I do think these fall friendlies have gotten more interesting given Canada's run/the Marsch angle and given that we lost to Panama and should be looking for redemption in that one.
Really want to see Tanner Tessman and Cade Cowell on the roster for next friendly. Also Jordan Pefok to see how he competes with others.
I gotta admit even though I'm glad we're getting a new coach, I kinda feel robbed of the Berhalter/Marsch grudge match.
Yeah, it’s time for open competition again. Its time for a cultural reset. In my opinion if a guy isn’t playing at his club, he shouldn’t be there. These guys should be forced to find ways to stay in form at their clubs. On that note, I call in Cade Cowell.
Might be better to schedule a formal with legit refs intra-squad match instead of playing CONCACAF again. Let's see Tessman, Reyna and Cardoso against MMA. Might tell us all something.
I don't think we can go too far with speculating about the roster until we know who the coach is. I think the best guys are the best guys and will be called up by whomever is the coach (Pulisic, A. Robinson, Balogun, Reyna, McKennie, etc.). But then I think some of the positions deeper on the roster might fluctuate depending on the formation and style a new coach wants to play.
I suspect that as roster selection is only a month or so away......................we're going to have an interim manager for this. Wouldn't surprise me if Mitrovic returns from the Olympics and runs this camp. It's gotta be somebody under contract. I'd love some interim manager to take over and beat the snot out of Marsch and Canada.
Marsch has another gruge. He said that you need to manage Tyler Adams carefully because he is super competitive. To be smart to manage his minutes and body and not ran him into the ground. Now Tyler is being ran into the ground, and his whole career is in jeopardy now.
Marsch will say anything about anything. For Heaven's sake, Tyler Adams had played zero 90 minute games for the USMNT since the World Cup. We were very much managing his minutes and body ...................then for the do-or-die game against Uruguay at Copa America we played him the 90 minutes. The most important game the USMNT played since the World Cup. I really can't wait for us to beat the snot out of this Canada team.
One thing is for sure, Jesse will have Canada motivated and ready to play. I hope we have a manager ready and able to do the same.
I don’t think his career is in danger. He’s out for the start of the season but he should be back sometime this fall.
Well Jesse is right, despite your emotions. And it is an extremely rational perspective to suggest Tyler’s mins have been poorly managed by both club and NT. How do you disagree with that when he’s now out until Oct/Nov at a minimum after another surgery, this one on his back. After his club coach said they did not want Adams playing in Copa and he was batting pain and an injury when finishing the season.
At this point...........................it seems like we're going to need an interim coach for this window. It's a month away.
Well if we hire Matarazzo this week it’s probably fine. Jesse Marsch had very little lead time for instance between being hired and his first camp and it was fine. And if we do an interim I’m guessing Mitrovic with Varas as the main assistant.
From the Copa America roster: GK Matt Turner - If he can’t figure out his club situation, he should be dropped sooner than later. But if I’m a new coach, I guess I wouldn’t rock the boat too much. But he would not be guaranteed to start…. I cannot stress enough. He is very close to being forgotten. GK Ethan Horvath - Not good enough. Would call in Patrick Schulte who had a decent Olympics. GK Sean Johnson - Never should have been on the Copa roster. Would call in Matt Freese because he’s having a good season and we don’t have better options. RB Joe Scally - We’re in trouble if something happens to him. RB Shaq Moore - I’m between Bryan Reynolds or Marlon Fossey. At the moment, I want to see what Fossey can do. We’re really lacking depth options at right back options, with Sergino Dest out. [to be honest, I want to see Reynolds and Fossey both bad enough that I might call in 27 players] CB Tim Ream - Too old. Move on. Although, he’s old, I’d say, call in Walker Zimmerman who could hopefully be this cycle’s Ream. CB Chris Richards - He had a terrible Copa. But