When he wasn't getting in his way. This isn't a specific knock on Lletget, just an observation that the two players have an affinity for the same space on the pitch and aren't a particularly complimentary combination together. I actually think that he's one of the two most important players from MLS on this squad and has earned his place as a versatile attack-minded squad player who quietly contributes consistently.
Feel like the "older core" from MLS that the chi-town boys was putting forth is actually not a bad core at all ( what can i say?) . And it works to the advantage of our younger team in its own unique way. Lletget- Skilled, efficient, Consistent, Worker, maturity, Teammate, free Becky G concert tickets* Morris- Fast, Worker, Physical force, Finisher, Experience, Teammate, finally went to Europe. Arriola- Fast, Worker, Scrapper, Experience, Teammate.
Shades of Donovan setting up Dempsey against Panama back in 2011. Nice play and I love the celebration.
Sebastian Lletget: raw # for #USMNT in 1-0 win vs Canada90 mins68 touches0 shots2 key passes3 chances created1 assist49/53 passing (91%)1/3 accurate crossing4/4 long balls6/9 duels won0/2 dribbles3x fouled0 fouls1/2 tackles- great first 25 mins, good overall— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) July 18, 2021
There are plenty of leagues where Lletget could play in Europe and be an asset. But European teams don't generally have a need to acquire mid-to-late 20s role players from the US; they have them over there already and while Lletget is capable, he's not bringing anything a random German can't. And on Lletget's side, he gets to live in LA, make $1M, and he's got a long term relationship with a recording star who isn't leaving LA.
Lletget, like Acosta, is a player the US should be looking to replace. If push comes to shove, I wouldn't be upset if these guys make the 23, but I would see it as a missed opportunity to improve the team. Lletget is a JAG in international soccer. If he's one of the best we've got, so be it, but I'd really be looking for someone better. There are a lot of intriguiing 8's, imo, like Williamson but that spot could go to someone like Hoppe, who might be a match winner. We have to keep watching Hoppe, but that kind of move could make a big difference at the WC.
Agree, but will take it one step further. ANY player on virtually ANY team would probably fall into one of 3 broad categories: old vet on downside of career, prime age player and young player. I think it is usually a pretty safe statement to say that in general, the vets and prime age players are are less likely to improve than the younger players and the most obvious target for replacement. All teams are always looking to improve themselves (at least they should), and they should be looking to move people up and down the depth chart on a continual basis to improve the team. Lletget is a prime age player that has shown to be competent but far from spectacular. Due to his age, he is not likely to improve significantly. Should we be trying to replace him? Yes. Is he a good candidate for replacement? There are many young players with potential to improve and overtake him. should we be looking for a replacement? yes. Is he the highest priority? I say no. keep our eyes open but higher priorities are getting back line and forward situation right. Lletget is on of the players we like to hate on. Is he the next coming of Messi, or even Pulisic? Absolutely not but he is not our weakest link either.
He may not be the weakest link but he's close. It would be interesting to see how people would rank a 23, and where he would fall on that list.
Without really looking at our roster, I would say there are a group of approx 3-5 that would be in a similar place to Lletget and 2-3 that I would put lower. I would put him at a similar level to Zardes, for example. A player that is useful and does some things well but still a good prospect for replacement if someone better comes along.
I'll put it like this. If Lletget is the weakest link, then we're doing OK from a player pool perspective. He's never going to be a world-beater, but he's a solid player who should be a good depth piece if used correctly. If we are upgrading from Lletget, I see that as a really good sign.
Lletget will hopefully end up our weakest starter soon, but he's not there yet. We still have some real question marks at striker, whatever you want to call the outside back situation and the centerback next to Brooks. And again, tons of guys with more potential. But he's nowhere near the weak link of the 23 right now.
Lletget would be viewed much more favorably if Gregg would take him off before his beach muscles use too much oxygen. He was one of the team's best players in the first half in UNL & here against Canada. But he faded both times. And that's the last thing many saw so it was defining to them.
Honestly, who would be our weakest starter if not Lletget? Are you talking about the poor squad we have now or assuming we can actually call on everyone? For me, he's certainly in the argument for weakest starter with a full compliment if he's a starter at all. McKennie and Adams lock own two midfield roles, so he's our weakest midfielder for sure and that's assuming you start him over Musah. If he's not our weakest starter, he's certainly in the conversation with maybe our striker being his main competition. I still think he totally deserves to be in the 23, but he's real borderline for a first 11.
