There needs to be more creative players in the lineup. Torres could not link the play. Williams was awful. Beckerman could not clear a ball or string a pass. Jones couldnt control the game
Beckerman was great tonight. I was very very impressed. He seems to have added a step and plugged the middle up well. Was pretty calm and cool on the ball as well. It was obvious the goal was to not be scored on in the first half. Subs were good.
Yeah, I was so struck by the suckitude of Williams that I forgot to mention that Beckerman was pretty good with the ball. Basically, the only one of the trio who could complete a friggin' pass.
What midfield? Almost to a man, they were poor. Although Beckerman, aside of a couple of bad touches, was calm and steady.
Danny Williams, Torres, and Beckerman werent that great (props to him for that chip that almost caught Ochoa out). You can see the importance of Bradley to Jones, and our team in general. Not a match for the mids to write home about IMO, need to do better
The first half was just plain difficult to watch. We were missing passes, out of position on defense, and not winning balls. Jones was so bad for being everywhere. Torres is good when the US sees a ton of the ball, but in a game with little possession he is worthless. Rough game for the mids.
JK needs to end the Williams experiment. He has no offensive talent. Either play him as the 6 for beckerman or not at all; Jones, horrific game. Not one successful pass from D to O. His only transition was under his own power Beckerman, only two mistakes , both went unpunished. Torres touch was off--along with most others He is not creator. He is a distributor His ineffectiveness is all on the coach.
It is amazing that with how badly our midfield played, we won this game. They were a huge liability and we still prevailed. Testament to TH in goal. It pains me to say this, but of the midfield, Beckerman was the best out there tonight. Torres was an orange traffic cone, Jones coughed up the ball like it was a turd sandwich, and LD was just not there. When Beas was introduced, it changed the game IMO. He could at least link the back to the front. I wish he was about 4 years younger, he still can play the game though.
It's a shame because I thought our defenders were composed on the ball and were making better passes and smarter decisions on the ground than our regular center-backs, especially when considering the venue. But that didn't translate into increased possession or better build up play.
It wasn't a chip. It was a tackle. I thought Beckerman tackled well all game, but struggled to link passes. About what you'd expect from him in this kind of game. Beasley was okay. Zusi looked out of his depth but not horrible. Torres was a non-factor. The biggest zero was Williams. Play him in another positions or not at all yet.
Who cares? We beat Mexico and the players out there today will only play better next time. (less nervous..understanding better what to expect) The most egregious (like Williams and Torres) were found out. Williams can't go forward well- ok, now we know. Torres is likely deep-sixed. Now we know. JK produced an absolute master stroke by bringing Shea (panned by 95%+ of BS posters) and playing him correctly at the end of the game. Now we have a Left Mid option again with Shea This was great for the midfield, since we got the result + they will only do better next time. They had to go through this. Now is the time to learn. JK learned a lot, and so did the players. That's why I can't take they negative comments here too seriously. In a lot of respects- it was a brilliant performance by the midfield because it was honest (to this point and time)
Huh? Beckerman is getting positive reviews? I must have been watching a different game Truth is Beckerman, Jones and Williams were all terrible. Torres was invisible but that wasn't his fault. Beasley was good, more of him please. Bradley and Edu are much more suited to play against a high pressure midfield. These guys just weren't quick enough. It's not about defensive vs. offensive midfielders - it's about midfielders who can receive the ball, control it, and play a simple ball to a wide player all in a short period of time.
Beckerman was good, not just OK. The rest sucked. Jones was the worst. Donovan mailed it in. Williams as a right mid is Klinsmann's most maddening fixation, followed by Torres as some sort of pseudo attacker. It got better when Shea and Zusi came on. Even Beasley helped.
Another thing I was thinking was that our spacing was AWFUL. There'd be all these triangles with like 5 yard sides. We'd try to pass but our Feet of Stone would make the ball bounce two yards away, right to a Mexie defender. The US strength is to stretch the field and make the other team match our speed.
Nobody brought it forward well, but Beckerman kept things from getting too hairy in the back most of the time.
One of our worst matches in the midfield (or at least central midfield) in a long time on a lot of fronts, to be sure. Honestly, I thought Beckerman was one of our weakest links in the first half. In the second, he was a strength. Mainly because he didn't lose the plot and kept his play simple, and kept the play in front of him. Klinsi has to stop using Torres in an attack role. Find a role for him, or forget about him. Period. And I want to see Williams, but not at RM. In central defensive midfield, maybe as depth at fullback. But not where you want to see some attack presence. The sub-ons who came on and played wing/attack roles were decent. Shea changed the game and we got a goal for his efforts, albeit against the run of play.
It pains me to have to praise Beckerman but he looked like g-damn Luis Figo out there next to Jones and Williams. Dear lord, just how awful was Williams? Brek Shea yet again comes in as a sub and brings energy, fearlesness and some cohones. As stated, why the hell should club situations matter when Dos Santos has killed us for the last 2 years?