 30, 2004
    here
    I feel like each MLS team should fund futsal courts in their region. Like, a basketball court, but with soccer goals. And, the Fed, should be encouraging city councils to put in futsal courts whenever a new city park is built. The goal should be whenever a basketball court is put in a city park, a futsal court should be put in.
     
    Eleven Bravo repped this.
  14. Eleven Bravo

    Eleven Bravo Member+

    Atlanta United
    United States
    Jul 3, 2004
    SC
    Club:
    Atlanta Silverbacks
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I like it. Makes me wish my knees could still hold up.
     
    RalleeMonkey and The Clientele repped this.
  15. The Clientele

    The Clientele Member+

    Portland Timbers
    Jun 25, 2005
    Portland, Oregon
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Agreed. Compared to other countries, we seem rarely to be able to shoot on target from distance. Often, when we try, the ball ends up in aisle 289 in the stands.

    Our collective mastery of the basics is still way behind the top 10 of the world. The top 10 simply don’t make the small errors that consistently turn over the ball. Hate to pick on players, but Yedlin, Moore, and Long come to mind here.
     
    Eleven Bravo repped this.
  16. Eleven Bravo

    Eleven Bravo Member+

    Atlanta United
    United States
    Jul 3, 2004
    SC
    Club:
    Atlanta Silverbacks
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    On our team, Weah seems to be the only one who will make that hard strike on goal from distance. Reyna will try to place it from distance. But we have very few who try to be that threat from outside the box. Too much of trying to be too cute.
     
    The Clientele repped this.
  17. The Clientele

    The Clientele Member+

    Portland Timbers
    Jun 25, 2005
    Portland, Oregon
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Me too. I miss those days. No doubt channeling my fondness for actually playing here on this board.

    As you all know, it’s definitely not the same!
     
    Eleven Bravo repped this.
  18. RalleeMonkey

    RalleeMonkey Member+

    Aug 30, 2004
    here
    It's silly of me to post this, but ....

    When I was coaching AYSO I tried to schedule my practices at a field that had a wall. My warm-up-wait-for-everyone-to-get-there was having the kids kick the ball hard against the wall. It worked out to be about 10 minutes of actual practice time. Maybe less. When they got competent with their strong foot, I had them do it with their off foot. The increase in the kids' abilities to strike the ball was profound. Had a scrawny 9 year old who had no power on the first day end up scoring on a 30 yard well struck ball with his off foot.
     
    Eleven Bravo and The Clientele repped this.
  19. The Clientele

    The Clientele Member+

    Portland Timbers
    Jun 25, 2005
    Portland, Oregon
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Actually not silly at all. I think it reinforces what we are talking about. The basic skills need to be developed at an early age. Your story is case in point.
     
    Eleven Bravo repped this.
  20. Eleven Bravo

    Eleven Bravo Member+

    Atlanta United
    United States
    Jul 3, 2004
    SC
    Club:
    Atlanta Silverbacks
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    That’s how I gained most of my power growing up too. Something that just feels good when you can hit the ball hard against a wall.
     
    RalleeMonkey repped this.
  21. NewDadaCoach

    NewDadaCoach Member

    Tottenham Hotspur
    United States
    Sep 28, 2019
    What about using the gym at the schools. Every high school and middle school have them and probably a good number of elementary schools.
    Or converting the local basketball courts into "dual-use" courts - basketball or futsal.
     
    The Clientele repped this.
  22. ChrisSSBB

    ChrisSSBB Member+

    Jun 22, 2005
    DE
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    They are used in my area.
     
  23. Marko72

    Marko72 Member+

    Aug 30, 2005
    New York
    Probably, though I think he's a better natural fit for this player pool RIGHT NOW than he might be in 2030 (and I can't extrapolate beyond that).
     
  24. Marko72

    Marko72 Member+

    Aug 30, 2005
    New York
    If you include Croatia's diaspora (and Croatians and the HNS do, believe me), it's more like 10M. Croatia has actually decreased in size over the past two decades due to emigration, most of it to western and central Europe.
     
  25. Elninho

    Elninho Member+

    Sacramento Republic FC
    United States
    Oct 30, 2000
    Sacramento, CA
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    How much has actually changed, though? That friendly loss to the US is Morocco's only loss by more than one goal since 2014. They were at the 2018 World Cup as well as this one, so it's not as if they weren't facing quality opposition.
     

Share This Page