he’s the best we got. CB Cameron Carter-Vickers - He was also poor at the Copa. But Miles isn’t great either and just played in two tournaments, and McKenzie is about to transfer, it looks like. Makes sense to keep CCV. CB Miles Robinson - I guess, let him stay with his club, for this window. We won’t need 5 center backs anyways. He needs work to do anyways to be considered locked in. I would call in Kevin Paredes as a back up left back and winger for this camp. CB Mark McKenzie - I don’t know what’s going on with his club situation. And, he still has work to do. Therefore, replace him with Auston Trusty for this window. LB Jedi Robinson - Bubblewrap him. Behind Pulisic, he’s our most irreplaceable player. LB Kristoffer Lund - I don’t know what Berhalter saw in him. He’s not a terrible prospect. But he’s a rotational player in Serie B. Who replaces him? Caleb Wiley will be settling in. That rules him out in my book. John Tolkin should transfer abroad but I don’t think he will until winter and after a good Olympic game (minus the Morocco game), he looks primed to be our back up left back. At least he deserves his shot. Kevin Paredes could play there, but I got him on the wing for this window. The others (Bello, Gomez, Brown, etc.) can wait. MF Tyler Adams - Injured. I would feel safe letting Lennard Maloney get an extended look. MF Weston McKennie - I’d be tempted to leave him off because of his potential club situation. But no way a new coach will want to do that. MF Yunus Musah - He’s got to be there. MF Johnny Cardoso - Deserves to be there. MF Luca de la Torre - Let Tanner Tessmann settle in with his new club. October would be a good time to bring back Tessmann. Gianluca Busio, Rokas Puktsas, Paxten Aaronson, and others can wait. MF Gio Reyna - No matter his club situation, which he needs to sort out fast, no way would a new coach not want to bring his number 1 or number 2 difference maker. MF Malik Tillman - I came close to cutting Tillman who has not been impressive with the national team yet. But can a new coach figure out to get the PSV / Rangers Tillman? WG Christian Pulisic - Captain America. Most guaranteed player to be on the roster. He’ll want to meet the new coach, and the new coach will want to meet him. WG Tim Weah - You can disagree. But new coach equals clean slates. We cannot afford to cut him. WG Brenden Aaronson - Aaronson can wait. I would like to see what Griffin Yow can do after an impressive Olympics. [Remember from above that I’ve got Paredes coming in too; replacing Miles Robinson] WG Haji Wright - Nothing against Haji. He would be called in sometime this year. But I feel obligated to call in Diego Luna after his Olympic snub to keep him in the picture. FW Ricardo Pepi - Let him stay at PSV for now. It won’t hurt him. I’d say call in Brandon Vazquez who deserves a look. Pepi can get a call back at either October or November camp. FW Folarin Balogun - He needs a better 24/25 than his 23/24 to stay locked in, but as our most talented forward, he’s in. FW Josh Sargent - Since I’ve got Haji and Pepi sitting this one out, I’ve got Sargent sticking around. I still see Jordan Pefok (and you too, Downs and Kahveh).
Vs Canada: —————-—Balogun—————— Pulisic————Reyna———McKennie ————Cardoso——Musah———— Jedi—————————————Scally ————Richards——-—CCV———— ————————Turner——————- Subs: Fossey (Scally), Trusty (CCV), Maloney (Musah), Paredes (McKennie), Tillman (Reyna), Sargent (Balogun) ….Not many big changes in line ups for this one. If I’m the new coach, I want to see who the team is. And then, adapt. Vs New Zealand: —————Balogun—Sargent—————- Pulisic—————————————-Reyna —————Musah———Cardoso———— Jedi———————————————Scally —————-Richards——Zimmerman——— ————————Schulte————————- Subs: Freese (Schulte), McKennie (Cardoso), Tolkin (Jedi), Yow (Reyna), Vazquez (Sargent), De la Torre (Musah). ….First, you’ll notice that Weah is the only player to not play in this camp (besides Luna, who can wait). That’s on purpose. He sits this one out for penance but he’s still part of the team. That said, we need to try a different look for the NZ game. How do we look in a 2 forward formation? We need to try some experiments early in the cycle, before needing to try them in a tournament. Also, I’m playing around with options at the back. I want Johnny to having a bigger role this window. And I’m willing to try out our keeper options.
