Howard - 7 - didn't have a chance on the two goals, commanded his line well, made 5 or 6 saves I believe, including the big one on Lewandowski on the first half and distributed well enough. Cherundolo - 7 - is in good form right now. I know he's getting older, but he's still the best RB in the pool right now - bar none. Onyewu - 5 - considering this is his first game since the game against Slovenia, he could have been worse. The HORRENDOUS clearance that led to the first goal was rec league stuff, but did well to score the second goal. I was curious to how he would play, and whether he was not playing cause he was hurt still or buried behind more in-form defenders at Milan. It appears the latter. Edu - 5.5 - He still seems to be caught out of position at times back there, but only natural considering this isn't his natural position. But has all the tools to play back there if he was groomed for the position. I wonder how poor Goodson and Parkhurst looked in training for Bradley to experiment with Edu or he's has a different lineup in mind for Colombia. Bocanegra - 6 - did well enough on the left, he did have his issues with Kuba, but when fit, I know Kuba is a handful out there. Solid game as LB, I prefer him as a CB myself, but he's playing well right now. Jones - 6 - well we finally saw him in a US shirt. He played good, not great. Has a great work rate, and a good range of passing. Did have some poor passes at times, but obviously a great pass to Altidore for the first goal. But it was his slow reaction to Edu's clearance that led directly to the second Polish goal. Regardless, with time he'll get that understanding with his new teammates. In my eyes, he should be starting with Bradley in the midfield. Bradley - 5.5 - not his greatest game. Seemed to work harder than usual to make up for his poor distrubution, he gave alot of balls away last night. But still one of our best outfield players, just not the greatest showings last night. Feilhaber - 4.5 - wasn't impressed with him last night. I know playing out on the left isn't his natural position, but he has played there enough for Aarhus that it shouldn't be alien to him. Was invisible in the first half I felt, even though he put the work in defensively. We didn't have too many options though considering Donovan's absense. He did have some good off-the-ball movement when he was shifted to the center behind Altidore in the second half. Dempsey - 7 MOTM - was dangerous, really seemed to own being "the man" in attack with Donovan's absense. Was very impressed with his wanting the ball, pushing the attack up, his movement, passing and holding the ball up. Good game by Dempsey. Holden - 5.5 - Solid game by Holden, really making a case to be a regular starter right now. Helped in defense, passed well, wanted the ball and provided good service in the box. I marked him down a half point for the bad clearance that led to Onyewu's bad clearance that led to the first Polish goal. Altidore - 5 - despite his goal, I felt he was the main reason we didn't win 4-2 or by that scoreline today. He makes the runs, gets in the right spots, does the work but its his first touch and finishing that continually lets him down. He seems like he's turning into one of those forwards that needs 4 or 5 chances to put away one. He could have easily gotten a hat trick last night with the service he was getting in the box, that open header he had from the cross by Cherundolo was real bad. I'm really getting frustrated with Altidore. SUBS: Bedoya - 4.5 - had one nice run on the right when he came on, other than that, largely invisible. Manger - Bradley - 5 - I liked how he experimented with Edu at the CB spot, which is part of the point of friendlies, plus, I don't think anyone really thinks Goodson or Parkhurst are the future or present anyway. Also, I really liked the 4-2-3-1 formation, not only did he get away from the stale 4-4-2, but it's a formation that really takes advantage of our biggest strength, our depth at CM, plus it protects our least-discussed weakness, our centerbacks. And it would have worked if it wasn't for the horrendous clearances (which was the main reason behind the Polish goals - amateur defending). When we were taking the game to the Poles, our attack was very dangerous and if not for Altidore's continually wasting chances, we would have comfortably won the game. My issues with Bradley last night is just I would have liked to have seen more substitutions, that's all. Perhaps, knowing how serious Poland are taking these games since they have to prepare for Euro 2012 being the co-hosts, he wanted to see his regulars in this situation, in that formation. But who knows. If he ends up rotating some of these guys out against Colombia on Tuesday, then I won't have as much of an issue than.
