screw birmingham.. there was alot more than 8741 there, i dont know where that figure came from.. the geniuses at ussoccer really hampered the promption of the game (trust me i know this for a fact).. they have no clue whats going on sometimes oh yeah: screw birmingham
You're a genius. As a matter of fact, I'm going to stop reading th sports page and following these boards. Just send me all your posts since you are obviously smarter than everyone else on this subject - not to mention a sage of international affairs. Maybe FIFA can hire you as their CONCACAF Ambassador-at-Large for Stupidity. What a tool.
Re: Re: Thanks HDNet! Two things here. Yes burn in can occur with your TV, however as long as you watch a varirty of material and not stick with a static image for long periods of time you should be ok. Also it helps to turn DOWN your brightness and contrast settings from how they are out of the box. They should be at least below 50%.
Time for some perspective... 1) The US is a good team built on effort and athleticism. 2) While we may be a top 15 FIFA ranked team overall based on recent results, if we were to rank teams by skill, we would be lucky to be in the top 50. Some of our exceptional young players - Convey, Beasley, Bocanegra come to mind - are not International-level skilled players with the ball at their feet. They are not possession type players. 3) Therefore we will struggle with any team that can out hustle us, especially in the midfield (like Haiti last night) but we can surprise more skilled teams if they do not respect us. 4) Anyone who thinks that we have been annointed the role of beast of CONCACAF and therefore will beat all minnows just by showing up is deluded. Look at point # 1 above - our game is effort. No effort, no result. We do not have enough skilled players to half-ass anyone and get a result. I am not worried about last nights result because the US did not put in the effort. I expect we will when it counts. 5) Anyone who realistically thinks we have surpassed Mexico is also deluded. They are more skilled, deeper, and have an unbelievable home field advantage at Azteca. That is not to say we may not finish above them in qualifying but they are still the favorite to finish first.
The problem with this game was the exact same as in the Holland game -- lack of a solid midfield that plays both defensively and offensively. Without O'Brien or Reyna against Haiti (or, O'Brien AND Reyna against Holland), the US cannot maintain a passing game, will not get the ball consistently to its attackers, will not retain defensive shape and will give up a goal or two. Look at the MLS and see how many Americans occupy starting central midfield positions. How many #10s? Essentially zilch. Big problem. And, Martino, unfortunately, is not the solution. I think we're looking for players not yet in the spotlight.
Wow-am I pissed I shelled out $20 for that! Because I wasted my cash on this, here goes... Defense: I have to say, I was excited to see Pope, Boca, Gibbs, and Sanneh as starting 4. Thought they were A-Team all the way, even though I knew Tony S would need time to be game ready and Gibbs needs more games. I think these 4 will do well down the road, if you switch Gibbs to center and Boca left. I don't ever want to see Albright as a NATS player again unless he goes on an amazing run in MLS and earns that spot. I would also like to see Pablo or Mulrooney in as a sub at right back in future friendlies to see how they do back there if Sanneh can't recover. Keepers: Walker did a good job and I can see Howard/Walker as our new top 2 after this WC cycle. Not impressed at all by Hartman - let's see Adin Brown get some time in that 3rd slot. Midfield: I am done with Armas. IMO, he is just awful. Granted, he can break up attacks to an extent, but what is the point if he CONSTANTLY gives the ball away 3 seconds afterwards. One of the worst passers on the field, along with Albright. Screw the "he has such leadership out there" -his "leadership" didn't motivate his team tonight. Yes, Haiti scored when Armas was taken out, but only because BA puts in Razov as a 3rd forward and plays five minutes with no def mid at all. Pablo and Mulrooney deserve more time in that spot too. I am also done with Ralston, invisible, no speed. Klein is not much better. Why isn't Mullan getting a shot here?? Lots of speed, tracks back on defense, and can play forward as well. Would also like to see Noonan and Buddle get a little time here. Forwards: Bench LD now. I am one of his biggest fans, but he is either burned out or just doesn't care. He has stagnated and lost all motivation. He had a good run up to and through the world cup, was motivated thru the playoffs for San Jose, but his international play has been in the toilet for the last few months. No Landon - you have NOT proven yourself yet, you're only 22, learn to be consistent and get overseas to raise your game. Cannot believe Woly started for the NATS - I don't care how great his camp was. The announcers kept going on and on about how impressed BA was with Woly in camp, he had such good practices. Whup-tee-doo. He probably did look good with this slow, unmotivated bunch. Call in TnT and Buddle when healthy;and see who else steps it up in MLS this year. Keep an eye on Casey and get him some games. Hope that Landon comes out of his Cali living coma and starts playing again. Landon wasn't the only lethargic player out there, but I guess I just expect more out of him, since he's our poster boy and is reaping the benefits of that status. Sorry for the rant, but after no Olympics with a lethargic U-23 team, and the last couple of friendlies, I am sick of this. I earned the right to my rant with my credit card. Thanks for letting a girl vent!
