i would say it helps if you make a 'square" pass straight upfield, the recipient's marker can step in, but it's also easier for all the other team along the passing lane to step sideways. i had that drummed out of me by about U16. i don't like that, i don't like the sideways passing. the former is risk. the latter doesn't create chances unless you do it much faster and switch the ball across more. i want to see more what we did in the late second and overtime, which is run at them, commit the next defender to you, then pass behind them into space to take them out of the play. basic stuff, really. it also would help if we combined more, more wall ball, position switching, less everyone in their formational slot. both offense and defense we are way too much in our slots in our lines. i'd kind of assumed a 433 would be more flowing and less rigid, particularly with all the multipositional players we have.
Food for thought... Berhalter gets the most credit for his dual national recruiting. I think giving him credit for Dest is generous and ignores he as a USA player when Berhalter was hired. Berhalter has recruited three players. One wasn't good enough for the 40 man preliminary roster. One wasn't good enough for the 26 man travel squad One wasn't good enough for a single minute in a competitive game.
I mean...I understand where you are coming from. Fairness would mean judging people on things that can be measured....and when a good result happens, then those involved in that result benefit. The problem I have with your reasoning is this....a poor coach can win with this talent now. Thats what this team just proved. But there are levels above Mexico. A poor coach cannot beat all of those teams even with this talent. And even if he could, a great coach would increase the odds of that happening. The players are compensating and overcoming the coaching. it should be the other way around. It is possible that GB doesnt limit this team's acheivement...but very very unlikely based on what he has done to this point.
Pefok’s lackadaisical D allowed the chance for Mexico’s second goal. He meandered towards midfield and didn’t win the 50-50, the he did help back on the far side and kind of half heartedly tried to block the pass towards the middle. That sequence just really stood out to me. Then Mexico scored right after. Honestly, Sarge would have gotten to one of those balls or forced an error IMHO. Perfok seemed like a bad tactical sub in that game. OK, not really related to the question, but Perfok didn’t seem up to the intensity of the Mexico game.
You have flawed logic by determining what kind of coach he is. He's a young coach taking his first steps....we don't know if he's bad or great yet. The only way we can judge it's by his body of work and so far.....he just beat the main rival in a meaningful game for a trophy. That's it, not the eye test the internet experts see...that's just noise.
Forgot about Pefok! Perea. That post was mostly in jest. I do think Berhalter is being carried by the talent. But I also think the talent is the big attraction too. He is being credited with being a great recruiter, but playing with Pulisic and company is what is attracting guys like Pefok, Dest, and Musah. Unlike past regimes, Berhalter isn't blowing it with these guys. Isn't making them grovel or dismissing them for not committing at 5 years old. At the least, he is making it very easy for them to come in.
Ok, it has been a few days. I rewatched the game, listened to Scuffed and TSS and others. Read through 1000 posts here and on twitter. Gregg continues to get things wrong. 1. The adaptive shape seemed to confuse the team. The team was better without it after half time. At least he changed earlier than he has in the past. 2. Ream as the LB was a major vulnerability that Mexico picked on until they scored. We were lucky they only scored once. Some will say he didn't get beat that much. True. But only because he stood off so far he wouldn't get beat on the dribble which allowed the attacker all day to cross, pass or shoot (which they mostly were poor at luckily). 3. It seems every USMNT game since 2019 starts with Wes being high and ineffective then being pulled back to provide cover for the 6 and being more effective. Why does Gregg make this same mistake over and over? 4. Gregg has maybe ruined Dest short term. He needs to be at RB. I've seen nothing from any other RB that says they are any good. Yedlin was a good call Sunday; which is strange since he had hardly been involved with the team in two years. If you need Yedlin at RB, don't want to play Dest at LB, just sit him. 5. Two and a half years of trying to change American soccer and implementing a new style of play and being brave, came down to a game against Mexico where he played 4-4-2 with two DMs and didn't try to possess or dictate the game in any way. Gregg is the beneficiary of the talent wave. The players do like him it seems. I'm trying to figure out why they like him with the strange decision patterns he has. I have an inkling, but it needs to percolate for awhile.
I know a great coach when I see one....Klopp, Zidane, etc GB aint it. The problem with only going by results is you disregard the ceiling of the team. This is an unprecedented level of talent that a USMNT manager has to work with....so, actually, historically "okay" results would actually be underacheivement, imo. beating "the main rival"? nice job.....but not enough to prove much, imo. Nations Leauge is pretty low on the pecking order of important matches in international soccer. The only thing lower is friendlies...and he sucks in those. CONCACRAP does nothing for me. Your method of lookng at him will lead the scenario where you say...welp, he was in over his head, but how were we supposed to know??? But only after it is too late. then when he fails, the convenient answer is the team just wasnt good enough...he did the best he could. HE IS NOT THAT GOOD. period. there are better coaches out there...that would sign up to coach this team in a second!!!! The other problem is there is no way to countertest how good or bad he is based on results......how would a great manager have this team looking? we cant know. So it covers him from rebuke. But I can tell you.....the team could be a lot better. its just obvious.