Howard - 7 (monster save; no mistakes) Dolo - 7 (kept up great run of form for US) Gooch - 6 (better than I thought he'd be; clearance fail and goal = wash) Edu - 6 (bailed out by Howard on one huge mistake; otherwise promising considering lack of CB experience) Boca - 5 (burned all night) Holden - 7 (MOTM - would have been 8 w/o the two defensive mistakes) Bradley - 5 (out of sorts; should have controlled the game better) Jones - 7 (fantastic debut; great passing) Feilhaber - 5 (invisible on offense; no help on defense) Dempsey - 7 (worked his ass off) Altidore - 6 (decent runs; good goal; but probably should have finished at least one more) Bedoya - 6 (great wide run added new dimension to game)
Howard - 6 - Screened on the first, no chance on the second. Solid otherwise. Onyewu - 5 - Rusty, of course, but that was expected. He needs to play to get rid of the rust, but won't play for Milan in this kind of form. Catch 22. Take a loan my friend, then go back to claim your spot. Edu - 6 - Physically capable, positionally a bit shaky, but not really a surprise. I wouldn't expect him to be a regular for the US back there, but his versatility will serve him well, like it did against Slovenia in the cup. Bocanegra - 6 - Is taking a beating from people on these boards, but he had a tough matchup and was never flat out beat. Was not able to get forward, and probably had no interest in it. I see his future at CB for the US. Cherundolo - 7 - Great game from an in form player. Will this form hold for another four years though? Bradley - 7 - Per usual, ran more than anyone and broke up countless plays. He started to put his stamp on the game in the good run the US had in the second half, constantly receiving and distributing the ball. Jones - 6 - You can see why this guy is a stud. He's going to get better as he finds his form and fitness...he's only played a handful games after missing a year keep in mind. He tired late on, and it showed with a sloppy giveaway. When he reaches peak fitness I'm thinking he and Bradley in the midfield gives no reason to have a 5 man midfield. They do the work of 3. Holden - 6 - Another high workrate guy who can certainly manage in a 4-man midfield. Was at his best when in the open spaces, and I'd like to see another target for him to pick out in the box. Would have given a 7 if not for his dreadful clearance that led to the first goal. Dempsey - 8 - Was the best player on the field. You simply cannot take the ball from this man. Seemed like he and Holden were stepping on each other's toes, and they both might have been better served to have another target up high to serve rather than an extra midfielder. Altidore - 7 - Can't understand the ragging on this guy. He constantly had three defenders on his back all night, and in a non-friendly at least one of them would have been sent off for multiple bookings. He finished one chance and struck the post on another. He repeatedly pulled wide to win the ball deep, held the ball up for teammates and drew fouls in dangerous areas. I'd love to see Landon line up as his strike partner and give those defenders something else to occupy their minds. Bedoya - 5 - Didn't really notice him. Overall note to Bob Bradley (if he's reading): Holden, Jones, Bradley and Dempsey give us enough talent in the midfield to push Landon up top, whom I think could make a lethal strike partnership with Altidore. The 4-2-3-1 looks cute on paper, but with four guys with iron lungs and great range in the midfield, it seems like they were stepping on each other's toes. Put some speed up top and stretch the field...that is when we are at our best.
To have a little fun and make this interesting, instead of providing a description after each rating, I'll play work association. Here goes: Howard: 6.5- Nice Dolo: 6.5- Solid Gooch: 5.5- Rusty Edu: 6- Interesting Boca: 5.5- Donkey Bradley:6- (Uncharacteristically) Unpolished Jones: 7- Impressive Holden: 7- Dangerous (to both goals) Dempsey: 6.5- Confident Feilhaber: 5- Invisible (offense and defense) Altidore: 5.5- Overworked Bedoya: 5- Average
How Holden gets as high of marks as people are giving him with being partially responsible for both goals is beyond me. If that was Bradley or Clark doing that, they would be getting 2's and 3's.
