I got to watch some of today's practice and snapped a few photos. http://home.earthlink.net/~chrisandmegferris/images/May_Howard-Brown.jpg http://home.earthlink.net/~chrisandmegferris/images/May_Armas.jpg http://home.earthlink.net/~chrisandmegferris/images/May_McBride-Jones.jpg http://home.earthlink.net/~chrisandmegferris/images/May_Mul-Mastro.jpg
I walked to the Rice soccer stadium yesterday, stepped through the unlocked gate, and saw the USMNT practicing. I then strolled over to the field (which is surrounded by a track) and stood on its edge about 10 feet from the perimeter of the field where the guys were practicing. I could hear Arena talking and exhorting the players. I could hear the players talking to each other and once in a while to themselves. The ball whizzed by me a couple of times after it went out of play. Mostly they played red shirts v. blue shirts, first in a keep-away/possession game, then in a game with three small 'goals' on each end (so that the teams had to defend three different spots, not just cluster in the middle). Then the teams played a scrimmage of 7 v 7 with goalkeepers on a shortened field. There were two players hugging either sideline wearing yellow jerseys. They played with whichever team had possession but rarely ventured into the field of play. They were like designated, permanent wingers for both teams. I watched for a little less than an hour, then headed back to work. It was really a thrill just standing there watching. No one said anything to me and I was able to take those pictures. I'm not going to talk about who looked good or not because I don't want Various Styles reporting back to El Tri. The biggest impression I look away was how quickly they move the ball around. When I play pick-up games on Saturday mornings, we pass the ball to each other at a moderate pace. But the USMNT guys were just whipping the ball to each other at a really fast pace. It's hard to appreciate that when you're watching from the stands in a stadium. I'm not really suprised (these guys are professionals, after all) but it was really something to see in person. Also, these quick passes were almost always controlled perfectly by the player receiving the pass. Again, I should not be surprised, but it's just so impressive to see that up close.
Maxim, why don't you go there to their practice site and find out yourself than tell us what happen..
It did look to be Donovan, McBride, Pope, Mastroeni, and Bocenegra in red, but was that Beasley in the third pick in Blue. I thought he would start, but I could be wrong. Scumby
well, as you always contribute excellent things to this site... but next time they're at the Borro i'll be right there for ya buddy. but as houston's a few thousand miles away at the moment, thanks for the post.
I don't think the blue vs. red team reflected starters vs. non-starters. Mostly I think Arena was going for equally matched teams in terms of position. For example, Pablo and Armas were on opposite teams since they play the same position. And Califf and Pope were on opposite teams as well, as were Clint and Landon. But there was no pattern that I could discern about likely starters vs. non-starters. Besides, the teams were only 7 v. 7 or 8 v. 8 so Arena couldn't have split them that way anyway.
I played pick up ball on the field next to this one all last summer. It's kind of surreal to see the national team practicing in the same space. Great work.
pretty standard USSF coaching stuff small sided games emphasize pace and movement and positioning and spacing the players on the side in yellow are called "windows" - another method to get flanks playing quickly and to use the width of the pitch. without keepers - possession ... with keepers match related training .... re: ball moving quickly - first touch is critical - must be perfect ... we still have to work on enhancing creativity in the attack - we aren't there yet.
great pics and report. thumbs up. i remember when i went to a number of practices down here in san diego a few years back. i know how thrilling and enlightening it can be to see it all from up close and personal.
[excited tenor]Hey cool, that's what I had my U-12 team do yesterday! [/excited tenor]...harrumph...um...I mean [basso profundo]Good post, there, zcgf02. [/basso profundo]
Yeah, it was really cool. I would have stayed longer but had to get back to work. I got me really fired up for tonight. I should also say that Clint looked really sharp. He was really active and vocal and scored a sweet header off a cross from Stewart. Califf looked tough on defense but, boy, he's got club feet. Brown amazed me by how quick he was. I know I've said that alot, but he got down to block a shot from point blank range. To see a guy that size get to the ground so fast was really remarkable.
Free Agent He he, rest assured there were some TriColor spies at the USMNT training Camp, including one of our Mexico forum regulars.. However you can say the same about the Mexican training camp.