I don't see what you see in Acosta but I would be willing to give him a run out in the next friendlies. All I can say is that he looked to have improved between the CONCACAF qualifiers and the YNT WC. As far as Robinson, I think you are downplaying his play in the championship (where, iirc, he also made some TOWs) and the fact that he could well be a back up for Everton this upcoming ear.
Decent match against a high quality opponent. The lack of a good target forward and/or a passer at forward held us back. Shaq Moore showed potential but IMO needs more seasoning. Again a lot to build on.
I’ll be glad to say I was wrong. I expected a blowout. France has work to do if they’re going to win the tournament otherwise this looked like a quarter-finalist/semi-finalist level team. That said, this match was an absolute success for us. I’m extremely proud of the kids today... they maintained their focus, and they tried to get in the attack when possible.
He made Freiburg's Bundesliga squad as a backup ahead of the 2016-2017 season, but returned stateside for homesickness reasons, in his own words. Also didn't help that their starter, Alexander Schwolow, was and is young.
I'm here for my comeuppance, although for the opposite reason. I predicted a 3-2 victory. I was half kidding, but legit had a good feeling about this one. Had nothing to lose, some talent, reason to be motivated because of the opponent, know how to play that tactic, and had a history of fight. It was good to return that identity.
I understand when to pass and when to clear. I played center back. Go back and watch and you’ll see how often he had 3-5 teammates around him and he cleared the ball out of bounds. He wasn’t just trying to clear the pressure, he just wasn’t even trying to pass to his teammates most of the time. And he didn’t clear that ball on the last save by Steffen. It just rolled passed the goal.
I thought this is the best result we can get to play France on their home. Solid defensive performance even though no offense at all. I think we have attacking talents just need a good new coach to figure it out and build a system. Wingers and forwards need to be discovered and fill into our formation. Pulisic can make difference, but we need one or two more creative attacking weapons here. Thanks Sarachan for left quite a few players scouting data that can be refered to in the future. Hopefully we can hire a capable coach to lead our future.
For all the malignant stuff he gets here, Dave Sarachan has done all you can ask of from a caretaker coach. These kids believe again. That's a pretty darn good foundation for the next guy...whoever Earnie hires...to build on. Thanks, Dave.
How I saw it but I still like Moore's upside and love how Trapp reads the game and moves but am not sure he's got the athleticism for top level international play. And I'd still take today's starting lineup, with Pulisic and Parks somehow exchanged in, over anything I saw in the Hex. Sargent for Wood, Parks for Trapp and Pulisic for Green would be my hope as of today. I like what I saw today. Now get a real coach. One with some imagination and no ties to any league on the globe. Find the right players who fit and play together with passion. Greizmann, if he was playing in the WC or Europa league games would probably have meant 3-1 or worse but I don't care. All I wanted to see was if any of the young guns were ready to step up and several are. Hard to see the USMNT not getting healthy down the road soon as long as Earnie doesn't screw it up with his hire.[/QUOTE]
The back kept their shape well, defended well, cut out a lot of passes, and made good tackles. I wasn't really expecting that, even with 5. Adams provided good cover. Wood... ugh. We really need Sargent, Novakovich, and several others to work out.
Concur with the sentiment that Sarachan gets too much flack with those pre-determined to hate him. You can't hold him to the standard of permanent head coach. That's not what he is. He came in to bridge a gap and provide us some info for the next manager. He did that decently well, and deserves some appreciation for that. It's just on to the next chapter. <1% chance he gets the job long-term. An MLS club could do worse than him. That's something he could have gained out of this selfishly by executing the objective well enough. Maybe he could do the same for them.
I believe you've said you don't watch MLS. I am really getting very tired of saying this and maybe its my own fault that I invite this argument, but he's improved. Its very clear, and I think a lot of opinions about him are tainted by a level of play that doesn't properly represent what he brings right now. Go read my comments from his play with the US U-20's. I wasn't disagreeing 1.5 years ago, but with younger players, some will improve, others will regress, others will stagnate. I like Robinson. I just think he's slightly naive defensively, and therefore behind Acosta. He was showing it against Bolivia, not just a top team like France. I like what he brings, and I think he had a good season. He's a much better option than the Beasley's, Garza's, Castillo's, etc. I'm not slighting him.
Nagbe has 0 goals and 1 primary assist in over 1,300 minutes for an Atlanta team that's averaging over 2 goals per game. I'll politely disagree with you about his usefulness.
Steffen's game is reminiscent of Howard. I can't be the only person who sees the similarities. Its nice that one is emerging as the other is about to retire.
You and I have disagreed about him pretty much every time we’ve ever seen him play. I’ve seen him a couple times with his club and he looked good, and I said I’d be fine with him getting a chance with the senior team. But yes, I have my doubts about how good he would be with the NT
I totally agree with you. I will go on record that he will have to up his game to still be our #1 RB in 4 years time. He has not been convincing to me over the last year.
Because the alternatives are worse. Just because someone plays doesn't mean they're useful for a national team. Nagbe is complete shit in the final third. He can't shoot, his decision-making sucks, and his passes always miss. He has done ********-all every time he has appeared for the national team, and advocating for his inclusion shows that you are clueless about the type of player who can contribute to the national team going forward. ******** me for trying to be nice.
OK, that is why average coach and good coach thought things different, not just statistics. If team buiding is all about choose a bunch of players with most goal/ assist stats, then they don't need a foreign. coach like Tata