Let me put it simple! I was going to buy the new USMNT Jersey, but now I am reluctant. We actually may not qualify for the World Cup, and that would mean this new Jersey is worthless.
Does anyone here honestly expect to win ANY International fixture in which Chris Albright is involved? That move alone tells me that Bruce had no intention on getting a result. The game is over, let's take whatever we can learn from it and move on. We have to play in Poland in just over 2 weeks. We may not win, but I will guarantee that we see a fire that was absent v Haiti.
I will read every single post in this thread on Monday but right now I just need to put in my say: While I am not going to say the sky is falling that was quite simply the worst National Team performance in recent memory. Other than Walker and maybe Califf (for scoring the goal) every other player out there sucked. I hope Bruce made every single one of them stick around until after the crowd and press had left and run sprints until they puked. My personal vote of worst player goes to Boconegra, not because he was the worst but because everyone else had the excuse of being out of season. He is in season in a better league and he still looked god awful. As if somehow because he now plays in the Premier League that he is is suddenly that much better and doen't need to try anymore. Wrong! Oh and if we are blessed with a multitude of talented goalkeepers then someone might want to inform Hartman he is supposed to be good. Can't fault the goal, but his distribution is pathetic. Even he realized it which is why he gave up trying to kick the ball more than 10 yards after his first attempt at a goal kick which barely made the center stripe.
On the other hand, it was a great night for Fernando, for his players, and for their fans, who showed up to support their team. For the US, it was another 'away at home' -- very few supporters for a team and sport that still get very little support form the average American. Nobody loves us, everybody hates us, guess I'll go eat worms.
The midfield is not doing good. This is with the 4-4-2 formation with Convey on the middle. Basically, when Convey is in this so-called midfielder position, he plays more like a 3rd forward and goes forward very often. That will leave a huge space on the midfield for the defensive mid to handle it. ------------------------------------------------ THis was the same problem with the olympic qualifying games..He didn't help on defense and he didn't try to be a playmaker and pass to the forwards..All he wanted was to be a third forward ..Why convey gets all this hype when over and over he is not performing....... is beyond my comprehension..
Convey-"He didn't help on defense and he didn't try to be a playmaker and pass to the forwards" I would not say Conevey's a starter for the Nats but his defense is much improved and as someone else had mentioned he was one of the few actually running/playing. He broke up Haiti's play several times in the midfield and was the one who tracked back to try and prevent Haiti's goal. He was one of the few to make smart runs(not rewarded), passed the ball forward(a few bad passes or lost by the forwards), and did not see a lot of the ball due to Haiti's defensive pressure forcing the long ball. In the last several games I have seen his work rate has been the highest on the field without a doubt.
1-thats the same figure the miami herald had 2-please expand on this promotion hampering for our amusement
I think I counted eight (nine if you count a sleeping baby) in the US section during the halftime shots on PPV.