Howard: 7 Dolo: 7- Solid Gooch: 5.5- Edu: 5- Boca: 5.5 Bradley:6 Jones: 6 Holden: 7- Dangerous (to both goals) Dempsey: 7.5- This guy even whe he doesn' score owns a game, a talent.. Feilhaber: 4.5-Benny should have played along side Bedoya, or Donovan if he was there. Benny is a wc player when he has the proper help, but he can't own a game on his own at least in the national team level. Altidore: 6- nice goal and dangerous, 20 guys remember he's only 20. Bedoya: 5.5- nice run when he came on and adds alot of spice to the game. Going to be a great NAT....
Won't post numbers until I rewatch, but here are my prelim thoughts... -Howard: Seemed a bit off-balance on the first goal, but pretty helpless on the second. Played like a monster the rest of the time. -Cherundolo: Mr. Automatic. Still the most under-appreciated player in the pool. Did seem a bit rattled by the knock he took early on, though. -Onyewu: Clearly rusty. His attempted clearance was poor. Did very well on his goal. He's not back to 100%, but he's getting there. Unfortunately, I don't think he'll get back there if he stays at Milan. -Edu: I wasn't sure if I liked Mo starting at CB. Still not sure I want him there. I support experimenting with him there, but I don't know if he has a future on the backline. He needs much more seasoning, in terms of positioning. Needs work in the air, as well. That being said, I LOVED his coolness out of the back. He looked better in the second half, and the CB experiment is worth another shot. -Bocanegra: Got beat for pace (as expected), but did well otherwise. Had a lot to handle with Feilhaber not providing much cover. -Bradley: Didn't seem to know how to adjust to Jones being there. Made some sloppy passes and looked out-of-sorts at times, but still made his presence known. Not his best game, but not his worst either. -Jones: VERY happy to have him aboard. Phenomenal ball on the assist to Jozy and some other lovely passes. Really dangerous going forward, and a beast on defense. Surprised he tried to whip out the stepover, as well. Very much at fault for the second goal, though. -Holden: Some great tackles in the midfield, some nice crosses. Partially at fault for both goals. He's clearly made significant improvements over in England, but he clearly needs some work, as well. -Dempsey: Not his usual dis-interested self. Played like a man possessed. Dug into his bag of tricks and fought for every ball. Probably the MotM. -Feilhaber: Very disappointed in his play. I still believe that the best the US ever looked was the 10-or-so minutes after he came on for Clark in the Ghana match; the triangle of Benny-Mikey-Mo was deadly. I'm starting to believe that he is best suited for a super-sub role. -Altidore: Did will to slot home his goal (despite what looked like a missed touch on the way down). Got a bit unlucky to hit the crossbar. Still frustrating with his finishing. If he wants to make the step up to World Class, he needs to convert 2 or 3 of his chances. -Bedoya: Don't remember much of anything from him.
Howard: 6.5 Dolo: 6.5, but not really tested much Gooch: 5.5; 6, except for the missed header Edu: 5.5, looked uncertain at times, but pretty good in a new positions Boca: 6.5, did well considering he had no support from Feilhaber Bradley:6, normal Jones: 6, 6.5 except for the giveaway for Poland goal #2 Holden: 6, steady, good crosses, but had a couple of poorly attempted tackles in first half and poor clearance on Poland goal #1 Dempsey: 6.5, worked hard and stabilized the left midfield. Feilhaber: 4.5, shouldn't have been out there. Altidore: 6.5, 2 would have been nicer. Bedoya: NR
Ya read these numbers and you just wonder wtf? Boca was not playing on the same level as J Jones, people. okay: Howard: good, 6.5 Cherundolo: good, 6.5 Gooch: Mixed, did score, 5.5 Edu: out of position... 4.5 Boca: awful, 4 Fielhaber: invisible, 4.5 Holden: good except for the clearance, 6.5 Bradley: extraneous and invisible, 4.5 J Jones: excellent w vision we don't normally see, 7 Dempsey, workhorse and gifted, 6.5 Altidore: scored but missed many 5.5 Bedoya...not enough time. Bob... friendly, 1 sub, oh well.... he's the golden son of USSF so why quibble.
