i want to start this thread for info purposes only. none of this you suck, no you suck caca. there's a lot of peeps on this board that i enjoy talking football with so let's all be mature and talk the beautiful game. thought you peeps would be interested. not sure if its official, but my friend just e-mailed me that they showed it on tv. sven is going 4-5-1. ..............carlos ochoa............... ...............nery castillo............... gio dos santos..........alberto medina .........leandro......pavel pardo........ salcido.....marquez.....galindo.....osorio ..................sanchez....................... i only expected medina and/or dos santos to come off the bench if things were going wrong (to add speed). instead he's going flat out track speed. don't be surprised if the USMNT outsidebacks get abused all night. of course that's doesn't mean caca if there's no finishing.
Re: Mexico's Line Up BB won't announce his lineup but I'd be willing to bet that I got 10 of the 11 US starters on the show. The only unknown would be Kljestan or Clark pairing up with Bradley. It will probably be Kljestan but I would not be at all surprised to see Clark. With Hejduk back there, that was a possibility anyway. Fortunately, Beasley is a beast at left mid when it comes to tracking back and helping the LB and Dempsey is a lot more comfortable at right mid now that he's been playing there each game for Fulham. They'll help Pearce and Hejduk a lot. Two 4-5-1 formations squaring off on a field that will be torn up and possibly in a moderate rain. This isn't going to be a beautiful game but it will be an intense one.
Re: Mexico's Line Up If Nery stays deep enough to get matched up with Bradley (assuming Kljestan is the other CM and plays more advanced), that could be a problem matchup for the US. Of course, that assumes he hasn't forgotten how to play football over in Siberia or wherever he is these days. I think you're right about Pearce having problems with Medina, Beasley might have to do more helping out than he'd like. I'm far more optimistic about Heydude handling Gio. I think Dos Santos has a long day and wakes up with sore shins if he tries to go at him with the ball too often. Lando the Mexicutioner with a goal and an assist, 2-0 Gringos.
Re: Mexico's Line Up I think it's a smart coaching move by Sven. The best way for Mexico to beat the US is to go full speed with three while onside, and just overwhelm the defense. As for my US, I say go four-four-two, and break away when possible. An endurance battle against Mexico is pointless. The easiest way to beat Mexico is to get physical on their defenders while the one guy overlooked does his thing. I'm hoping for Ching-Donovan up front. They're great at reading each other, and will be hard for anyone in CONCACAF to stop if they both stay on the same page as they always have.
Re: Mexico's Line Up I expect the US U23 to be threatened by that attack, but not the full nats. That's some pretty weak finishing. Of course the midfield is going to give us headaches all night long. Fast indeed, and very creative. The big advantage is going to be Donovan against Pardo/Leandro. He's skinned them before and with the way he's playing in Germany, he'll do so again. The match-up I'm psyched to see? Marquez vs Ching. IIRC, Marquez made Ching invisible in the GC until the 2nd half.
Re: Mexico's Line Up [shameless self-promotion]For those who want to take a walk down Memory Lane, check out DynamoPlanet for vids from the previous editions of this great rivalry. [/shameless self-promotion] I'm so psyched.
Re: Mexico's Line Up btw, for the last week there's been supposed line-up leaks every hour on the hour. some were not believeable (i think the above one is), but one of the most interesting rumors had 4 traditional defenders in the back and Rafa Marquez in the Def. Midfielder position. i thought that was kind of interesting. i wouldn't do it for this game (not the time or place to experiment), but i would like to see it in a friendly to see how it works esp when johnny magallon recovers. magallon needs to be on the field (IMO).
Re: Mexico's Line Up Marquez as a DM? That is interesting. Agreed with Magallon. Mexico needs him on the field at all times. Castillo needs to play up to snuff, too. That guy scares the sh** out of me.
Re: Mexico's Line Up Marquez as a DMid wouldn't surprise me. I watch every Barca match and he moves up quite often and Barca runs a 3 man back line while he is up pushing the attack from the midfield.
Re: Mexico's Line Up Solid write up by CNNSI today on Chinger and his role with the U.S.: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/jonah_freedman/02/10/us.mexico.preview/index.html
I am making this the official day of game thread. Please have any play-by-play blogging in here and all pre-game chatter. Lets keep it clean! I will be giving infractions to trolls, even Houston board members.
I will be hosting a watch party in Orlando for the Orlando Tuzos Supporters Club. (I say "host" because I arranged the location. )
If you're looking for a bar to watch the game, the Mezz (US 59 & Greenbriar) will host a viewing party upstairs in HD on the big screen.
I wish I had HDTV, it seems like they are favoring HD viewers, a lot of the action is off the screen on my old fashioned tv...