11/17: USA vs Jamaica WCQ post-match thread, N&A version {R}

Ahhh, don't underestimate the Stoner.

 

Ramiro Corrales we hardly knew ye.
Eek, he certainly looked out of his element didn't he? Wish Dempsey would have gottent that start based on his performance, but I was happy to see Bruce bloodening some new MLS talent.

I think weather like this significantly dampers our method of attack. Our speed is neutralized a great deal, I don't think Donovan nor Johnson could show their full effectiveness in these conditions.

Dempsey and Spector get another look for sure. Was Spector played @ D-Mid with Pablo pushed to the back? Thats certainly what it looked like to me. I think Spector has an incredible attacking accumen for a defender (although has a tendency to hold the ball too long) and could very easily play a JOB role for the Nats in the coming years regardless of where he plays for Man Utd. Remember he came up as a striker (he was the catalyst of St. Viator's state tournament runs) and has tremendous attacking instincts.

Gooch was the only huge disapointment. He played an altogether uninspired game, being burned on that first goal, and then getting the silly second yellow. I'm sure he'll bounce back, but its just sad to see his first start ruined like that. We also need to find a way to get him more involved on set pieces when in the game.

Ralston is a nice player to have in the pool. Mastro played a very composed and impressive game. I thought Gibbs was spectacular on the whole and was my MOM. Albright as well played largely mistake free soccer despite the conditions. I thought McBride was ineffective and worry about a begining decline in his play. Johnson had a great goal, but sputtered on two other great chances. I was pleasantly suprised by his play away from the ball and his ability to hold the ball however.

Enjoy the next 3 years Jamaica. It really is a travesty that a team with that much individual talent can't get past a 4 team group with Panama and El Salvador.

I think the problem with the Jamaicans was summed up by King after selfishly wasting a great chance he had created by shooting at a tight angle when questioned by a teammate about not laying off the ball his response was a loud and ESPN viewed in on "******** off".

 

they can fight each other for that.The difference is that Corrales has no chance of playing for the US in a game that matters and Tony might.

 

I'm ecstatic about this game. As i said on another thread, this game was all about getting a couple of guys some minutes and a chance at the big time. BA had the balls to start Onyewu and EJ, and came in with Spector and Dempsey. Down the line, this is going to pay serious dividends for the team. Tough first yellow on Onyewu, and got caught with the hands away from the body. But now he has had his bite at the apple. Hopefully he hungers for more. EJ ......... what can you say. As for Spector and Dempsey, they look VERY good in their time on the field. I'm extremely excited about the future. By the way, I didn't see or hear anything about Gaven. did i miss something? where is he?

 

In defense of the backline, EVERYBODY was slip-sliding around tonight.

 

Well this all just leaves Mexico to worry about now since Jamaica's done. I though it was a pretty good game but the ref was crazy. Was it just me or did he call more things in favor of Jamaica than he did the US, and he was out to get Gooch all night long, right before the PK I don't understand how he didn't call a foul on him getting smack in the face but then someone slides and it's a PK. Ed Johnson of course had a good game but the 10 minutes before he got subbed out I was kinda getting frustrated with him, but the man's gold and he just can't go away. I would have liked to have seen that Spector kid more involved in the game too, I've heard so much about him but never really seen him play and I after tonight I still don't know what to expect from him. Clint Dempsey also played pretty well once he got in, that one chance he had was pretty good and hopefully he'll get called up again too. Is Landon the new team captain? I don't have a problem with that cause he's an awesome player but I'm just wondering. But anyways it was a great game and now the wonderful period of waiting before the Hex.

 

Agreed, Dempsey showed more in his limited minutes than Corrales did all match. Spector and Twellman had one solid defensive play each in limited time. Onyewu looked like he needs more seasoning. Mastroeni played well, but I would have to go with Cory Gibbs for MOTM - he marked Williams out of the match.

 

Donovan carried us through this round of qualifying more than Reyna ever has. Pray he stays healthy.

