USA v. Japan post-game thread cont. (R)

Discussion in 'Youth National Teams' started by BuffloSoldier, Aug 7, 2008.

  1. DaPrince84

    DaPrince84 Member+

    Aug 22, 2001
    MD
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    posting drunk isnt cool

    *calls the police to report posting drunkenness*

    they were mostly bootballs... either out of play or just up the field... he is scared to dribble the ball, and its sad to see... he did it a lot throughout the match, especially right after the US took the lead

    his distribution was well... but I would rather see him overlapping with Holden and sending in crosses (which he has gotten better at) than just blindly putting his foot through the ball



    great result for the US with Nigeria drawing the Dutch...
     
  2. Heist

    Heist Member+

    Jun 15, 2001
    Virginia
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    As bad as they were, they DID mention Rossi (an American) scoring for Italy on the part of the studio show I saw. Also, we didn't steal 3 points. We played good enough defense, got lucky with a little bit of bad finishing. Japan isn't a great team so its not a big surprise they missed a couple good chances.

    The nice thing is, we know we can play better and we are still at the top of the group.
     
  3. zerkdave

    zerkdave Member

    Mar 4, 2005
    Arlington, VA
    Let's start the Rossi character assassination talk:

    He is a spineless scumbag...there you go.
     
  4. ill quixote

    ill quixote Member

    Apr 5, 2006
    He did play a lot of poor long balls in the 1st 15 minutes or so but improved in this aspect as the game went on. Still, an awesome game from him overall.
     
  5. Roehl Sybing

    Roehl Sybing Guest

    If we ever meet Italy in the knockout rounds, I say screw the win and have one of our guys take out Rossi's knees. In minute 2 or earlier.
     
  6. Zoidberg

    Zoidberg Member+

    Jun 23, 2006
    I have a very hard time disagreeing with anything posted here.

    This really was not the best way to use our overage players IMO.

    Altidore could have done close to what Bake did.

    Wouldn't Davies have been a perfect sub for the end of this game with his speed? Well, if Nowak puts him in with more than 5 minutes left;).

    Wouldn't a left back with speed (Pearce, Frankie) help more?

    It's amazing how wins cloud what people see in a coach. BA covered his "clear" weaknesses for over 4 years playing chumps and deriding anyone who remotely questoned him. Yet, he won against chumps and beat Mexico. Who cares about tactics, adjusting during games and challenged subs.
    Gotta wait for the WC to see reality.

    Here, I see a lot of question marks with regards to his player choices, adjustments and subs. Seems familiar. Until we are challenged big time, coming up, you don't always see what a coach is about. We need good coaching to help in these next two. Subs, in game adjustments, tactics.

    Well, we are gonna find out now.
     
  7. JuanPeron

    JuanPeron Member

    Jul 16, 2005
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Nat'l Team:
    St. Vincent and the Grenadines
    My other username answered it best.

    I'll answer as dsnipes1 in about 5 minutes.

    Also watching Wynne has been doing this forever. Wasn't just this match sunshine.
     
  8. dcole

    dcole Member+

    May 27, 2005
    Sure, but then what do you do for the next two games while Altidore is getting IV fluids? Bringing McBride (or another O-23 target forward) will prove to be the smartest move Nowak made.
     
  9. An Unpaved Road

    An Unpaved Road Member+

    Mar 22, 2006
    Club:
    --other--
    Not the best performance. Too often the game plan revolved around long balls that the forwards had no chance of getting too, while on the other hand Japan players were constantly receiving nice breakout passes out wide. McBride didn't get much service, Adu didn't get much of anything going. Nice finish by Holden, though. That's the type of chance you cannot waste. The PK non-call at the end didn't look nearly as bad on the replay. There was some tugging, not doubt, but the Japan player took an exaggerated tumble.
     
  10. MarioKempes

    MarioKempes Member+

    Real Madrid, DC United, anywhere Pulisic plays
    Aug 3, 2000
    Proxima Centauri
    Club:
    Real Madrid
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Oh the imagery. :rolleyes::(
     
  11. DaPrince84

    DaPrince84 Member+

    Aug 22, 2001
    MD
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    bringing McBride to play a role that is the exact opposite of what is suited for the team is a good thing? :confused:


    bringing another forward would have been good... bringing McBride may prove to be wasted...
     
