We've been repeatedly told that Gregg has plenty of time to switch back to a "bunker" strategy (defined as anything that's not his regista-based one).
Klinsmann also tried to have us playing tiki-taka when he just arrived, but after losing enough games, he discovered what all politicians know: it's not what you do, but what you say. So we reverted to defensive tactics and started winning, while he talked about being proactive, controlling the midfield, coming out from the back playing, and pressuring the rival.
Richie Williams?!? Do you mean, kudos that Dest never had any contact with Williams and thus was predisposed to have a positive outlook on the USA? Because Dest never was coached by Williams that I know of and nobody has driven more players away, or tried to ruin careers, than Richie.
Yeah sure, Tab did 90% of the work getting Dest to the finish line. However, Dest might still have chosen differently post u20 and it's ok to say that Berhalter and Stewart did the right thing in going to meet him personally. I'm also sure that Stewart being a well known figure in Dutch soccer management made things a lot easier.
Gregg gets credit for calling Dest and playing him in September. That was probably the most important thing after Ramos playing him in May. Remember, if Sarachan had simply called Gonzales for the November friendly, he would probably have stayed with the USA. Meetings, texts, communicating are important. But actually calling the players and playing them is also very important.
This is a tough camp to select for, in fairness. We have so many players missing or very limited who I view as key in key areas. I'm talking about the likes of Pulisic, Adams, Steffen, Weah, Pomykal, Altidore, etc. All these players would be in and around my best xi right now and the established or maybe available replacements for them are nothing to write home about. That said, this is where it's important to build depth, which is taken for granted by a sect of the fan base who is elitist and unrealistic that near our best xi will usually be available, w/ proper experimentation. Bring in new players, give them a few caps to show their worth, if they do cycle in, if not cycle out temporarily. And we really haven't done that since the end of Bradley's tenure, so 8+ years. Not that the pool wouldn't present some problem of its own. I guess you could say it was done for a limited period under a manager who was not befitting of the position in Sarachan. But then it wasn't near maximized, and ultimately under Gregg we started at square one w/ the group in Jan. camp. So much of the work that Sarachan did was just scrapped. You could say the same about Tab's in winning u20 CCAFships and making mini runs in WC's press-countering. Instead we're committing to a new direction which may well be DOA and if we hang on too long could mean a second straight WC miss. Which would be catastrophic for apathy toward the sport in this country.
in case you were worried berhalter wouldnt be fired for any reason, regardless of results (via jeff carlisle on twitter) "On a conference call with reporters, USSF sporting director Earnie Stewart says manager Gregg Berhalter's job is safe, no matter what the results are against Canada and Cuba in the Concacaf Nations League."
When we have had friendlies in November in the past, they were often used for giving guys in Europe more of a look because of conflicts with MLS playoffs. The switch to single-game elimination means all MLS players are available, but I wish Berhalter would have focused on European-based players more because many MLS guys on the roster haven't had a game in a month. That's why I find the decision not to call Miazga and Holmes so perplexing. Even if Berhalter rates an MLS player above those guys, Miazga and Holmes are surely in better form than players that have been out of season for a month. Instead, Greg saw it is an opportunity to organize the equivalent of a January camp for his favorite MLS players like Trapp and Lovitz to spend more time teaching them "the System." It won't happen, but he shoudl be fired if we don't win on Friday.
Also Earnie is "a pleased man." Jesus. How can you play so much soccer and be around the sport for so many years and still be so utterly clueless about the sport that you look are very pleased by the state of the team. Yikes https://www.espn.com/soccer/united-...usmnt-has-made-progress-under-gregg-berhalter
"In a conference via telegram with reporters, WhiteStar corporate director Sir Earnest Stewart says ship commander General Egg's job is safe, no matter what the results against the icebergs in the Cross Atlantic Maiden Voyage" Of course.
Of course he's pleased. Every Monday he awakes to the fresh and happy sound of Cha-Ching! from his bank account. It's not just a pleasure for Mikey, y'know.
I have never been so dispirited about the national team. Even if we beat Cuba and Canada, that means nothing. I have no hope whatsoever as long as GB is in charge.
I'm most concerned by how out of touch these comments are with the general sense of the fan base and even the media (to a lesser degree). He could have defended Gregg and explained why firing him isn't going to happen in the near future, but saying he is "pleased" with the current results is very out of touch. It suggests some deep-entrenched groupthink going on in Earnie's head and with USSF.
The highlight Earnie gives is the first 25 minutes of the Gold Cup final. This is particularly nuts, since Gregg viewed those minutes as a disaster. He forbade them from playing long balls after that. When they did it anyway, he made them all embarrass themselves and the fans against Mexico in September. We can see why Earnie doesn't talk much.