Repost from another thread. My starting lineup vs. Brazil: [LINEUP-4-4-2]Morgan, Wambach, Rapinoe, Cheney, Boxx, HAO, Cox, Sauerbrunn, Rampone, Krieger, Solo[/LINEUP-4-4-2] Cheney replaces Lloyd at AM/CM. She has just as powerful and inaccurate shot as Lloyd but better than Lloyd in every other way. She can hold the ball better, distribute better, combine better, doesn't lose the ball all the time, higher soccer IQ, etc... Cox isn't any faster than LePeilbet but she is a true LB and actually has a left foot. Sauerbrunn is just better than Buehler or LePeilbet in every way. She is a better defender, better distributor, less spastic in the way she play the game (calmer). Morgan in for Rodriguez, simple really. But this will never happen with Pia in charge.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil Well I'll tell you what, the U.S. has a good chance to beat Brazil because they haven't look all the fluid yet. Their backline is very susceptible right now. However, if LePeilbet plays LB we will lose. Fabiana and Marta will torch her.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil Said this in the other thread, has Boxx ever been tried at CB? Or Rampone at FB? Now, I seriously doubt Pia would do either, but looking at this team, it is something that would have crossed my mind a long time ago. Someone who can complete a pass must be in CM somewhere. Cheney would be my choice. Or Lindsey. Or both. Lloyd hasn't been good. Boxx was a bit better today. If Cheney moves inside, I'd put A-Rod wide opposite HOR and put Morgan up top with Abby. Those seem to be our best attacking players. And I don't really think any D we put out there is going to shut down Brazil. At least with all that speed (A-Rod, Morgan, HOR) Brazil will likely not play a high line (especially with 3 in the back), and Cheney and/or Lindsey will have some room to work in MF.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil Who do you want to put there? I think Cox is a viable option and probably our best option right now. Kreiger is solid and I wouldn't mess with our center backs against Brazil. We need to do something different in the midfield because there is way too much open space for the Brazilians. HAO will help and Cheney needs to make sure that she comes back to play defense (which she did well today against Sweden so she seems to be getting more comfortable there.) I would like to see Lori and Boxx in the midfield. I don't think we can afford to sit Boxx right now because her physical presence will be needed. I like Lori because she can control the ball a bit better than Lloyd which we will need.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil It remains to be seen which Brazil team shows up for this one. And it doesn't really have a lot to do with the players themselves, but by the coach's tactical decisions. Against Australia, he had them play an all out press, and of course, there is that 3 back with 3 markers. I have a feeling he's going to pull a Ryan and try something totally out there like 4 or 5 attackers on our restraining line. The only way we're going to win is if we maintain our composure and slow down the game. We need to frustrate them for as long as possible to prevent them from building up rhythm. We also need to close down the passing lanes to Marta because there's no way we can mark her with the defense we've got. Also, body up Christiane. She tends to get hot headed easily.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil I don`t forsee Pia making many changes. HAO for ARod and maybe AmyLe gets the mercy hook (Cox in). Other than that your team has to rely on the means that brought them here. Which makes this match-up a coin toss or close to it. I don`t quite get why everybody claims the Brazilian D as suspicable. If so then Germany and the USA sport a true disaster in their backline. Out of the three Brazil has the best overall balance and probably the least clear cut weakness. Brazil seems to be sloppy on some simple plays and doesn`t quite enjoy the premier goaltending of team Germany/USA. But thats it. They ain`t slow nor technically inept or physically weak. Besides they play a pretty defensive minded game so far. Sitting back (surprisingly) deep and waiting for the counter attack. This in my book is poison for the U.S. game. Lloyd, Boxx and company often look puzzled and lacked composure when they have to make the game and create opportunities by the means of their passing skills. In the meanwhile that slow backline will face the Brazilian forwards with lots of open space to work with. Their game flow certainly leaves a lot to desire but so far their tactical approach has worked out. For your team to advance I expect Hope Solo to have a really tremendous game to take Brazils opportune scoring out of the game. Oh ... and someone needs to get under Marta`s skin to reduce her impact. Not mission impossible but looking forward to this match I see Brazil having a slight advantage.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil I totally agree with the Cheney in midfield idea. But the person I would replace is Boxx, not Lloyd. Boxx has been terrible at receiving balls and doesn't really offer the same threat Lloyd does with her hard shots.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil Can't make too many changes. But we need to get Bornstein's sister out of LB, she has been a obvious weak point every game.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil I haven't been following the team as closely over recent years as many here have (I only started following them closely during qualifying, particularly due to 2nd leg against Italy being at Toyota Park), but I'd go with a similar lineup to the one the OP posted. I'd actually prefer to start Rodriguez over Morgan, though. I know a lot of people here seems to love Morgan and hate Rodriguez, but from what I've seen of the team this year, Rodriguez is the much more active player and doesn't disappear in games like Morgan did against Sweden. I'd rather have Rodriguez on the end of scoring chances (however bad her finishing) than Morgan not getting the chances at all. I don't see what threat Lloyd's long-range shooting poses to Brazil . . . they were simply turnovers in the game against Sweden. Every time she got within 30 yards, she was looking to shoot, and I think she sent at least 5 long range shots sailing well over the bar during the game. I don't know if it was just out of desperation at being down by a couple goals, but there were clearly better things to do than launch 25-30 yard shots in the general vicinity of the goal. She got a really lucky one to go in vs. Colombia, but to go in like that one did, they have to be on frame. Boxx's play wasn't great, but at least she was trying to pass the ball (and as a result, was more effective than Lloyd). Honestly, Lloyd should have been the first player subbed off today (the defensive issues weren't as big when Sweden was sitting back on a 2 goal lead).