I'd say that Striker and second CB are both weaker right now. I don't honestly think Steffen is too far ahead, either, and I'd say there's an open question mark, kind of, at fullback. I'm not going to get into the last two; there's not a lot of point. CB - I am very hopeful that Richards comes in and takes over the second CB spot, and I really like Mark McKenzie's potential, but I actually require either one of them to outperform Lletget to take that spot. Richards simply hasn't had the chance -- I expected him to do so in NL but he was hurt. McKenzie needs to have a window where he doesn't pass the ball to an opponent leading to a goal. Sorry, I don't make the rules. Striker - Josh Sargent has 5g in 1,000 USMNT minutes, but mostly against Cuba. Daryl Dike does have 3g in 300+ minutes, but mostly against Martinique. Siebatcheu came up MONSTER against Honduras, but it's a 1 in 164 minutes. Lletget's got 7g in 1400 minutes at CM. Do the strikers have more potential? OF COURSE. Am I excited to see someone seize the job? Absolutely. Have the strikers performed well overall for the USMNT? Eh, I'd argue that striker is the weak link in the attack. Someone may seize it soon. So that's why I think that Lletget will SOON be the worst starter, but I'd really like to see players actually step up at these spots rather than just assume they will. And also, I fully expect him to lose his job as a starter over the next year. Players improve quickly when they are young and Weah, Aaronson, Pomykal, Musah, Clark, etc are all coming for his spot in one way or another.
This is down right crazy. A guy who shouldn't be starting is viewed as a better starter than four others? It looks like Berhalter's assessment of players is weighing too much into this. Lletget isn't a better starter than Sargent or Pefok. It might seem that way to you because Lletget was someone gifted a spot and the other two have been challenged to fight for their spots. I recall both of the forwards completely out play Lletget vs Honduras. You didn't even list our best current right back. I have no idea why he doesn't rate Miazga, but he is the guy who has shown he can play at this level. I recall Miazga outplaying Lletget against Wales. The Steffen thing is laughable.
I think the biggest question is whether he starts at all once we figure out what we really have and where our key players will be playing. He will get starts, especially with rotation being used. But, for a fully healthy 11, I'm not sure he is the best option even now. My question for if he belongs in the 11 is how does he compliment our better players? If he compliments guys like Pulisic and Reyna, then his argument for inclusion gets a big boost. If he's the third best midfielder but someone else links better with those guys, he needs to sit. He is best case a complimentary player, which means he has to fit in with the stronger players, not the other way around. Role players need to play a role and support the key guys. His place in this team is super dependent on how well he works with other. And, we've seen so little of the others that we don't really know this yet. We do know that Pulisic and Reyna both tend to slide centrally while Lletget tends to slide a bit wide, particularly on the right which kind of creates a bit of a traffic issue. That's more or less my worry.
I think there's a good chance he isn't. I expect a lot of dudes to make a run, but in some cases, you are overloading the space with similar players, and in some cases the player is 18 and it's okay give them a phase in. Like I said, I don't expect Lletget to remain a starter. I'm not even entirely sure Berhalter has him as a starter -- Musah might not have been ready to fully commit. Agree. I don't really love Lletget as a player and I actually don't think he's exactly who you'd pick as a complementary player there. I just personally think the hate is absurd. The guy does have certain skills and strengths, and ignoring them is silly. There's such a binary style of player evaluation; it's really lacking. Lletget gets into good places and finishes pretty well. He is generally positionally disciplined, makes a few incisive passes a games, and gets the ball to the stars. He makes smart movements and runs. He plays within himself. He's also not great defensively, lacks speed and elite athleticism, not quick on the turn, has few one on one skills, but doesn't try it much. This isn't that hard. Sometimes you want a player out there who won't make many mistakes, who will funnel the ball to your best players and who will finish the chances when they fall to them. We don't need 11 aggressive dribblers. At some point soon, a number of players will likely overtake him by combining smart play, skill and athleticism Lletget doesn't have and take his job. It will happen. But he's going to play a bunch on WCQ, because we're going to be using 30 guys.
Against most of CONCACAF in three game windows, he'll get a ton of minutes in qualifying and he'll likely get some goals to show for it. I'm glad he's along for the ride and you never know with injuries and such. But at the World Cup, I'd expect his minutes to be limited as I can't see him winning the battle for the third in midfield if we play as we have with Adams and if we move to something with two deep central mids I think his path to minutes looks even tougher.
I don’t think he is better than Musah or Busio at the 8. And if Sargent is not playing up front, he’d be a better 8 also. But after that Lleget is good to have in the pool for now.