Of course Eddie Johnson started off like wildfire...... He had 8 goals in his first 9 appearances. but only 11 more the rest of his USMNT career. (63 games total)
Klinsman first liked and then later disliked Landon Donovan because the drinking fountain pic was stuck in his head.
Kilnnsman didn't take Landon because he wasn't going to start him and he did not want to deal with the distractions of Landon on the bench.
Brad Davis was not really a problem in the first half versus Germany. The problem was that our opponent was, uh, really really good
Exactly 4 years later to the day after the disaster in Trinidad & Tobago, I think the US would have been strong enough to pick up 4-5 points during the group stage in Russia in 2018.
The draws would have been different. I don't remember the precise US FIFA ranking in late 2017, but it should have been high enough to get Pot 2 or Pot 3. I am making some assumptions here - (1) I'm assuming that Arena would phase out certain personnel after qualifying, (2) I'm assuming the least change to what actually happened as possible - so I have the US grinding out a garbage goal in T&T to make it 2-2, and (3) player national team choices stay the same as in real life. For me, the two most pressing problems in World Cup qualifying were clearly the center backs and goalkeeper. A shocking number of goals came from center back breakdowns during qualifying, and there wasn't a match where the goalkeeper saved points for the US (other than maybe Guzan in Honduras). If Arena decided to roll out the trio of Howard, Cameron, and Gonzalez in Russia, then the team might be in serious trouble. I don't see central midfield being a problem. I see both Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie making the team, with one of them likely starting. If Arena resolves the two biggest problems (CBs and GK), then the last big concern IMO is to figure out how to provide some attacking firepower alongside Pulisic. The team scored a ton of goals in qualifying, but I don't know if there was enough firepower for a World Cup group stage. The 2nd winger spot is wide open unless Arena permanently shifts to a 3-man backline - Arriola or Fabian Johnson are likely the men on the spot. I'll note that Jordan Morris tore an ACL in February 2018 in real life, which would be a serious blow.
Good point about the pots but still. Let's say pot 3 instead of Costa Rica. Brasil? Loss. Swiss who tied Brasil? probably a loss. Serbia? Maybe a draw.
Tough to speculate on the exact draw. The US was 27th in the October 2017 rankings, so a draw or win against T&T likely places them in Pot 3, with Iran bumped down to Pot 4. Because I'm bored this morning, I did do my part in putting together an Arena-style 23 man squad for the World Cup: Guzan, Howard, Steffen Brooks, Miazga, Besler, Ream Yedlin, Villafana, Beasley Bradley, McKennie, Acosta, McCarty, Adams Pulisic, Nagbe, Fabian Johnson, Arriola Altidore, Wood, Dempsey, Zardes 1. The squad age actually isn't terrible - 27.2. Since there are talented youngsters, Arena will keep some of the old dudes that he likes. 2. There's no way that McKennie doesn't make the team after a full season with Schalke - same with Adams at New York. They both likely provide cover all over the field. 3. If Zardes storms out of the gate in March 2018 like he did with Berhalter in Columbus, then he jumps right back into the squad. The winger/AM options are still the biggest question mark. Arriola provides the work rate but not the goals and assists, Nagbe helps others provide the goals and assists, Fabian Johnson started to tail off in 2017/18, and I see 35-year-old Dempsey only being useful further forward. And of course, Morris is injured. Ultimately, I feel like Arena would stick with the same type of tactical approaches that he took in qualifying.
usmnt fans are the worst spend so much time debating things they dont understand and come up with crazy player lists and magic saviors all the time, on top of that have crazy ideas and sometimes the coach does that and then they get amnesia that they were all for that.
Amen. 95% of the board doesn’t seem to realize we will qualify and GB will be our coach in the World Cup. They seem to hate the coach more than they like the team or our players because it embarrasses them that we don’t have Pep (who screwed up the CL final) coaching us. When we win, it’s in spite of the coach, when we lose, it’s 100% his fault. You don’t have to be a fan of the coach to be realistic about his strengths and weaknesses, and those of our players.
my friend (who refuses to post on the board) mentioned pep and the cl final and how pep overthought the final and changed his lineup too much and it probably cost then the cl final. in some fans defense gb should learn from pep the us needs to start their best players and use the five subs to rest those players when they get a chance. not start the backups and assume the first choice guys can come in at the 60th minute and rescue the match if they are needed(which they have been each time he's tried this strategy)
I was completely for heavy rotation and focusing on the Costa Rica game. And in reality, we played like absolute dogshit, and should have played better. And even then, it required what was basically an own goal and a dumbass breakdown to give up a goal and we would have gotten the point. Which is not to say we played well; we played like trash. It's also not to say that was a great lineup -- it wasn't and there were probably some changed to be made even in a "b" lineup. But I absolutely wanted to play our A team in the home games, so I'm reaping what I sowed, so to speak.
Group stages are such crapshoots. Think it would have been the same as every World Cup; get a bit of luck, a striker with confidence, and maybe officials not giving phantom pens against us then we advance. Pretty much every US group since 1994 has come down to a moment or two, sometimes not even in a US match. '18 wouldn't have been any different.
3 points off Tunisia and 1 point from England/Belgium isn't that crazy. Safe to say it would have been better than -9 goal differential, (Tied Belgium in regulation in 2014 and England in 2010.) The U.S. dominated Panama/Honduras in qualifying. It was Mexico/Costa Rica that kept the U.S. out.
Still a middle class suburban sport. It's just that the US pro ranks are reflecting the increasing diversity of American suburbs.