Watching him you have to keep in mind Schalke is in bad form. Like really bad. There isn't much talent on that team. First 10 minutes were a disaster for McKennie. Giveaway led to a goal. Then in a scramble passes the ball back to no one which leads to Augsberg second best chance in the first half. Then really unnecessary push in the box which would have been a super soft penalty, but the chance was there. Settled in fine after that. His role was really weird. Sometimes center in a back 3. Sometimes deep CM. Sometimes RCB in a back 3. The guy WORKS. But this is the #1 problem with McKennie: how often do you read "well outside of that play that directly led to a goal, he was good"? The dude routinely makes mistakes that lead to goals. Part of that is Schalke is bad. But it's concerning. I also don't think he is real good under pressure which is an issue if you want to be a CM.
Had some good defensive moments and a few to a handful really really poor giveaways. He’s got to minimize those or his positive qualities are just completely offset with giveaways.
Bad game for him. He's playing a very tough role, trying to compensate for Schalke's terrible CB situation by being a DM/CB while at the same time trying to come out playing and helping the transition. Too much. McKennie is good, but not THAt good, at least not yet.
That's not just Schalke. Does the same on NT. I'd rather him not even trying penetrating passes from deep inside his half period at this stage. He is good enough without that.
Glad to hear he got better as the game went on. I only caught the first 10-15 minutes, and he had a couple horrible giveaways in that stretch.
Whatevs. i actually gave a second look today at the game (soccer starved here). It seems like concentration is maybe the issue, as others here have brought up. Yeah, on Nats and with Schalke, just too consistent with a gaffe type play. but, mckennie had some really good moments this game as well. Couple key passes, great defensive work. I hope he keeps on it, works on his focus, and becomes much more consistent. I really like what he brings to the game. And don’t forget how much of a beast in the air he is.
Every week is the same on here. Some laud him while most critique and diss him. Not sure if those expect him to be the best midfielder in Germany or so. Yet critics seem to agree he played well all things considered. So what is it? I'm too busy working catch his games but something must be said that hes been a strong member of the starting XI when healthy for the past few seasons.
Wes is a good player, he just suffers from that endless footie problem: he's not as good as we want him to be. He has an additional problem in that Schalke is not very good either - they have been flattered by their results. So when you hear "Schalke" and see their table position you expect a Schalke of years ago - and are kind of schoked at how poor they are. And Wes can't rise above the general level of the team. He's not good enough to drag them up. His heart is big, he motors, good ups. But his technical stuff is just pretty average for the Bund - not terrible, but not so much you go "ooh" when he gets the ball. If he had a bit more dangerous skill around him his hustle and work-rate would look better. That said: FWIW, both FotMob and WhoScored had McKennie as Schalke's MOTM against Dortmund.— Legion Update (@LegionUpdate) May 25, 2020 And this guy has "thoughts"... Weston McKennie for Schalke in a 3-0 loss to Augsburg73 minutes77 touches0 shots 1 key pass90.6% pass completion2 aerials won4 tackles (team high)2 interceptions3 clearances (team high)3/4 accurate long balls#USMNT— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) May 24, 2020
It does sound like a broken record but that’s what happens when McKennie puts in his typical type of performances and Schalke keeps getting smoked. McKennie has obvious holes in his game he must fix - limiting gaffes, being cleaner with the ball, etc. It’s really a problem that costly mistakes from him happen nearly every game. He can be better and should be better. His physicality, the disruptive presence, the ability to occasionally hit a really classy pass (sometimes from a deep position) are really strong aspects to his game. It’s easy to see McKennie being very useful to some clubs (and some very good teams, too), but not to Schalke right now. Schalke needs an overhaul. McKennie has probably been their best player, which obviously isn’t good enough for the team to compete. I don’t want to say he’s a luxury player because he can be really important on a balanced team. But he’s not a game changer, and that’s fine. A lot of really good players aren’t game changers - they instead need that balanced team to thrive. It’s a tough situation. It’s a balancing test for big clubs who are scouting McKennie. Are his strengths worth putting up with his mistakes? And given his youth, what are the odds he can improve specifically in the area of cutting down the mistakes? Or is that going to be an issue with him for his career? I don’t know the answer but I could see a few big clubs taking a chance on him. But then it will be on him to sink or swim. I’m bullish on McKennie. At a young age he’s above average at a lot of things at the Bundesliga level. That’s very impressive and should not be understated. But I’m also increasingly concerned whether Schalke is the right place for him anymore. Of course, players (specifically young players) shouldn’t look to bail when a club hits a rough patch. You gotta show some loyalty and willingness to fight. But this rough patch might not be ending anytime soon. Last year was also poor for Schalke and the problems haven’t been fixed. To help improve on his weaknesses, he needs a place where he can be confident, not frustrated. Frustration is certainly going to happen when players around him can’t score, or even create and defenders are frequently out of position. McKennie might be in a position where he feels he has to do too much, and he’s not that type of player (at least not now). If he’s frustrated and lacks confidence in his teammates, I could see him stagnate and continue to make the same types of mistakes. Also, his role and positions on the team are really fluid and that has also probably hurt his ability to grow and focus on what he needs to do. I’m wondering how much longer he can stay at such a club before it really starts to hinder his development.
I like the guy. I think some critics will be pleasantly surprised with his level of play in the future.
I don't watch English football anymore so I don't know where he would fit but surely there is a place for him in England.
what is the best setup to augment weston’s strengths and mitigate his developmental areas (while not ignoring them)? im not looking for a team but rather the specifics of a situation that would work
I don't have a clue, either, because he does not seem to ever gear his own play toward improving that of his neighbors on the field. The small group part of the game is terrible and McKennie seems disinterested in committing to it. He's an inconsistent participant in it, both at Schalke and the USMNT.
I think he is over-rated and is already playing above his level. I love and root for all Yanks but I personally just don't think McKennie is especially good.
kicker: Schubert4 Kenny4,5 Sané4 Nastasic4 Oczipka4 McKennie5,5 Caligiuri5 S. Serdar5 Schöpf5 Gregoritsch5,5 Matondo5
Figured Kicker would be very low. They don’t get hung up on whoscored type stats if there were obvious harmful errors and then an extra hit for everyone if team loses.
Yep. Rating is done by people and the gaffs stick out. Pure numbers don’t capture the impact of the gaffs. And people’s bias at seeing him getting off to a slow start and ending on a low note pretty much will kill subjective ratings, no matter what happened for most of the game. While I don’t agree he was the worst on the field for Schalke but, with impactful gaffs the German’s are pretty unforgiving. A guitar teacher told me once that you have to nail the beginning and end of a song, that’s what people remember. What happens in the middle will be forgotten.
I think there’s more than enough sample size of Weston to determine he’s not comfortable receiving the ball without time and space, plus, he’s not exactly a magician in the final third. Thus, playing deeper in a double pivot with Adams seems to make sense. Let him drive forward from deep when there’s space (he’s pretty good at that), but not be any sort of creative fulcrum. Let Reyna/Ledezma or whoever handle that centrally, and Adams handle the sweeping behind.