The Official Matías Almeyda thread

It was really thrilling that I got a chance to meet and speak with Almeyda today at the meet and greet luncheon!

We spoke about La Liga , Serie A and of course MLS. I talked to him in both Italian and Spanish about his incredible goal he scored against Gigi Buffon!

He said yeah it was great but too bad he only scored a few times in his playing career.

He is nice man and a great coach! Knows the game inside and out!

 

Shocking!

 

Shocking that he's a nice guy?

 

Shocking he knows the game inside and out. His predecessor certainly did not.

 

The underlying item to note here is that every article talks about the time to ramp up players which ultimately means anyone we get after the season starts are basically useless for the season.

Right now we are depending on Rios, Fierro and whoever shows up from the Academy as bench players

 

I’m worried about Yueill who’s going to miss preseason. I don’t believe the US camp is going to get him into the same fitness level. Also he’s missing the bonding time.

Problem is we absolutely need him in the center.

 

He's had a year to know exactly what is needed and he's a professional that didn't have a problem keeping up in his role last year. I would be surprised and disappointed if he didn't keep himself in shape in the off season.

 

Shea said all the players did much better in the beep and strength tests due to off season work outs. I doubt Yueill missed out on that. He knows what Almeyda expects. And he'll be back with the Quakes well before the season starts.

 

National team training methods and regimens are pretty intense. I've always retained club ball is a lot more entertaining than any national team game and I think teams play better together a the club and league level but as far as training and fitness is concerned, I don't think Yueill will lose that much.

In regards to fitness, from what I saw the other day, the players are very fit and could start playing right now. Whether they are fit enough to win off the bat remains to be seen.



Quakes counting on continuity to lead them to success in 2020

 

I don’t know. Lima missed Cancun last year and it seemed like he never really fit in well after that.

 

Is there some rule that every player will adapt in exactly the same way? And Lima was asked to play his position differently with Berhalter than he did with Almeyda. And Yueill has the advantage of already been indoctrinated into Almeyda's system.

 

Well I can understand why he’s with the National team - that’s important for him and I don’t think he made the wrong decision, but as a Quakes fan I think he’s missing out not being in Cancun.

Stupid camp cupcake.

 

Yes, it would be better to have him in camp, but, I wish him well in his Nats career.

 

Some players need time to adapt to a certain system or coaching tactic and some adapt right away. Lima and Jackson though are not the same type of player and have different characteristics. One is an overlapping defender down the wing and the other works every facet of the midfield. They aren't really the same in style, strength or stamina.

 

Seems totally different to me. Lima had no idea what Almeyda wanted from him, Almeyda had no idea what Lima had to offer. All this while every other player was also coming up to speed to the Almeyda system.

In Yueill's case this year, he already know what Almeyda wants, and Almeyda knows what he can do. And all the players around him know the system too.

Yueill may possibly miss out on whatever 'tune-up' or tweaks to the system that Almeyda puts in at the early part of this preseason camp. For all we know that could be none. But in any case, a tweak to a system is way easier to catch up too than learning a whole new system of play.

 

I actually am glad that Lima will be there for preseason. It will give Almeyda the chance to try him at a mid/wing position instead of wasting him on the bench backing up the left back position.

 

Problem is, we don't know if he fit in before that. Lima's performances have been all over the map. I'd argue they've been more negative than positive even going back to his first year under Kinnear. Missing the preseason training with the Quakes certainly didn't help him, but I have a feeling it was less an issue than other factors.

That said, I'm not happy about any player missing time with the Quakes, especially if it's for national team duty. I think the instruction the guys are getting under Berhalter is significantly lower in quality and, in many cases, will totally be contradicted by what Almeyda wants and expects. Almeyda is extremely generous with his words on the opportunities the players are getting, but I do wonder if he's privately frustrated by it. If it were me, I'd be fuming.

 

Our coach is cooler than yours. @peladoalmeyda | @FlySJC pic.twitter.com/gUzo8qhXmK

— San Jose Earthquakes (@SJEarthquakes) January 29, 2020

 

He's cool, all right, but nobody will ever be as cool as this guy:

 

He's riding a girls bike!

 

He is not afraid to ride one, that's why he is so cool.

 

Is that on the LG Creek Trail on the way to Vasona Park?

 

The lg creek trail on the way to Vasona is black. I run it every weekend.

If this is a recent picture it must be in Cancun- he’s probably going to the training field.