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil sit boxx, buehler, AmyL. They shouldn't be playing. brazil is going to DESTROY our left side. cheney has been most solid all three games. nice to see her blossom. first game she didn't track back enough, but she's really done a lot better. and she'll have to against brazil.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil Morgan can finish consistently while Arod shanks open netters. I think Lloyd would have a lot more opportunities with the system Brazil plays. They play very open on the attack and I think we can take advantage of that on a counter. Since they also play with a marker/sweeper system, there could be even less pressure on her. In all honesty, I also think Boxx has lost that dominance she once had. I don't remember a time during the group games that I thought she had a strong performance.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil LePeilbet vs Marta.I think Marta is afraid.LePeilbet plays with much passion.But I've never seen such a crutch in a USA-Womans nationalteam.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil What about Rapinoe? Anyone else besides me thinks she should sit out? She wasn't particularly dangerous. With a team as fast as Brazil, I think she will be easily nullified on the wings. Maybe we could sacrifice her and go with a 433: Morgan-Wambach-ARod Cheney-Lloyd-HAO etc With our backline the way it is, maybe a better strategy would be to just go at them. If we get toasted, we knew the defense was shaky at best... What's there to lose?
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil I agree that Rapinoe was poor yesterday. Showed why Pia's one right move this cup has been to start Cheney over her in the first 2 games. A 4-3-3 would get run through like a sieve, especially against a Brazil team that is throwing numbers forward into midfield & the front line. A 4-3-3 exacerbates the midfield problems that were exposed yesterday. And those of you that think Boxx is the problem and not Lloyd --Watch the game(s) again. Granted, I've said for over a year that Pia needed to find a backup/replacement for Boxx's 33 year old legs. But she didn't. And if I'm picking one to sit and one to play in my do or die game? I'm going w/ Boxx over Princess. For the poster who asked about Rampone as an outside back, Pia has never played her there. Of course, Christie made her bones as an attacking outside back but at 36 her place is in the middle. But there have been discussion here about why Pia tried all the slower CBs at left back and not Rampone (the fastest of the bunch even though she's lost a half step). I think the best we've collectively come up w/ is that Rampone's in the middle b/c someone needs some sort of recovery speed. Not that there aren't/weren't fast defenders in the pool that could have been used. Of course, pairing your fastest two defenders on the same side doesn't exactly help balance the 4 player line. But hey, that's how Pia rolls. sigh.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil This game will decide Pia's future in US Soccer. Clearly she has not built the team she should have and clearly, we have lots of problems. Adjustments must be made before the Brazil game or we're going home. Will Pia make any adjustments or will she come out with the same team + O'Reilly and stick to what hasn't worked so far? If she does not attempt to adapt then she should be gone. Even if she does adapt and loses.. it may be too late. There is no way we should lose to Norway during a pretournament warmup (we saw how good Norway was) and Sweden. We are too old and she's sticking with players that aren't producing or are simply too slow for the international game
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil If we're talking about gameday changes we'd like to see: #1 - Sundhage for DiCicco. Hell, get Paul Riley out there and have him bring Kai, DiMartino and McNeill too. What's just as worrying for me as formation/lineup issues is what several people have mentioned in passing: the smiling, jocular nature of the team (which, as has been suggested, is probably Pia's sunny disposition rubbing off on them). "Ruthless" and "killer instinct" are not words I would associate with our team over the last few years (excepting HAO). When you see Marta play, she is all business except for maybe 15 to 20 seconds after she scores; then it's back to frowns and scowls. She plays like she has a really big chip on her shoulder and absolutely nothing will satisfy her except complete annihilation of the other team. The USWNT, well, no. Pia needs to be giving a game-day speech like DeNiro in The Untouchables ("I want them DEAD! I want their families DEAD!")