 

More Dempsey, less Corrales, please......Kinda ho hum game, without DMB and with Donovan having a quiet game we attacked poorly. If flank play was really Arena's emphasis (per Balboa) he has to be vastly disappointed.Thought Albright did surprisingly well,Sanneh below average and Gooch should have stayed in Europe.

 

I was thinking of the first yellow, which was a foul, but not worhty of a card. The 2nd one was a great call, I thought it was incedental.

 

Not bad, but not good, either. Not enough play through Donovan. That was because neither Corrales nor Ralston played quick ball with him through the middle. Ralston did OK getting the ball down his flank, however. Corrales was the real weak spot in this display. Good movement of the ball into the attacking quarter during first half. Poor control and playmaking once it got there, except for Eddie's nice goal (but the other opportunity should have been better). Gibbs had a really good game. Albright (I'm not a fan) did generally well, too. I had misgivings about his long balls in the first half, but they were well taken and really accurate. Good for him. I think he has proven himself a real option at right back. Not impressed by Sanneh. Too many poor headers and flailed clearances. Gooch, too. Poor Gooch play led to Jamaic PK on Corrales' horror. Mastro, normal. Frankly, I saw no MOM in this game. Perhaps Gibbs, actually. What a pleasant surprise Spector's dribble run was! Overall, ok. I'd have liked to have seen him for 5-10 min more. Does he shave yet? Dempsey was a mixed bag. Missed a couple of easy passes, but showed a lot at other times. I'd like to have seen him instead of Corrales. McB was his usual self, but we need better there. His heading was helpful this game. Twellman worked hard in his few minutes. I'd have liked to have seen him get 15 min rather that his 6 or so.

 

the thing about Dempsey is that he comes to play. No fu**ing around.He is physically active and he is mentally active.

 

Does Gooch's red card carry over into the next round?

 

I really liked Spectors poise on the ball, he didn't panic under pressure and calmly got out of trouble when he had to.

Dempsey is still raw but he showed well in this 25 minutes enough to be considered for future friendlies and meaningles games.

Donvan started out like Panama but then vanished for a while, not his best game but not his worst either.


What can I say about GAM..he's gonna be a superstar.

We get through into what should be an easy Hex

USA
Mexico
CostaRica
Guatamala
TnT
Panama

I like those odds.

 

I'm not completely sold on Johnson. His goals in DC were tap ins. He had a great goal tonight, but there were many other times where he should have finished or made the right pass. A great super sub is what he is, not a starter.

I love the efforts out of everyone but Sanneh needs to sit and let others step in. I like the young players out there (Dempsey, Spector, and Onyewu), but I want to see Alecko and Marshall out there instead of McBride and Sanneh.

 

Gooch may become a good player for the US but all of this talk that he is the second coming appears to be a bit overblown.He is a little bit awkward for the international game.

 

Match Ratings:

GK - Keller - 7 - One big save late but it was fairly routine though the ball was well struck. Effort on the PK was weak but it's not easy. Distribution was not as good as normal, wet surface might have had something to do with it.

CB - Albright - 8 - MOTM - What the hell, Man of the Match for the much maligned one. Surprisingly part of a 3 man backline. As such did not go forward much. Defended exceptionally well, leagues better than any of his partners in the back line. Very good game.

CB - Onyewu - 6 - A generous 6, Gooch had his fair share of difficulties. Beaten on the play that led to the equalizer, he grabbed the jersey and got away without a yellow but did get whacked in the face for it. Both yellows were deserved despite what Stone and Balboa said. Is very impressive athletically as he is very quick for a player his size. Can outrun some his mistakes. Can be better than this. Does not look particularly skilled.

CB - Sanneh - 4 - A longtime Bruce favorite, Tony's been written off many times. Right now, I'll write him off once again. This level of play and intensity looks behind him. Beaten like a rented mule several times on the backline. Passing was suspect.