  12. dsnipes1

    dsnipes1 Member

    Aug 12, 2005
    couldn't have said it better myself.
     
  13. Zoidberg

    Zoidberg Member+

    Jun 23, 2006
    I hope so. I am so torn about this team...and Nowak.

    Can't wait for these next two. It's gonna be pretty obvious one way or the other.
     
  14. EL MONO MARIO

    EL MONO MARIO Member

    Apr 9, 2002
    Montevideo, Uruguay
    Club:
    CA River Plate
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Not a pretty win but a win 3 points is 3 points in these tornaments. Despite not having much of the ball The US got what it went to get a win. Hopefully we will look better against Holland....
     
  15. onefineesq

    onefineesq Member+

    Sep 16, 2003
    Laurel, MD
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Heck, i would settle for Harrington, in place of Dax on this roster, which would allow Orozco to play a more natural position. The problem is that Nowak has a woody for midfielders, so he just grabs all the midfielders that he likes, and then fills out his midfielders in other positions in which he hasn't brought enough players. This roster has 4 defenders, 3 strikers, and 9 midfielders. Enough said. Glad to get those 3 points. Happy that Nowak didn't start McBride and Altidore together. Concerned that he chose McBride to be the one starting. Concerned that Edu reverted to midfielder form while playing centerback (which is to be expected when the coach doesn't bring defenders). This was a must win game against a team that frankly we should win against. We'll see what happens now.
     
  16. CHthirteen

    CHthirteen Member

    Jul 13, 2008
    Chicago
    You don't need to "put a team together" for McBride, you just have to get some guys to play some crosses into the box. Instead of running to the edge of the box and holding the ball until they lose possession, occasionally someone could send a ball into the edge of the 6. It really isn't _that_ difficult.

    McBride wasn't combining well with Adu cause Adu was playing a little selfishly, I don't think it would've changed if you started with Davies or Altidore. I would've prefered to see someone who would've played wide on the right in attack instead of Adu/Kjlestan and McBride paired with Altidore up front.
     
  17. onefineesq

    onefineesq Member+

    Sep 16, 2003
    Laurel, MD
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    McBride isn't the only other forward on the planet. He has weak dribbling skills and is approaching glacier slowness. Nowak could have chose Cooper or Buddle and gotten decent target play with much better speed and footskills. The McBride selection was a bad selection as both of those other players can also get up and down the field with these younger players much better.
     
  18. Heist

    Heist Member+

    Jun 15, 2001
    Virginia
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    How is that?
    If Holland has 2 ties and a win (against Japan)
    If Nigeria has a tie and a win (against Japan) going into the final game.

    We would still have to beat Nigeria or tie Nigeria and hope for something with goal differential. I don't know all the tiebreakers, but I know beating Japan by 1 goal won't win us many.
    Is my math wrong?
    If either lose or tie against Japan, that would obviously make our road easier.
     
  19. onefineesq

    onefineesq Member+

    Sep 16, 2003
    Laurel, MD
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    read the quote that i was answering. he was stating that the teams play should be centered around McBride. I disagreed. Do you agree that if you pick McBride that the team should be built around him, because THAT was the statement I was answering. It really isn't _ that _ difficult to see what i was saying. And for the record, McBride was not combining well with Adu partly because of Adu and partly because of McBride. The guy couldn't clear his own mark to receive a pass if his life depended on it. That would certainly be different with Davies (whose problem with us has been FINISHING), and Altidore did in fact lose his a few times in his limited time on the field. Unfortunately on one, the foolish referee didn't play advantage.
     
  20. Mr Martin

    Mr Martin Member+

    Jun 12, 2002
    Club:
    Philadelphia Union
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Your rating for McBride is too harsh, but you are trying to make a point, and it is a point I agree with. McBride works his butt off, draws fouls, trys to set up teamates, etc., but he does not fit with this team's skills.

    1) The team has a couple of adequate crossers in Rogers and Wynne, but neither is a great crosser and nobody else on the team is even as adequate crossing as Rogers and Wynne. Crossing high balls to McBride simply cannot be this team's style.

    2) Adu is not the best second forward for McBride. Adu is a creator and needs space. He needs teammates running off of HIM, not the other way around. He is not a slasher like Donovan who would do a better job making runs off McBride's knockdowns. Instead, Adu needs a forward who will draw attention and open up space for him, which is precisely what Altidore can do. Altidore will draw the double teams that Japan didn't need to bother with against McBride. Japan doubled Adu out of the match because McBride isn't a 1v1 threat. Paired with Altidore, Adu will find more space to create.