Howard - 7 (I think the ball took a deflection on the first goal) Cherundolo - 7 (pushed up when he had to and did it well) Onyewu - 6 (goal bumps him up a grade ... but he wasn't tested often) Edu - 5 (got embarassed early but then became steady as both teams went into a more defensive mode) Bocanegra - 4 (not really his fault for being left out on the Revis island ... 'cos he's no Revis) Jones - 7 (would have been 8, if not for the bad clearance) Bradley - 4 (way too many bad passes and general non-involvement ... in his defense, he was being played out of position) Holden - 6 (made some mistakes but hustled and was involved ... his corner kicks were also excellent) Feilhaber - 4 (no defense, no offense ... no offense to Mr. and Mrs. Feilhaber) Dempsey - 7 (6 for the first half, 8 the second ... in his defense, he was positioned way too high for the Empty Bucket during the first half and was thus starved of service for the first 45 minutes) Altidore - 5 (excellent goal, followed by four wasted sitters) Bedoya - 4 (who?) Bradley - 3 (I like the Edu experiment but Bob screwed up way too many things in the formation, the players and the assignments again)
Boca was beaten like a rented mule all day. Jones was probably MOTM. They don't deserve equal ratings.
Didn't quite notice when exactly Bocanegra was beaten for a goal. In fact, I remember him having a couple crucial clearances in the second half. Jones actually coughed up the ball and it lead to a goal. If his name were Ricardo Clark, I'm sure people would be more eager to bash him. Perhaps you don't agree, but maybe this logic will help you come to terms with other people's opinions.
Boca wasn't "beaten" all game; his guy put some crosses in, but so do guys playing against Cashley Cole and Maicon. Importantly, his guy didn't dribble around him and get in the box. Jones. He had some nice, visionary passes, but I thought both his tackling and physical presence (winning headers in the midfield, etc.) were underwhelming. His work rate was questionable as well, for a USMNT player, though arguably his fitness levels aren't there yet. For a player of his reported class, his poor clearance which led to the 2nd goal was inexcusable. Holden. Mixed bag for Stu. Offensively, he was dangerous, but needs to build a better understanding with his teammates before trying some of those back-passes. They work at Bolton because they're expected the pass to come - the Nats backline obviously wasn't as prepared and Stu should have anticipated that. I'm not going to blame him too much for his bad skykick - kicking the ball out of the air is a difficult skill. Jozy. I have to laugh, heartily and out loud, about those who felt Jozy missed 3 sitters. One shot beat the keeper but not the cross-bar and his other 1-v-1 was well hit but stopped by the save of the match (yeah, I love Timmy, but that save was even better than his 1-v-1 save). The only arguable "sitter" was the bad header and even that one doesn't qualify for the definition as it needed to be carefully aimed in a 2' by 8' area in order to score past the keeper.
Exactly. I was at the game in-person and you don't always get a full look at the field on TV. Bocanegra did not have the speed advantage, so he played positionally. He's never been the guy who will beat an attacker to the ball in a foot-race. So he beats his man to the mark, keeps him outside, forces him to re-work for position on the cross so the defense can set, and that's more than acceptable work for an outside defender. The reality of Bradley's defensive scheme hasn't changed. It relies almost entirely on funneling the ball in the center of the pitch for clearance. In this sense, this was a good game for Dolo, Boca, and the squad as a whole. Two bad clearances resulted in two Polish goals. Holden, Onyewu, and Jones own those issues. mcnaulty21 has a pretty reasonable view, but those who are putting Bocanegra at a 4, we weren't watching the same game......
Good point. Had Johnny B done it, all the ratings would be: "1. Only plays due to compromising pictures of him with Bob Bradley."
