Sergiño Dest

Musah is at LWB because it would make the team dynamic in a modern sense. Did you watch Mexico get skunked by Wales yesterday? Our midfield of Musah, Adams and McKennie didn't get to first base in terms of breaking down Wales. Compare that to how Barca broke down Real S. recently when Dest scored a brace from the right and Yordi Alba did the necessary on the left.

Our first test in Qatar could well be to break down a sturdy African/Asian team (remember the Algeria game in So.Africa?)

To answer your question: I would love to have Delgado or at least a reasonably similar player. Putting Musah at lwb is about creating a truly dynamic team, not about getting delgado on board. b.t.w., it's not like Acosta is considered a fearsome player in MLS. Yet that is the best Berhalter could come up with when McKennie and Adams are absent. Who would you play instead of K.Acosta if you were Berhalter? He is fiddling with Perea, Tessman, Yueil, Bradley. Those mid spots require a lot of experience going into games against the best in the world and we don't have it. Look at Durkin struggling in Belgium to reach an average type performance as a c-dmid.

You are going to be told that Musah and Adams and McKennie are playing midfield because we are actually getting ready for 2026. Some excuse will be necessary when their inexperience shows over 4 closely spaced games in Qatar. This will be spun as a fantastic excuse for 3G and the rest of Chi-house.

 

I get it. That is a similar reasoning to me wanting Kellyn Acosta to play left back for the national team for the last few years. The difference is that Acosta actually has experience playing there.

Honestly, I don't think that 2026 is factoring in a lot to the decisions being made right now. At the same time, I think everyone, including the coaching staff, knows that the player pool will be much deeper and more prime at that point.

 

Musah's position at Valencia is outside mid in a 442. He doesn't play cmid.

Musah turned 18 on Nov 29, 2020. He will turn 20 in Qatar. That's not enough experience for a crucial cmid role in Qatar, whether people want to admit it or not.

 

But he kinda does play centrally for Valencia because he tucks in, and he's played there throughout his youth career. That's his primary position no matter how Valencia has used him in his first professional season (lots of young players don't play their primary/ideal position when they first break through for a variety of reasons).

Also, in many ways, there is a lot more responsibility/complexity to playing a wing back or outside back position that would be much more difficult for a young player if lack of experience is your concern. That is especially true when the player doesn't have any experience at all playing in that position.

 

When you just want to argue for arguments sake you can say everybody kinda plays everywhere.

 

Not really. There is absolutely no argument to say that Musah has any experience whatsoever playing left back.

 

Which is precisely why nobody said he did.

 

Brenden Aaronson on Sergino Dest 🗣

"He comes back from scoring two goals on the weekend, he’s high on confidence, and in training he’s absolutely disrespecting people and in the game he scores that 30 yard banger. What a player he is.”

😂😂😂

(via @sliceofsoccer) pic.twitter.com/XcDrQWtAgb

— USMNT Only (@usmntonly) April 8, 2021

1380192435754696710 is not a valid tweet id

 

LMFAO. 🤣

Mark McKenzie: "I love Serg but the moment he tries to Maradona on me, we're scrapping.

Brenden Aaronson: "Bro if he did that to me, I'd be piiiisssssed."

(via @sliceofsoccer) pic.twitter.com/Hmt2cLODMr

— USMNT Only (@usmntonly) April 8, 2021

The video they're talking about:pic.twitter.com/ijNvmIMm1k

— USMNT Only (@usmntonly) April 8, 2021

 

Watching Serg do his thing in front of 100k Mexican fans at the Azteca will be amazing. I may even have to get tickets to go if we're ever allowed such large crowds again.

 

He’s just on a different level from them and it isn’t even close. I hope they view it as a challenge. You don’t want to get punked in practice or made to look a fool... step your game up.

 

Dest and Konrad part of Messi's celebration for passing Xavi for all time appearances for Barcelona... this adventure still blows my mind.

 

Exactly.

That’s been a problem with our soccer culture for a long time. These suburban guys don’t know what its like to get smoked in training because the guy wants to put you on the bench.

 

The footwork And attitude Dest displays isn’t built competing for spots.

It’s built much earlier in life, often in unorganized play, trying to playfully humiliate your friends and rivals.

This isn’t about relentless forced competition. This is about playground ball, so to speak, and free play.

We want more players like this, we need a culture that plays more out of practice, no coach, on their own time.

 

I don’t disagree. That’s how I grew up, but when it came to club ball it’s all very much washed out and sanitized. Players like that feel a little out of place because it’s not part of the soccer culture here.

So here these guys come from the US soccer culture, and Dest works them over in practice and they don’t understand that you respond to getting worked by getting one back against him. That’s how you earn respect from individuals out there. That’s why these guys from Honduras can work over our U23’s and nobody understands how to respond.

 

Seems like these guys get it, just hearing the banter about it.

 

Definitely. Aaronson is very suburban and constantly clowns guys himself, I don't think he has a problem with Dest.

 

I think you are right that a lot of what Dest has was driven by wanting to show people up in the park, and that that doesn't happen as much in the US, but I think the guys on the team know how to respond.

I just think Dest spent a lot more time with the ball than they did, just dribbling. And maybe he's simply naturally more talented.

I actually think Aaronson's got a little sizzle to his game as well -- he doesn't have Dest's ball skills entirely, but he'll nutmeg or do a cheeky backheel.

Dest can just put that thing on a string like a yoyo, to steal another basketball simile. And most coaches -- I'd imagine even in Europe -- aren't super supportive of flash. That's shit you do that looks cool. And then one day you realize that it works awesome, too.

 

I think you are both way off with this street soccer stuff and this Euro coaches are against sauce stuff.

Dest was at Ajax since he was 11 years old. Ajax loves sizzle, the end.

 

Wherever he got his sizzle, it turns out he is also pretty ********ing fast: https://www.marca.com/en/football/real-madrid/2021/04/09/6070ac9fca4741f6258b4623.html

And oh yeah he was named to the squad, (no Konrad), 20 something hours to El Classico...

 

I used to play pick-up with a guy that would try to nutmeg you every, single time you squared up. Every time. He'd get you eventually because he was gonna try it 50 times on every guy on the other team. Some guys just live for that.

Look up Marcelo screwing with guys in Real Madrid training. Funny stuff.

 

A couple of retellings of an incident involving Cobi Jones, Clint Dempsey, and Alexi Lalas'

Fortunately, the culture at the elite level has moved on. There are now more Dueces and fewer Cobis and Lalases

MLS CONFIDENTIAL: Clint, Cobi and the 'last man' 07/29/2005 (socceramerica.com)

A ‘ruthless’ player who makes a mean jambalaya: Clint Dempsey in untold stories – The Athletic

 

Pretty sure they're joking.