Pulisic is also prone to being worse if he plays a game without a week or so rest. A big reason why having a good backup for him in the WC (for ACM too if they were smart) is ideal. I think there is more time between games in this WC so maybe if they limit his minutes he can start or be a sub in every game. Milan do seem to have tried to acquire other wingers but they just don't pan out.
This is why I prefer Football Manager to real life. In FM, you can rotate players and keep them fresh and not lose out on team cohesion. At least in the versions I’ve had, the match engine doesn’t account for familiarity much at all.
The team morale and cohesion is one of the most important things in football manager. You can rotate, for sure, and need to, because players get more tired than they do in real life, I think. But it's definitely a game where if the players like each other, like the coach and are happy, the team performs WAAAAY above talent. Also, upon getting hired, fire all your coaches and hire better ones. It's absurdly easy and makes a massive difference.
Today Pulisic was recovering from a bout with the flu. He did not com on until after the 60 minute mark and promptly scored two, and had a third called back for offside, he looked sharp, mostly, but did seem to be tiring by the end of the match. The flu will do that to a player. He looked good and also nearly had an assist, maybe two, and even won a couple of headers. I hope he did not aggravate anything. If he holds up and stays healthy he could easily lead Milan in assists and goals this year. I am still impressed with Milan being willing to not over stress him. He seems a very good fit for Milan. BTW: Leao was injured in the first half and Pulsic was not even considered as a sub at that time. It seems that Milan is taking care of their really good American and protecting him so he can play more for both them and us.
Yes he scored 35 seconds after coming into the game. Then one-timed a lovely but tricky cross from Ricci with into the net. Both goals were left-footed, btw.
Not to go too Super Duper strategery mode, but .... Oulisic always has huge games off the bench. We could start Reyna and Tillman.cThen have Pulisic score 2.
Torino-Milan 2-3, pagelle e tabellino: Coco in ritardo, Vlasic … PAGELLE MILAN Voti Milan(3-5-2): Maignan 6; Tomori 5, Gabbia 6, Pavlovic 5.5; Saelemaekers 6.5 (88' Estupinan s.v.), Loftus-Cheek 6, Modric 6, Rabiot 7, Bartesaghi 5.5 (66' Pulisic 8); Nkunku 5.5, Leao 5.5 (31' Ricci 6.5). All. Landucci (in sostituzione dello squalificato Allegri). Torino-Milan 2-3, le pagelle della partita di Serie A - Sky Sport subentrato C.Pulisic (MVP) 8.5
So he can play through the flu at Milan but needs rest so can't play for the USMNT? I'm not knocking their fight with their clubs, that's never been the issue. The issue is they think that just because they play at these elite Euro clubs, they can just show up and win with the USMNT while goofing off with their friends.
The matches he missed for the USA were effectively meaningless and did not even have anything significant in the team building department. The USA does NOT pay his salary. We have no way of knowing how bad this flu was or how sick he was back when he missed meaningless matches. He also was recovering from a few small knocks at that time. He played less than 30 minutes today and he looked fatigued at the end. The difference there is that the travel time in Italy is insignificant while the trips back and forth and he gets to sleep in his own bed tonight. That is the risk of aggravating something over here was large while the 30 minutes he played today did not over stress him and he gets real reoperation without having to travel. Except for the WC and a very very few other matches both the team and the player benefit with the players health getting not knocked in national team friendlies. The only people that knock Pulsic for his missing NT friendlies either never played the game at any pro level or they really just hate Pulisic. I have already stated my position on this whole thing and I can't explain better: The club should have 100% control over when/if a player gets released for ANY match because club soccer drives the whole soccer universe and generates more interest in the WC or other minor tournaments and therefore makes money for FIFA. BTW: I do understand the value overall to soccer from the WC, so I would think that the option for a club to withhold a player should be dropped for that one tournament and, maybe, for the Euros or for whatever ends up being the main federation wide international tournament. What I said about the WC also applies to WC qualifying. Lastly anyone that thinks either team building or familiarity takes place over friendly windows is deluding themselves. It just does not and cannot happen. Friendlies and practices are just too far apart and too short to do anything beyond letting the coach evaluate the players.
It wasn't a friendly window, it was a continental championship, and the last competitive matches we would play before the World Cup.
Our continental championship is effectively meaningless and, if I remember correctly, we played in the final without Pulisic. That shows the "strength" of that tournament. Also your last point is truly meaningless as there is too much time between it and the WC. But now I have overstated my position and, should you want, you can state yours but what I just said is the last thing I will say in this thread on this topic. I have no control over you and I do not want it I just wanted to state that this conversation is finished for me.
Why did Pulisic want a break this summer (after playing in the Nations League, mind you)? So that he could have a strong 2025/2026, culminating in the World Cup. So far, so good. If he has a strong World Cup, his request to take the Gold Cup off will be long forgotten. Never mind that he's already had a strong World Cup in his career. Put his body on the line for this team and fans while posters question his commitment to the program. This board has a long, long, long history of questioning the commitment of those players that give the most to us. Pulisic is 27 years old and tied on caps with Eddie Pope and Brad Friedel. He's a LEGEND in his prime. He has the most caps amongst active players. He has the most goals amongst active players. He has the most assists amongst active players. Its like we expect him to give more and more and more and more. He wanted to actually have a summer vacation. Heaven forbid. Ultimately Pulisic taking the summer and most recent window off will be a good thing. It helped us build depth as guys like Tillman and Luna stepped into roles. Reyna reestablished himself. Let's take a step back. I made the prediction at the start of the year that Pulisic will be shortlisted as a finalist for the Ballon d'Or (which is ~30 players). Right now he's arguably the best player on the team currently in 1st place in Serie A. He is the joint leading scorer in Serie A with Lautaro Martinez. So far, so good. When this season is over, we're going to say it's been the best club season in the history of US soccer. All the while, people on this board will be complaining that he didn't play against Haiti and T&T at the Gold Cup. Shake yourselves out of it!!!