(not literally, obviously, but you get the point). Ellertson and Mcneill have both defended Marta well in WPS games this year; hopefully someone on the WNT was paying attention. For me, our best players so far have clearly been HAO, Cheney, Krieger. I can't blame LP for being played out of position. That was Pia's decision. If you're on the team, you do what is best for the team and that usually means doing what the coach tells you (or, in most cases, "yer out!"). Pia had a tough choice to make with 3 excellent CB's, but she copped out and put LP out wide and sold her with the "you can do it, I believe in you" talk instead of saying, "Hey, for me, you're 3rd best, so you sit". People on BS have been complaining about this move from the beginning. Everyone knew it was a disaster except Pia. The hate LP is getting now is very undeserving for an exceptional defender. Having said that, Cox has got to start, no question. Boxx, I think, is going to get steamrolled by Brazil and will be a complete non-factor; Lloyd getting disposessed is like taking candy from a baby (especially when the baby just passes the candy to you). Both players are way too hot/cold from game-to-game. Chances of both being hot against Brazil....slim. 100% agree with getting Sauerbrunn in there. PS - Nice to see folks migrating over from other areas for the WNT. The critiques and analysis have been very interesting!
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil Much more effective using her energy and decent speed to run at tired legs as a sub.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil Oddly, the worst players yesterday were not the oldest players. But I lost faith in Pia during qualifying and would have fired her before the WWC. I would definitely fire her after the WWC regardless -- unless we somehow manage to win the d@mn thing (which we won't). As for tomorrow? It would be nice if some of the bench players had gotten significant time in friendlies so we'd know if they were able to step up or not. Pia won't start Morgan. If she won't even play her 90 vs Colombia, she won't start her vs Brazil. LP may have had enough of a shocker that Pia will sit her but Pia's been d@mn reluctant to play Cox. And I just can't see Pia making 2 changes to the backline no matter how good we think Sauerbrunn might be. sigh.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil Foudy made some sort of comment during the Colombia game about "Heather O'Reilly is looking very intense today." I turned to my friend and said, "She always looks like that!"
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil I think it may be nearing Pia's time to go regardless of how the tournament turns out. Teams need different leadership and new visions to keep them fresh and I think Pia has run her course. But this is a conversation for after the WC I don't know if Morgan is ready to be a starter for this team. Yes she looks great coming off the bench (and I was one who was screaming for her to come in yesterday and I normally love her.) She had some good opportunities yesterday but she didn't look solid out there for a full 45 minutes. I think part of what makes Morgan so good is that she is speedy when the defense is wearing out. I am okay with keeping ARod out there at this point. Her and Abby have been playing better as of late and I think ARod is creating some opportunities but she just isn't putting them away (which I know at this level she needs to.) Brazil will be a tough opponent and I am more concerned about Lloyd & Boxx at this point then I am about ARod's play. We lost the ball yesterday in the center of the midfield and because of that it put extra pressure on our defense to come up with big plays. Boxx and Lloyd must play better in order to contain Marta otherwise she will have a field day against us on Sunday. That being said I am confident this team can win. They didn't look all that bad against Sweden. Brazil's fitness is still a question to me and it seems like the US players' fitness is one of their strengths at this point. I think around the 75' we will see the US create some good opportunities against a tired Brazil team and think this would be the time to bring in Morgan.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil The mids and forwards fell apart in the second half. nobody was delivering crosses, lloyd and boxx weren't passing to the final third, or dribbling to take defenders off the back line. there was no movement and abby was often falling into the midfield to collect the ball - meaning Morgan had three defenders on her at all time....and wasn't getting the ball. The girl just needs a full 90 or two, which should have happened before the WC started.
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil I am only for dismissing Coach Pia only if USWNT fails to win the 3rd place... I don't think that it will be a major problem to stick with Coach Pia until after London Olympics...Provided that she delivers the 3rd place finish this year...I think her contract does run until London Olympics...
Re: Pre/pbp/post 7/10 USA vs. Brazil Honest question: What have you seen in her performance that warrants keeping her through the Olys? Or is your opinion based on the fear that USSF might hire Ellis or April again if Pia goes b/f the Olys? If it's the latter, I totally get it and have that fear myself. Talk about ruining a once proud program...