News: Malik Tillman Has Reportedly picked The USMNT

Discussion in 'USA Men: News & Analysis' started by Sebsasour, May 19, 2022.

  1. Marko72

    Marko72 Member+

    Aug 30, 2005
    New York
    I agree that he's still in the running to grab a spot, but I wonder whose spot he'd be grabbing. Who would we make do without? LDLT? Morris? A potentially half-healthy Reyna? Would we play him more in the midfield triangle or on the wing?
     
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  2. Marko72

    Marko72 Member+

    Aug 30, 2005
    New York
    With as often as we rotate and sub our fullbacks (who are asked to do a ton of running this side), one of those spots should most likely be for a fullback. We should take 5.
     
  3. Suyuntuy

    Suyuntuy Member+

    Jul 16, 2007
    Vancouver, Canada
    Judging from the injury history of our guys, chances are we'll have slots to spare.
     
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  4. xbhaskarx

    xbhaskarx Member+

    San Jose Earthquakes
    United States
    Feb 13, 2010
    NorCal
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
  5. dspence2311

    dspence2311 Member+

    Oct 14, 2007
    This Tillman article describes a role that I think either Tillman or Reyna could play for the US — a creative 10 who gets very far forward into the attack. We lack that vision and that elite space awareness in our 8s, yet we have two players who IMO possess that ability. This Rangers setup (as described in the article) is different from Gregg’s 4-3-3 in employing the roaming 10 with license to create off the pass or dribble. It is also how Josh Wolff sets up Austin FC, letting Driussi play that role. Our other midfielders are athletic and capable enough to support that if the alternative is sitting down.

    I fear that our attack will be too one dimensional and too wing oriented in the WC. I’d like to see more creative midfield attacking play, one way or another.
     
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  6. Pegasus

    Pegasus Member+

    Apr 20, 1999
    Club:
    FC Dallas
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I've also heard that position called a free 8 and agree it's nice to have alternatives based on opponent and situation.
     
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  7. ifsteve

    ifsteve Member+

    Manchester United
    United States
    Jul 7, 2013
    MS and ID
    Club:
    Real Salt Lake
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Rangers UCL playoff is today on Paramount +. Good chance to sit back and watch Tillman. Hope he looks solid and looking forward to the match this afternoon.
     
  8. comoesa

    comoesa Member+

    Aug 13, 2010
    Christen Press's armpit
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    A player actually deserving of the Julian Green spot. I'd take him over a Roldan or Arriola and he's neck and neck with a Morris.
     
  9. Kirium

    Kirium Member

    Jun 18, 2007
    Edmond, OK
    Winning goal in the past game....fantastic play and assist to send Rangers to Group Stage for first time in 12 yrs in the Champions League.

     
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  10. Excellency

    Excellency Member+

    LA Galaxy
    United States
    Nov 4, 2011
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    I'd say Reyna is a 'player', i.e, a starter for us and Tilman is the vital sub (along with Morris and Pefok).

    Right now the only probem with Tilman is that he doesn't do a lot of the small stuff that keeps the whole team going. I think he'll get there but I don't think it happens by November.

    We have Aaronson as a guy who can create chances from just about anywhere on the pitch and Malik could be a guy characterized in that same way if he had a more eventful game.

    I have both Aaronson and Malik ahead of the ineffective McKennie, obviously. It's night and day.

    P.S.: then there's Reyna ahead of him as well if he were healthy.
     
  11. kruck

    kruck Member+

    Jan 12, 2008
    Houston, TX
    Club:
    SV Werder Bremen
    Tillman doing well in RFC so far this season but unfortunately for him AM is the deepest position in the usmnt player pool.

    If the midfield three isn't MMA the AM position will be contested by Pulisic, Reyna and Aaronson.

    If Pulisic is at LW and Weah is at right.. which seems a likely starting configuration, Aaronson, Reyna and likely Musah are competing for the 3rd midfield spot.
     
  12. dams

    dams Member+

    United States
    Dec 22, 2018
    I like Tillman as a player to throw in late when you are desperate for a goal. Kinda the Morris role for me.
     
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  13. xbhaskarx

    xbhaskarx Member+

    San Jose Earthquakes
    United States
    Feb 13, 2010
    NorCal
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The three midfield roles...

    McKennie-Tillman-(Aaronson/Reyna, both primarily wingers, Reyna also a false 9)

    Musah-LDLT

    Adams-Acosta-(Sands also 5th CB)
     
  14. Excellency

    Excellency Member+

    LA Galaxy
    United States
    Nov 4, 2011
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    The human heat map is a winger? I wonder how that works.
     
  15. adam tash

    adam tash Member+

    Jul 12, 2013
    Barcelona, Spain
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    the MLS bubble (i.e. Qatar) is bursting....(or at least it should be)

    arriola, long, morris, roldan et al....should be verrrry nervous these days....imo

    right?

    right????????
     
