Spector

Think your analysis holds up with what I've seen of him at WHU and what others have reported on him. He's not that good in the air, and that hurts him on set pieces. It's why he is not a center back and likely won't ever be one.

Good news is that set-piece marking is a skill that can be learned and we can expect him to improve. If this is the only hole in his game (it isn't, by the way), then he's miles ahead of a lot of others in our player pool.

 

PT, Change "second best" to third best (behind Gooch and Landy), and I agree with everything you just said.

 

Yup, a good player but sub-standard in the air. Should not be used to mark anyone who is a threat on set pieces. Belongs at outside back not the middle.

 

Dead on Primetime. He gave up a few other attempts on goal from set pieces in the game today. However, he is a skilled RB and needs to be at RB or LB from here on out. Hopefully, he can tidy up his ability on set pieces or they can let him roam and have someone else marking his guy.

Props to Gooch like you said. He has been very good. And while we're at it, I thought Demerit showed very well today.

 

If Gooch hasn't silenced his critics in this tournament then he never will, the guy has played his butt of these last two games and as been said, has been our best player, hands down, this tournament.
As for Spector, the kid has had a nice couple of games as well. His problem on the set piece was unfortunate but I think he did enough things well that you have to be excited for him and his future with the team.
As for Donovan, he has worked his tail off but how many times do we have to watch him attempt to dribble straight thru his man without making an attempt to put on a move?

 

Spector megged his defender, nice give and go with Donovan, and set up Benny. Fantastic offense. The high point of our game, and he created it.

 

Good assessment, I think he is the future at RB.

 

I'm a big Cherundolo fan and I wouldn't break a sweat if I saw Spector in for Cherundolo, that's how impressed I was with Spector's discipline and awareness.

 

He's still better at them than either Cherundolo or Hejduk. And he's a better defender than both.

Oh...and he plays a completely different sport than the one Marvell Wynne attempts to play and call soccer. That it took Wynne getting completely embarrassed in a match in Costa Rica for Bob to figure that one out leads me to question the usefullness of Bob Bradley's camps as a mechanism for evaluating players.

 

agreed. i love stevie and i'm also a proud owner of a frankie hejduk usmnt jersey, but spector has been very very impressive.

 

He's significantly better in the air than any fullback option. He's significantly worse in the air than our top four CB options.

He should only be marking an attacking threat on set pieces if absolutely necessary, i.e. all other defenders and attackers of ours with aerial qualities are occupied. I don't know if that was the case today, but it may have been.

 

You called that - gotta give you that one.

 

should be our starting centerback when dolo is healthy

 

Credit to MO for pointing it out, but it's something that the West Ham fans who visit the YA forum have been telling us for years now.

 

Wynne needs to reel in his game a bit, his tendancy to dribble where he's knocking the ball 5 yards ahead of himself each time, leading to him losing possession alot, is a big problem that he (Wynne) has. Hopefully he can fine tune those skills but I don't ever see him having Cherundolo-like ball skills.

 

Spector lacks speed

Repeatedly he did not catch up to passes in the final third, costing us big chances

Although he had nice part in that one big play we had toward the end

 

He's not the speediest RB we've ever had, that's pretty clear but his "game intelligence" is very high and that's something that I'd take over great straight-line speed any day.

 

spector is much better in the air than any of our other options at RB, in addition he's a better defender and better going forward and better crossing (well, equal with cherundolo going forward and crossing)

 

fyp.

 

I think Cherundolo is a clearly better RB going forward and on defense, though more prone to a yellow-cardable error. Spector still plays RB cautiously for the US and for West Ham, like someone who's still learning the position. I think his first step quickness is a bit slow for it but he has good speed once he gets going, and you can make a good argument he'll keep developing as a right back. I don't think it'll be in time for 2010 if it means displacing Cher.

You have a point about his weakness in the air - notice also he plays the last man back on our set pieces, like Cher does. But I won't read too much into his play on the first goal we gave up since it was an inch-perfect ball to a player just barely offside (not called).

Also don't read too much into one good nutmeg and drop pass on offense. He hasn't offered us anything else going forward in this tournament against good competition. How many crosses has he gotten into the box?

I have been boggled by why Spector didn't get chances earlier for the US, especially as a LB (I think even Man U played him there a few games).

 

In contrast to Spector, Maurice Edu is very good in the air. There is a logical inference to be drawn here, especially with the looming eligibility of Jermaine Jones. Will the Bob or whoever is coach draw it?

 

The passes need to be better. No one, not Frankie, not Dolo, not Alves, catches up to one of those passes.