Howard-7 -first goal possibly could have been saved but the 2nd one was world class. stuffed an attacker 1v1. Cherundolo-7 -i hate that he's probably going to be too old for 2014. Onyewu-6 -rusty but looked like he's regaining form. Edu-4 -but for first real test at CB: 5 -Bocanegra 4 -poor -Jones 6.5 A lot of people are all over how awesome Jones played, and i too think he did well. BUT! he made a lot of little mistakes too. he just had the pace and the energy to recover from most of them. -Bradley 6.5 typical Bradley performance. a lot of hustle sprinkled with a few bad touches. -Feilhaber 3 -I was not high on Benny's performance at all. I think he's out of position on the wing and is only useful to us as a pure CAM right under the forward. and maybe just as a sub too. -Holden 7 probably the MOTM except for that bad clearance that lead to the goal. Holden is a very promising player. -Dempsey 6.5 Put in a lot of leg work but couldn't get involved much in the final third. Altidore-7 if not holden then the MOTM has to go to Jozy. it's true that he's not Didier Drogba but the guy still had a nice goal and put in a lot of work for being the sole forward. he needs help up top. Bedoya-5 -nothing great but nothing bad either. Bob 5 -i'll give him points for experimenting with Edu at CB, but i was disappointed with the use of only one sub for a friendly. Also, points given for finally leading the game most of the time but points deducted for blowing it due to an inability to adjust tactics. USSF and Fans 0 -disgusting
And other coaches adapt to that by having their one single striker in the box occupied by 3 US "central defenders" and having everyone else take open shots from the perimeter. Sometimes it works in the US favor (Spain) and sometimes those mid-range shots end up in the back of the net (Costa Rica, Mexico, Honduras, Slovenia, Poland). Boca was exposed the way he is exposed in France when he has no midfield protection. When he began to get tucked in with the midfielder covering up high, the Polish attack declined precipitously. But so did the US attack, as it went to 4-5-1 from 4-4-2. And that's Carlos for you. When he is not exposed himself, he drags the others down with him. A "4" is totally justified.
I really have to agree. Yes, his scoring touch needs to improve, but he did score in this game and nearly got a second. It is plain to see that Bradley, in the poland game and in the world cup, isn't looking for a high strike rate out of him. He's looking for him to collect the ball, draw defenders and pass it to a teammmate. I think he's doing that very well.
Don't the vast majority of Outside backs get exposed eventually when they have a total lack of midfield support?
Generally, but it might also be worth noting that neither Polish goal was a result of an error by Bocanegra, and even when beaten by speed, his man never got around him, and he did enough work to ensure the central defense was set before anything came inside from his side of the field. That's not "6+" level work by any means, but anything less than a "5" would have to mean his play led to a goal. It didn't. Meanwhile, praise, without much in the way of deduction, is given to Jones, Onyewu, and Holden, who were all directly responsible for exposing Howard to unsavable shots. Much of this has to do with a general desire on the board for Bocanegra to be something he isn't....a world-class, shut-down left-back with speed. We can all likely agree that we need to turn the page from him in that role during this cycle, but that was a serviceable performance on Saturday, given the quality of the opposition and the defensive quality of his partner on that side. He lost a few sprints. He didn't get beat as a result, which may have a lot to do with his experience and understanding of the game. Neither poor nor great.....serviceable. And that's likely going to be of help in the Gold Cup.......