LM - Gibbs - 5/7 - The two grades are for Cory at left mid and then after he moved to the back. Cory did what he could as a winger, but obviously it's not his best position. Was much improved after being moved to defense.

RM - Ralston - 7 - Came out strong at the start of each half but faded soon thereafter. Had a good game but maybe needed better to keep himself in the picture.

DM - Mastroeni - 8 - Pretty good game from Pablo in the Armas role, plus he notched an assist in the process. Thought he could have been a bit better in attack and a bit more of a presence on defense, though certainly he defended well.

DM - Corrales - 5 - That 5's pretty generous, but I'll give him credit for making a few good defensive plays. If he wasn't out there to play wide on the left (which he didn't do), I fail to recognize what the purpose was of him being out there. There's literally dozens of solid journeyman players in MLS who are at least Ramiro's equal and though he's not really a bad player per se, he's very much a USMNT Circa 1988 type of player.

AM - Donovan - 5 - Tough game for Donovan and really only had a few moments where he was involved. Had a couple of situations where a ball was just out of reach where he could have scored. Very very quiet.

CF - McBride - 6 - Had a couple of vey nice moments combined with long stretches of not accomplishing much. Put Johnson nicely through early in the second half that EJ couldn;t quite finish. Held the ball fairly well, had several good knock downs, but was a forward who for the most part never looked like he much of a chance to score.

CF - Johnson - 8 - The good and the bad from Eddie tonight. Very good left footed finish that he got off just in time. He still needs to do a better job of attacking the net when he gets thorough as it will give him a bit more time and force the keeper to commit early. Great dribblign move but probably should have kept going after instead of trying to play a tricky ball on the wet surface.

Subs:

DM - Dempsey - 7 - The activity level between him and Corrales was like night and day. He was everywhere on offense and defense. His claim for a penalty was a pretty good one and his touch remains superb. Made one bad pass (to Twellman) that didn't bend like he wanted that resulted in a bad turnover. The decision to start Corrales over him was questionable, when Dempsey came on and started playing it got a lot more questionable.

CB - Spector - 7 - Kid has got some silky smooth moves on the ball and looked more dangerous in attack than he looked effective in defense. Sometimes when you're not noticed in defense that's good, but I still would have liked him to make a few more plays. In his defense on that score, he was on the same side of the field as Dempsey and Gibbs, and once Gibbs was moved to the back line, Gibbs and Dempsey closed that part of the field right off. May need to gain some strength but that should come as he gets a little older.

RM - Twellman - n/a - This has got to be the first time Twellman's played somewhere other than Forward in a long time. Didn't see much time. Made one silly foul and checked back once for one very good defensive play.

Coach - Arena - 3 - {To be continued I'm sure...}

 

How so? He is big and seems pretty good at positioning.

 

Who knows, Stone was too busy trying to be funny to bother to announce the available subs.

 

should be a cakewalk to Germany with those teams left.

 

Yes. He won't be called in for the first game of the Hex.

However, he really hasn't done anything to pass Pope/Bocanegra/Gibbs/Berhalter on the depth chart yet, either. He may have made the subs' bench for that match, but I don't imagine Bruce is bitching about losing him for the first game of the Hex.

He might be bitching about him getting a red card, though. That wasn't so good.

 

We're going to have to pick up points at home. That's going to be some rough road games.

 

Was waiting for someone to say this.

 

Oh by the way, this was a straight 3-5-2 before the red card, with Albright, Onyewu and Sanneh on the back line and Gibbs as the left mid.

 

As I predicted before the game, Corrales was a disaster. Bad penalty giveaway, bad freekick, poor passing, completely out of his league. May he NEVER grace the US jersey again.

I thought Dempsey looked savvy and strong in the tackle tracking back.

I was stunned at the lack of urgency by Jamaica in the last 10-20 minutes--reminded me of those stultifying final minutes of MLS Cup by KC.

I'm very happy for Panama, and for Guatemala, really. Those two have a real chance at Germany, a solid, legitimate chance. 5th place Asia won't be anything special.