The USA vs Canada Post Match Preservation Thread

Positive:

- good at defense and Brooks was a definite upgrade and Dest is solid

- on attack we are very efficient.

Very negative:

- in long periods at both half we can can hardly touch the ball and when we did, we gave ball away easily and that was reflected on stats (36% possession and 68% passing accuracy). Is it GGG's adjusment? Kind of, but we still sucks on consistent ball movement. It was against Canada, we should be able to maintain decent possession time even when we are trying to protect lead.

 

So basically our midfield is still trash.

 

Didn't start watching until about 30 mins in. Yup, that is all.

 

Was pretty good defensively in not allowing dangerous runs and open shots but sputtered offensively. I thought Llegtget was OK but not great. I still think there are some younger players who will eventually be better at the 8/10 spot. McKennie's passing was off all night and I'm guessing he hyped himself up too much because of the previous loss and it resulted in some hyper running around and off passing. Yueill is an upgrade from Bradley and Trapp. He doesn't hit the very occasional beauty that Bradley can bring but runs and fights and that alone is refreshing. I like that Berhalter is using a more complete #6 but since Bradley wasn't available we don't know that he wouldn't have started if he'd been there. Still think Adams is a huge upgrade but Yueill is a good candidate for his backup. His passing is good but not great. Arreola was a good fit for this game where fight was more important than quality but obviously Pulisic is a huge upgrade. So ... the team would look immensely better with Adams, Pulisic and a calmer McKennie. I think moving Dest to left back and using Cannon or Yedlin would also help instead of Ream at left back.

 

Of course you can pick on a lot of faults in the match. And it was just Canada. But that said I thought we looked better. Much better.

The defense was quite solid and didn't have their usual once or twice a game aw shit moment.

The attack was there most of the night and was dangerous. Kudos to Jordan Morris. He has really picked up his game over the last year and I have no issues with him being out there against any team we will play.

Zardes actually had a dang nice game. Helped a lot on defense and had two one touch finishes for goals, both intentional.....lol.

McKennie as already posted was just too hyper. But I will take the positive stand on that. It showed me he gives a damn and wanted to make up for that abysmal match in Toronto last month.

I would have like to have seen Dest on the left and Cannon or Yedlin on the right but it was solid they way they did come out.

Lleget is better than Roldan.

Yuiell is better than Bradley.

Brad was in control in the back and kept the defense organized.

Brooks is just the anchor we need. Sure wish he could stay healthy.

GGG - Now I will give him some credit here.
a. The team came out on fire and gave a damn.
b. Notice how while they still want to play out the back that they didn't insist on doing so when it wasn't smart. More clearances last night and I like that.

 

Wonderful game. USA had a phenomenal 69% pass completion rate. Canada deserves all the credit for being as bad this time as they were good the last time. USA deserves credit for finishing well in the first half, despite sucking much of the time (note the pass completion rate). The team also deserves credit for at least trying to win this time. See? it actually can work with the right attitude and effort despite other problems (see pass completion rate). The second half pretty much sucked. Period.

Seems to me that if McKennie plays as the team adds young players down the road, the team success will depend on how he fits into the group. Right now, he is a mix of industriousness, poor decision making and a lack of consistent quality contribution to the small group attacking and defending structure. In other words, a bit of a loose cannon. That must change, IMHO, or he will/should be dropped (assuming a decent replacement).

 

This is the way the first game with Canada should have ended.

 

69 percent completion is not phenomenal

 

Really?
And let me add for clarity, the USA also had a phenomenal 36.4% possession!

 

Hopefully Mr. Clean realizes that a man of Tyler Adams class and tenacity is needed IN THE MIDFIELD.

Assuming Mr. Clean comes to his senses, I'm really excited to eventually see a midfield pair of McKennie and Adams IN FRONT OF a CDM NOT named Bradley or Trapp.

If he can just get THAT through his thick skull, we just might get back on track and stabilize the midfield with speed, youth, tenacity, and quality.

Oh, and get Ream the hell off the roster permanently. Move Dest to LB and put Yedlin at RB. They can use the "Zone marking" excuse all they want but the goal was Ream's fault AGAIN. Maybe he's solid for his club, but he's always been prone to crucial lapses for the national team. On top of that he's too slow to play on the outside and against better teams will (and always has) get roasted.

 

I believe the E in ESPN stands for entertainment. (The Entertainment and Sports Programing Network).

Somebody tell GGG

 

I wish I knew if MB was done or not. If he is done I could feel good about our chances. Zardes has his uses, even if he doesn't score he can be useful. I was encouraged in our willingness to boot the ball when necessary, concerned at how often that was necessary.

Still not sold on the Egg, but he is ours until we get to Qatar or not.

I still think Pulisic is our 10. Can Lletget play an 8? Against all but Mexico in our region we ought be playing very attack minded with Puli in the 10 and Morris on one wing, up top and the other wing is anybody's guess.

I don't hate Ream, but don't think he should keep a Dest, or Yedlin, or even a Lima on the bench or off the squad. I like Long, he is fast and if Brooks is our main guy we need a speedy CB. I would rather play with fast overlapping fullbacks and three dedicated cbs.

Yeuill appears to be a serviceable midfielder.

 

One good result doesn't change the fact that US Soccer is a horribly mismanaged organization and that major structural change is still needed at all levels of USSF.

 

With all the corruption within FIFA and CONCACAF, and also knowing how financially prudent it is for Canada to be a player out of North America, it would shock me someone didn’t slip someone some money to keep Canada in the Hex.

 

while both were disappointing, McKennie played much better after morales was on the field.

I agree that we will go as far as McKennie/Pulisic/Adams/brooks take us and getting the first two to play up to their ceiling is the key.

 

If you play contrattacking game with fast long passes both numbers will go down. If you make 8 passes between the keeper and defenders and then loose the ball, both numbers will go up. You will loose the game of course, but who cares as long as the numbers are good.

 

So, I guess that's the question, isn't it? Did the USA play a counterattacking game to perfection while sucking everywhere except in front of each goal, or was it simply luck that the attacking effort was so efficient? Call me unimpressed and waiting for Pulisic and Adams to finally get to know each other in this group. And, for McKennie to look as if he knows how to coordinate with the rest of the team.

 

Hey @dark knight @Real Corona - this thread and other post-match thread probably ought to be combined, right?

 

The US played a not so good team that was nervous and we beat them the way we should. That’s about all you can say, other than point out the fact that in order to beat this “not so good” team, we had to abandon the complex system our coach has made us play for a year in preparation for playing this not so good team. Hmmm.

 

I'm hopeful he has moved onto play the system if possible but if they leave huge gaps to run into behind then take a few chances. Wish I knew it was so but we'll have to wait and see. Thing is this is a great tactic on the road in CONCACAF. The one we usually employ when we win.

 

My thoughts on the game- http://positionalplayscholar.com/index.php/2019/11/17/usmnt-vs-canada-11-17-19/

 

honestly I just read that 69 percent sentence, stopped reading, and responded with snark.