    Like Captain10, you are also pointing out that McBride really doesn't fit with this Olympic roster stylistically. All along I preferred Guzan and two defenders as the overage players.



    This was my take on Wynne, too. I was looking for the poor touches and wild long-balls, but was pleasantly surprised when Wynne showed some solid touch and decent passing.

    I've often compared him to Hejduk in terms of speed, work-rate, and a brick touch, but Marvel may be about to exceed the Surferdude's talent plateau. If so, he will prove to be a very useful US Nat during the next 2 World Cup cycles. Right back may be pretty solid heading into 2010 if Wynne keeps improving, even if Cherundolo's age (31 in 2010) starts to catch up with him.

    Also, Wynne's assertive forward play most of the game really turned the US formation into a 3-5-2 for long stretches right up to the goal. I often saw only Edu, Parkhurst and Orozco along the back, while Wynne was overlapping Holden. Anyone know if this was connected to Nowak's gesture in the middle of the 1st half, where the TV showed him calling onto the field, holding up two fingers of one hand and placing between those fingers a finger from his other hand? Nowak was clearly making a three finger allignment while instructing his players about something -- could have been an obscene gesture, too, I suppose ;). The US was choking off Japan's midfield very effectively during the time and it seemed to me that the team was effectively in a 3-5-2.
     
  21. Clint Eastwood

    Clint Eastwood Member+

    Dec 23, 2003
    Somerville, MA
    Club:
    FC Dallas
    I agree. I'm actually of the opinion that the Holland-Nigeria draw is BAAAAD for the US. I was hoping Holland would romp their way thru the group (as I see them beating us). After seeing Japan I expect Nigeria to beat them.

    After the 2nd games of the group I therefore expect:

    Nigeria 4
    Holland 4
    US 3
    Japan 0

    In other words I fully anticipate we're going to need a WIN against Nigeria in the last group game.

    If Holland had won against Nigeria (as everybody would have predicted they would) then the US could have advanced with just a draw against Nigeria. Once again down to goal differential.

    Make sense? (I'm of course making a lot of assumpions here. But Japan looked awful to me, and I don't see them picking up any points this tournament. If Japan can somehow take points off on Nigeria in the next round then we're in much much better shape)

    (Of course I'm making the assumption that we're not going to get any points against Holland. Who knows).

    In any case, we took care of our business and that's all you can really control.
     
  22. CHthirteen

    CHthirteen Member

    Jul 13, 2008
    Chicago

    I was mostly replying to both of you... but too lazy to multiqoute. And really my only point is that we didn't get wide enough, and I can't see a method to what Adu and Klejstan are doing out there.

    I would've preferred to see a more straightforward gameplan, employing more wide play, more crosses into the box, and use our athleticism and height with McBride and Altidore.

    If we weren't so then in defence i would suggest playing Wynne as a right sided midfielder, since he was the only one who seemed capable/interested in making runs down the right flank.
     
  23. smokarz

    smokarz Member+

    Aug 9, 2006
    Hartford, CT
    No your math is absolutely correct, and note I said ALMOST. With 4 points going into the final match, it is our QF to loose.

    All we would need to do is put 11 players in front of our goal and get out with a point. That's it.
     
  24. cyberthoth

    cyberthoth Member+

    Nashville SC
    Aug 7, 2000
    Nashville, TN
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States

    Uhhh no. For starters you only have 10 players...but I assume you want McBride in with Altidore.

    Wynne was our best player and this put him out of position and frankly...into a position where his skillset doesn't help. He barely has the technical skills to play RB much less RM...even in a 5 man midfield.
     
  25. Heist

    Heist Member+

    Jun 15, 2001
    Virginia
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Right, the post I was responding to was IF we got a point against Holland
    That would most likely leave it like this going into the final game:
    US - 4
    Nigeria - 4
    Holland - 2
    Japan - 0

    That doesn't make anything any easier for us. A Holland win might have been better for us in the long run. This gives us a better chance to win the group, but not a better chance of getting out of the group I think (if that makes any sense). Makaay hurt and the red card will hurt Holland, but they are still a great team that could easily beat us.

    Japan wasn't horrible overall, but their finishing was!
     

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