wildly speculating, just talking to talk- a matarazzo-esque hybrid evolving from our "current" setup... from ___________turner _______richards__trusty scally__________________jedi _______musah__johnny weah_______wes________puli ___________balo____________ to ___________turner ___scally__richards__trusty__ _______musah__johnny______ weah_______wes_________jedi ______________puli ___________balo obviously, nothing is set as of now, but im just thinking first camp back possibilities. in terms of roster i think we will start by setting our baseline, so... gk turner, schulte, slonina rb scally cb richards, miles, zim, brooks, trusty lb jedi, tolkin cm musah, johnny, maloney, tesserman am (and i use "attacking" very lightly) wes, gio w puli, weah, paredes st balo, sarge keeper is obviously wide open, but you have to start with turner -again as a baseline. whoever comes in (while i am predicting specifically for matarazzo here, i think this applies pretty broadly) horvath is probably out. and no offense to freese but a form mls vet rally doesnt do anything for us. i think we are going to be "experimenting"/auditioning a lot less than many think. schulte, gaga and possibly celentano, less possibly brady are about it. i think richards, miles and possibly mckenzie are more likely as the alternative for scally than any rbs out there, and the biggest effect of a 3atb/hybrid setup is dest almost certainly moves firmly into the wb/wing rotation. so scally is likely the starter as we start transitioning, richards and miles as rcb/cb options, zim and brooks as cb options with trusty (or brooks) at lcb, with jedi fully a wingback. for the record, i dont think theres a high chance brooks gets into the team in any real sense, but i do think he could be really helpful as we settle in if it is matarazzo. like horvath, theres no manager thats going to be invested in ream at all so i really dont expect to see him unless this really is last chance saloon for the 3 older cbs. i think zim can be a solid roster option as that anchor cb, but hes not close to someone i want to actually play. i am very clearly on the record as a trusty guy, and while not a fan i dont have ccv out as much as on hold until we figure out what the 3 olds have to offer. looking at the world cup- because nothing before then matters- i want brooks and ream out by the end of the year period, so our pool going into next year is hopefully down to scally, miles, richards, miles, zim, trusty and mckenzie. dest is the right sided wb option, and ccv is depth. adams will theoretically walk back into the two cms with johnny, musah, tesserman and possibly morris. i have maloney here based on having a year in the top flight under his belt, and youd assume pellegrino is more familiar with him than the other guys. the third (use of the) cm is a lot harder to predict. matarazzo has used a "christmas tree" 3-4-2-1 that would work with gio and puli, but i think a more facilitating/pressing player (with puli playing free behind/off the st) is more likely, hence wes. i also think morris is a decent shout for that sort of role, but thats also getting pretty far ahead of ourselves. im not sure luca fits there (or deeper). musah def doesnt. tillman remains an alternative to gio, who im not entirely sure starts out in the 11. while i think people have the impression pm relies on a press more than he actually does, but its hard to see an overly passive midfield either; hence tillman and luca being big question marks for me. and if youre still undecided on gios willingness/ability to press and/or defend then i dont know what to tell you- evaluation just isnt your thing. on that, though- you know how everyone gets the "star wars" quote wrong, its really "no, i am your father"? what marsch said about gio wasnt that he wouldnt call him/guys that werent playing with their clubs in- he said hed/theyd start out on the bench. and that is completely and totally reasonable- but once gio gets minutes that pragmatism goes away. so i think thats a pretty likely outcome with gio. by all means, dont just hand him a spot when (if) hes not playing with his club, but hes our best cm (with wes the only comp). thats just the truth. anyways, obviously weah as a nominal wb/winger and i think paredes slots in directly behind him, with puli making up the "wing" rotation. i think puli is going to move into much more central areas with jedi becoming the (heavily) primary wide presence, but paredes could take over the weah wb-ish role with weah pushing central the other way. wright could find his way in as a fairly like-for-like for puli, but i dunno, im not really keeping up with numbers here... i dont think wright is likely as a st as he doesnt play there with his club, and pepi probably has to earn his way back in under whoever it is, so balo and sarge up top. i think guys like ccv, morris, brendan and vazquez can certainly find a way/or be right back into the team i just think we have to weed out some guys first. i dont think talking about cbs below neal, or yow getting into the team is remotely realistic. we are going to have soft spots in the team because in some positions the players just arent there. bringing josh wynder in cause ccv is painfully mediocre doesnt help anything, and we dont have the time to mess around. we (meaning the new manager) have to revaluate the top end to put the best team together to play whatever we are going to be. im not pumped to watch zim get caps rather than mckenzie or trusty (much less neal or dietz) but thats the way it is. we wasted two years hoping mid as hell was going to magically turn into good enough- we dont have that luxury anymore. and lets be real here- weve spent the last 6 years with roldans and johnsons filling out our rosters, so im not interested in a lot of complaints about caleb wiley, or the american yamal...if thats going to happen its going to have to happen at the club level and be irresistable. 7 goals in belgium isnt irresistable.
Now that Olympics are over, I think Tessman and Busio shouldn't be used in the next USMNT senior friendlies. They need time to integrate with their clubs, and Tessman may be with a new club by then. I also think that players in transfer purgatory (McKennie) should be left off the roster - he'll either need to integrate into a new club, or be awaiting a transfer and can't risk an injury. And please no Ream - he needs to be put out to pasture after his move back to MLS. New players to call up that weren't at Copa or Olympics: Lennard Maloney Jordan Pefok Rokas Pukstas Emmanuel Sabbi Cade Cowell Brandon Vasquez Auston Trusty Cole Bassett Julian Green
This looks pretty good to me. The only change I'd make for sure is that I'd still call up Ream even if he's old and back in MLS. Keep bringing him in until enough guys prove they're better than him. CCV sure wasn't at the Copa.