I agree that GB’s player and formation decisions over this cycle have been disruptive, They have impeded the ability of the young European core to both excel individually and gel together. But he seems to be inching his way toward the recognition that simpler is better, and that these elite players deserve the opportunity to carry this team. Dest remains the exception. He should be on the right, where he, the midfield, and Reyna can get used to one another as WCQ progresses. I attribute that to some inexplicable problem that Berhalter has with Robinson. But other than that, and the usual head scratching substitution decisions every so often, I am hopeful that this young group can qualify for the World Cup. And to me, that is all that matters. We want this core to endure (successfully) the CONCACAF WCQ experience, and I am getting the impression that Berhalter is less and less likely every day to sabotage that. We also want them to have a World Cup experience. That way, they can provide the veteran presents alongside a new crop of impressive youngsters in 2026. I feel somewhat more optimistic that we are going to see them have both of those experiences, but the former still scares me.
Never mind Robinson, what is his problem with Sands? He's 20 with the maturity of a 28 year-old and is comfortable as a CDM or CB.
You know a great manager when you see one then name a list of mangers with a resume of accomplishments with teams of some of the most talented players. Very brave ....
I think after Yueill's performance Sands should be called up for a look over him. I say this as someone who thought Yueill might be able to hang up until his recent performances.
look at Belgium....they have finished in FIFA rankings first place in 4 of the last 7 years. in the last 3 world cups....3rd place, quarter finals and didnt qualify.... in the last 4 euro championships, they only qualified once and finished as quarterfinalists.....based on talent, they are clearly underachieving. Wilmots was garbage....he was the reason they underacheived! Minor mistakes he made kept his team from doing more. Roberto Martinez is better but could still be doing better....we'll see how they do in the next 2 big tourneys....but a first place FIFA team should be doing much better. In my opinion it is due to management not being quite up to snuff with the talent level they have. Now, if you just looked at results...you might say wow...they got 3rd place in a world cup. But their bar needs to be higher!!! period.
That's great but not quite the same circumstance. Your arguing lack of results for Portugal against a coach who has literally only competed in one competition with this team.... And won.
what do you mean? he has lost vs every good team he played before this mexico game. he lost the gold cup final in 2019 to Mexico. also lost a friendly to mexico 3 to zero. he lost to venezuela in a friendly 3 to zero, too. lost to canada 2 to zero in nations league official match. before this lucky win in extratime....his best results were a friendly tie vs uruguay and a friendly tie vs chile...and a friendly win vs ecuador....not exactly monumental results in US soccer history. Stop pretending. he got 1 lucky win....but before that he hasnt beaten a single good team. not once.
How am I to pretending? I said he's a new coach and we don't know what he is yet. You keep picking coaches with great results and great talent. You're correct about the Gold Cup my bad. Then the team started a rebuild. My point stands.... we don't know what we have yet.
we do know...you just havent been paying attention. You'll see eventually.. We know...he was named coach in 2018. Sarachan was his placeholder (2017)...he was already chosen when sarachan was coaching but he was allowed to waste USMNT time for his MLS job. "we started a rebuild" nah bro. GGG realized that he had it all wrong. he has been in place for 4/5 years...and still gets a lot wrong.....lucky to win at home vs Mexico in extra time.... how much more time does he need?????????????
Who was the last US coach to win 10 successive matches against CONCACAF competition, averaging 4 goals per game (done without a real prolific striker)? And I know a lot have been B type internationals but that's always been the way.
who was the last US coach to have 11 U23 players playing in the Champions League???? Historical standards should not be used to judge this team.
`Musah based on recent performances not starting vs Mexico is baffling. This should be the USA lineup going forward: Reyna, Sargent Pulisic, Musah, McKennie, Adams, Robinson, Brooks, Richards, Dest, Steffen/Horvath
idk bout sargent and robinson. sargent doesnt look like hes gonna score anytime soon and robinson has a tough time weighting his passes in the run of play.
If we're going on results, implementation, and planning, this was a hugely successful exercise all around. GGG's "European game", at altitude, and then 3 games, also at altitude, over like 7/8/9 relentless days was very clever. They vanquished their biggest rival and then capped it off mopping the floor against a good regional foe using mostly a B team, plus a recovering Tyler Adams. If moving forward Musah can start, and Adams can stay healthy, and Aaronson can see more of the field, and maybe Dike continues to show out and replace Sargent (or Sargent gets moved around, or improves), he has a great starting lineup, probably the best we've ever had talent-wise, and a very deep bench which is again, probably the best we've had. GGG is never going to be a great coach, but clearly the USMNT is coming, and is going to cause some waves in this generation. They're going to have plenty more memorable victories. If he can get enough of those really, really talented guys on the field, commit to defense, and dominate set pieces, that's probably enough. And those guys can figure it out too. Having McKennie in his pocket must help tremendously and clearly McKennie, Adams, and Pulisic are right now the focal point of the squad and as they go, so goes GGG. A lot of ifs, but after this past week, man, we've gotta believe.