They do seem a little undermanned and "flying by the seat of their pants" at times. Are they going to have money to add to the squad in January? Are you hearing anything? Santiago Gimenez has zero goals in Serie A. That's not gonna cut it. He's struggling in a WC year. Dude, Fiorentina........................................WTF? I've seen big clubs get relegated: River Plate. Schalke. Marseille. Villarreal. Corinthians. Juve (although scandal related). But have we seen a bigger club be AS BAD on the field as Fiorentina now is?
Mancano soldi alle squadre italiane......Italian teams are lacking money...... Also, don't count much on the winter transfer because teamm roster are set until the World Cup. Good players usually won't change clubs in the winter. Rocco Commisso and Fiorentina will go to Serie B. Rocco will probably sell the club and they will be back in in the Serie A within two years. Viva Pulisic!
If you watch Poch's interview with Andre's Cantor, and frankly many of his pressers, and his actions, it's pretty clear that he agrees with what you are saying. He wants players that will run through walls to be on the national team no matter who they are, whether it's the WC final, or even the lowliest friendly. I think he's looking at this from the perspective of an Argentinian. Pulisic is not missing the World Cup, he is by far our best player. But to my eyes, Poch has been clear how he feels, and some of the other "regulars" could be surprised.
I've seen this from multiple player's in various sports and it's not limited to the flu. I remember Emmit Smith's shoulder seperation game. My thought (from also working injured or sick) is the injury / sickness takes away all distractions as just doing one thing is all you can handle. January 2, 1994 Emmitt Smith shoulder seperation game The game of January 2, 1994, was a pivotal moment in Emmitt Smith's career, as he played with a separated shoulder and a torn rotator cuff. Despite the severe injury, Smith's performance was nothing short of extraordinary. He rushed for 168 yards on 32 carries, caught 10 passes for 61 yards, and managed to get the ball on 42 of the Cowboys' 70 plays, gaining 229 of their 339 yards. In the overtime, with his arm hanging limp, Smith was pivotal in the game-winning drive, gaining all but 11 of the 52 yards on the drive that secured the victory for the Cowboys. His resilience and determination in the face of injury left an indelible mark on the game and his legacy as one of the greatest running backs in NFL history
Given his recent form and how he is deployed at Milan, what would be his most effective position within Poch's setup?
We need to switch to a two striker formation with Pulisic up top next to Balo to take advantage of his off-ball skills and finishing.
When I coached youth soccer I inherited a team that was average in every player and every position save one. But the group was old enough (U16) that one player, no matter how good, could not win matches. We offered her the chance to move up to a better team, there were three teams at that age group and we were #3, but she preferred to remain with her friends. I watched a couple of practices and matches and switched formations to a 3-4-3 played aggressively but modified. We actually played a two front and the special player was designated as the "rover." She had a deep knowledge of soccer and what went on during matches and she noticed things, sometimes before I did, and so I made her a player coach and she could choose where to play as she felt was needed. She rarely put herself all the way back but did a couple of times and was right to do so. She also could, and did, take a defensive mid position when what we needed was accurate passing from deep. She also moved herself into the attacking mid when we needed goals or just to keep the ball well away from our goal. Her starting position was left forward in the 3-4-3 and all I had to do was teach the others to move correctly when she switched position. As I said she was my on field coach as she understood what each player was good at or not good at. She ended the season as the leagues MVP but she was third in goals on the team and led the league, and set a record for assists. She learned, as Pulisic has, how to really make good passes and that each player needed different passes to succeed. Unfortunately the "romance" bug hit her in her senior year and she quit soccer to raise a family. She understood that each player needed something a little different to receive the ball and do what is needed with it. I once heard a definition of a good passer that said that just making the correct pass was not enough but you also have to deliver the correctly weighted ball to the correct foot at the correct time. I think Pulisic can play a similar roll with the NATs and he does a lot of the time. I do not think he at his most effective playin a single position and needs to range to be at his best and to get the rest of the team playing at their best. His club team does something similar a lot and so does the National team it is just that is done so that it appears he is switching with someone when he changes position. Of course Pouch is a MUCH MUCH better coach than I and his other players are also MUCH MUCH better than what I had so Pulisic's roving is not as obvious or as needed. It would not surprise me to see him move back in the formation as far as attacking mid. He could go further back but I think his lack of size prevents him from ever being effective as the defensive mid. His passing is so good that I can see him at 42 or 3 tottering around the field and still producing a large number of assists. I can see him playing a Carlos Valderrama type of roll well into his dotage. Of course his health is always a question but he is learning more and more how to take care of himself and, I hope, that translates into more playing time and less recovery time. But that is not a given and he will have to play several seasons at or above the level he is at now to actually realize part of his potential. I REALLY hope he does not move back to England as that league is simply not good for him or for anybody else for that matter. But, right now, he is the best, by far, USA attacker and needs his club play, more than his USA play, to remain so.
Yeah, that was Game 5 of the NBA Finals with the series tied 2-2. And he played 44 of 48 minutes as well.
We don't. I see this a lot but do people think that players don't make off ball runs from other positions all the time?