O.K., I'm clearly a glutton for punishment to have not only paid for this on PPV, but watched it twice. Here are my ratings. Starters Goalkeeper Jonny Walker - 6.5: Two great saves. Mixed bag on distribution. Defender Cory Gibbs - 4: Looked very uncomfortable. Was caught out of position multiple times. Turnover while pushed too far forward led directly to the Haiti goal. Defender Carlos Bocanegra - 5: A mixed match. Looked slow relative to Haiti attack and did not communicate well with rest of defense, but was strong in the air and made a couple of important stops. Did not provide effective cover for Gibbs. Move to the middle reduces his ability to distribute which hurts the transition to attack. Pushed forward well on set plays and set up Califf for the goal. Defender Eddie Pope - 6: Was the high point of the US defense, a rock until he left with a leg cramp. Defender Tony Sanneh - 5.5: Looked rusty with ball at feet and did not go forward with his usual verve, but played pretty well considering it was his first competitive match in months. Midfielder Chris Armas - 4.5: Not really a factor. Broke up attacks several times, but did not combine well with other midfielders and turned over the ball a number of times. Midfielder Steve Ralston - 5: Had a couple of good plays when he got the ball wide in the final third, but did not seem to make himself available enough Midfielder DaMarcus Beasley - 5.5: Tried to take on defense several times and created some moments of danger, but didn’t play his usual two way game. Midfielder Bobby Convey - 6: Was all over the field and was the most consistent threat for the U.S., but didn’t dictate the pace of the game in the midfield. Forward Landon Donovan - 4.5: Poor match. A couple of decent runs, but usual great touch and vision was missing. Forward John Wolyniec – 5: Worked very hard and created some opportunities in the McBride role, but was never quite able to make a quality layoff or final pass or create a shot. Reserves Goalkeeper Kevin Hartman (46th minute for Walker) - 5: Not at fault on the goal. Looked shaky playing ball at feet and distributing. Defender Chris Albright (46th minute for Sanneh) - 5: Looked less comfortable defending then Sanneh, but did not make any big errors. Gave up several unnecessary turnovers off of long balls. Forward Ante Razov (66th minute for Armas) - 6: The most dangerous US forward in limited minutes. Midfielder Richard Mulrooney (74th minute for Donovan) - 5.5: Provided some energy in the midfield, but had a couple of soft turnovers. Defender Dan Califf (75th minute for Pope) - 6: Got the tying goal and cleared a very dangerous ball out of the goal box, but otherwise wasn’t challenged much. Midfielder Pat Noonan (75th minute for Ralston) – 5.5: Drew most of the U.S. fouls and corners late in the game and had a couple of decent touches in limited minutes. Jovan Kirovski (83rd minute for Wolyniec) – 5.5: Brought energy to the attack in late minutes and created a couple of opportunities.
O.K., a few random thoughts. The sky is not falling and, despite the disappointing score, Bruce learned some things from this match. He said going into the game that he was worried about depth on defense (BTW, Bruce mentioned in the pre-game interview that he was still considering Convey and O’Brien for the left back position). In the midfield, we know he’s still trying to figure out Convey’s role, what to do if JOB and Reyna aren’t available, and who’s going to step up and win the right mid position. Up front, it’s unclear what the depth chart looks like beyond McBride, Mathis and LD and what the best attacking combinations are. So, this game shows: 1) Defense - Sanneh is recovering and is potentially in the mix for qualifiers at right back. - Gibbs is more comfortable as a central defender, and must improve his decisionmaking ability and ball skills, and develop an understanding with DMB, to be factor at outside back. - Boca can play central defender, but needs more time to gel with Pope. Also, the team misses his distribution skills and ability to go forward when he gets pushed inside. 2) Midfield - Convey and Armas still have not proven to be an effective midfield pairing. - The search continues at right mid. 3) Forward - Woly is not a replacement for McBride. - A poacher like Razov is useful, even if he doesn’t really fit Bruce’s theoretical model - Where in the world in Landon Donovan? This game does not show: 1) Whether Convey is ready to take the keys to the team in Reyna/JOB’s absence. - Given that Armas, LD, and DMB clearly had subpar games and Bruce started a back four that distributed the ball poorly and couldn’t provide any support going forward, the only real conclusion that you can really draw about Bobby is that’s he’s not particularly well suited to a slow-building possession game. 2) What the best forward combinations are beyond McBride/LD.
I was at the game and I guess I was mostly watching Haiti. They really wanted to win! Gibbs got hurt so I don't honestly know much about him anyway! I'm glad Haiti played well, I'm a fan of the US but Haiti deserved to score! Pope didn't seem himself.Walker looks good!!! I haven't seen enough of him yet but he looks to be doing things right to me! Did they even promote this game? Still there was more than 8000 there!
I agree that just having even one of Reyna or O'Brien on the pitch makes a huge difference for us -- with one of them on the pitch, we can play a possession game in the midfield, and without either of them, we can't. Unfortunately, I would be very surprised if both Reyna and O'Brien are ever healthy at the same time, and there's a good chance that both of them will be injured when it counts in qualifiers and the WC, if we get that far.
Right, the result is unimportant, but the quality of play is, and by all accounts, our play was putrid last night. It sounds like Haiti deserved to win, and we were lucky to come away with a draw.