For what it's worth, my thoughts after a re-watch (being in a generally better mood the second time around). Just a note to put this in context-- the center of the US defense let in two unbelievably stupid goals and also a clean 1v1 that Timmy stopped. There's just no way to give defenders very good grades with those results. Howard-7.5 I've been leary that Howard gets too much credit around here even thought we've been leaking goals, but he really was excellent. No keeper gets to that first goal- he was screened off the shot and it was a STUPID clearence. He closed the second goal down to where the ball pretty much had to hit the post to go in . . . it did. Any more cover to the outside and he'd have given up the near post. His 1v1 stop was world class and several other saves where very good. Timmy's distribution is getting better, but it's his world-class shot stopping that is keeping us in games. Cherundolo-7 Best of a poor backline. Wasn't tested much deep in our half and was able to get forward where he contributed significantly to the offense. Really a good player. Onyewu-4.5 (one goal) I just don't get all the excuses for Gooch. I love the guy, but his clearance was comical- real Keystone Cops. Life is tough as a CB- a good game can be ruined by one bad play. His otherwise moderately decent game was ruined by that play. He needs to take a loan in January and get playing time. Half a point added to his grade for the goal- classic power goal from a big man (excellent use of Mikey as a shield and a boost to his own position). Edu-5 Graded up for being out of position and not experienced. Distribution out of the back was at a level never before seen by the USA. Still, defenders defend first and foremost and he's not there yet (understandably, but I'm grading on results, not good intentions). He let his mark waltz in 1v1 with Timmy. He was out of position and too often defended like . . . a center mid. Shows potential, but needs a lot of experience if he's going to be a primary option in the backline. Bocanegra 5 Graded down because he was the captain of a backline that was in shambles all night long and couldn't get basic functions correct. His mark had time enough in the box to read the paper and smoke a pack prior to scoring the second goal. Crappy clearance aside, you can't leave your mark until the ball is clear. Was abused all night long on the left side . . . but was put on an island and did as well as could be expected. [Note- I'd expect to see Bornstein's speed out on the left had this game really mattered.] Jones 6 (one assist) Imposing presence in the center of the field. Simply incredible pass to Jozy for the goal (notice the look-away to freeze the defense). Simply boneheaded give-away to Poland for their second goal. He brings an element needed by the USA in the middle, but raises significant questions about what other CM best pairs with him. Bradley 6 Harder to grade him without being there live to see his positioning away from the ball or seeing a more detailed statistical breakdown of the match. I did not count that many give aways for him, but he wasn't as available to help releave pressure as normal- that role went to Jones. He seemed to struggle to pair with Jones and that muted his impact on the match. Feilhaber 4 Started brightly with an excellent signature outside of the right foot pass that nearly split to defense to a streaking Jozy. Went downhill from there. Was a calm presence on the ball when he could get the ball, but too often failed to make himself available. Had zero impact defensively, leaving Carlos isolated on the left side. Plays LM for his club, but is not up to international speed in that position-- better on the right and more central. I agree with the thought that he's better coming off the bench. Holden 6.5 (one assist) Full point deduction for his clearance. You just can't do that at this level- period. Otherwise a very good and promising game. Looked good with the ball. Looked very good without the ball (an underappreciated skill on the US team). Excellent service on free kicks and corner kicks. Is developing into a very good player for this team. Dempsey 7.5 (MOTM) First half was very blah for an out-of-position Dempsey. Why is it that he needs to switch his position on the field in a match to become more effective? This match saw the reverse-Dempsey swap as he moved deeper back into the midfield to receive the ball and really took control of the US offense. Played an excellent game as midfield general in the second half- wonderful to see him exhibit these skills and savvy. Altidore-6.5 (one goal) Hardest player to grade. Wonderful composure on his goal (missed his first touch, just rolled with it and scored). Hit the post on a tougher angle shot that it first appeared (was not able to get his hips around on the shot). Got fairly unlucky on his second 1v1 with the keeper. However, had two other shots where he beat the keeper and failed to put them on target. Dropped back and to the left wing often- don't know if that was by design but is an unusual position for a big striker to receive the ball. Good movement off the ball - was making a lot of runs to try and split the defenders. Did a decent job receiving the ball while playing in a fairly isolate position up top. Ultimately, Jozy will be judged on his scoring and that's not living up to standards right now, but he's young and has a long time to address this matter. Bedoya-5 Not much by which you can judge him. However, don't overlook that he made a lot of open runs on the right side and wasn't rewarded with passes from his teammates. Decent touch when he did get the ball, but never tried anything adventurous. Bob - 5.5 Generally average game for this coach. Graded up for excellent tactical switch with Dempsey in the second half. Graded up for experimenting with the US roster and seeing if Edu is a viable backup option in the backline and how well Jozy can play up top all alone. Graded down for lack of substitutions. It's a friendly, Bob, and you've already got a 4 year contract. Seems a waste not to give some of the other players a chance to impress.
I really don't know all that much about soccer, but don't you have to be running incredibly fast to miss a ball passed like that and then hit it on a second try?