  16. rgli13

    rgli13 Member+

    Mar 23, 2005
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    if i were making a comparison it would be a bit behind aaronson when he first moved to rbs. clearly talented but low usage and not yet able to really impose himself on a match regularly. and another big factor is not having the mls experience ba had.

    im not comparing the two style-wise necessarily just sort of how i see them in terms of potential and where they are on their "learning curve".

    and for me, taking everything into consideration, malik isnt especially close to the nats and not one for this world cup. i get the logic of a spark off the bench, but look at our team- we are all spark (puli, weah, ba). using a bench spot on a kid makes sense when your regulars are mcbride, bedoya, bradley etc.

    i think our team is backwards in a way, where arriola and p-funk and acosta make sense as options off the bench to settle and control matches, not cause havoc.

    so i guess id say there are guys who i dont think are likely to help us- morris and roldan in particular. so taking malik over one of them? i dunno, i guess thats fine. id rather take a sands or brooks for positional cover/experience.
     
  17. Kirium

    Kirium Member

    Jun 18, 2007
    Edmond, OK

    From some of the clips I've seen Malik is pretty good in the air and on set pieces. To me that's something that this time is lacking outside of possibly Zimmerman. Strange honestly since the USA usually has some pretty big guys that can really get up in the air, just not this cycle as much.
     
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  18. rgli13

    rgli13 Member+

    Mar 23, 2005
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    i had no clue malik would be a threat in the air, though im not sure we should start listing that among his strengths just yet.

    we arent playing a real forward so thats one less target than usual but most of our cbs are strong in the air (as historically usual), wes is fantastic, our also-ran forwards are varying degrees of pretty ok, puli weirdly scores with his head way more than a winger should...

    set pieces havent been a strength for us for a while due to takers, not finishers. even if we get reyna, aaronson and acosta (in that order) over the ball im not sure maliks prowess in the air puts him ahead of anyone.
     
  19. schrutebuck

    schrutebuck Member+

    Jul 26, 2007
    #244 schrutebuck, Aug 24, 2022
    Last edited: Aug 24, 2022
    Tillman's problem is that he's likely competing for the same spots in the squad as players like Pulisic, Weah, Aaronson, Reyna, Arriola, Morris, and Roldan. Maybe Mihailovic as well. Berhalter should take 6 players in this spot since he's obsessed with 1 striker formations, but it's no guarantee that Tillman leaps ahead of enough players in this group as long as everybody is healthy.

    But if Weah and Roldan both have to miss out for Japan and Saudi Arabia, then I would call Tillman in for the matches.

    And the one thing that I would unambiguously conclude is that Tillman is well ahead in 2022 of where the player who is the obvious comparison, Julian Green, was in 2014.
     
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  20. rgli13

    rgli13 Member+

    Mar 23, 2005
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    thats pretty tricky for me. green would pop up and score a couple (and blew up for 4 or 5 once) in preseason and im not sure how bayerns preseason schedule compares to the spl...i only know malik only has one team/four matches in the league i see as better than usl level.

    thankfully we will have cl matches to give some clarity.
     
  21. IndividualEleven

    Mar 16, 2006
    Morris hasn't been same since the 2nd acl injury. Arriola has been a mediocrity for the NT. Reyna, Weah, have Pulisic are frequently injured. Tillman is likely to have opportunities to make the WC team.
     
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  22. Kirium

    Kirium Member

    Jun 18, 2007
    Edmond, OK
    Exactly. I'd take Tillman any day over Morris and Arriola.
     
  23. adam tash

    adam tash Member+

    Jul 12, 2013
    Barcelona, Spain
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    yeah the idea that morris or arriola are "settling matches down" is a bit much for me.....in 2022 for the usmnt, they are turnover machines or invisible imo

    even if they were: who cares?

    how important is it to have attackers that can settle matches down??

    imagine NEEDING a goal in a 2nd half....you guys really want morris or arriola over tillman?? seriously?

    I get the idea of wanting a few vets around the camp etc....but the vets available are so much worse than the standard of the team...it doesnt make sense. its weird that there aren't some vets that are actually good ....normally some of the best players in the pool are a bit older but not now and thats just the reality.

    need to go with the talent not the "brotherhood" here.
     
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  24. schrutebuck

    schrutebuck Member+

    Jul 26, 2007
    #249 schrutebuck, Aug 25, 2022
    Last edited: Aug 25, 2022
    There is past precedent that favors Tillman's inclusion. With one disastrous and notorious exception, there was a clear pattern in the borderline surprise player callups for the 2014 World Cup. Reliable veterans who were squad players were replaced by intriguing, but less tested, younger players.

    Of course, the 2014 squad was much older and maybe needed a few younger players, so the precedent may not be as applicable in 2022.
     
  25. kickin365

    kickin365 Member+

    Mar 4, 2002
    Fair considerations but imagine we are up a goal and need to shut down an attacking team and one of our attacking players needs a sub. You want to throw on a kid who has really a few handfuls of professional games? I’d call Paul’s name in that instance.
     
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