Repeating what I said before .......... the lack of a speedy forward to put any pressure on the backline of the Italians (or any of the other teams in this tournament for that matter), finally caught up with us. Dalby not being able to complete a forward pass didn't help either. J. Johnson and M. Bradley would have made this team look a whole lot different. Such is life though.
Oh well. I think our performances got progressively worse with each match. Again it comes down to not finishing our chances.
Oh, Sigi, Sigi, Sigi...I think his lineup really played into Italian hands...too many bodies up front, clogging up an already crowded box, not enough defensive support from the midfield, allowing the Italians to run at the D through midfield all day long. Still, game basically comes down to Barrett-ain't-Pelle...sure, Italian keeper makes some excellent saves, but in the US jersey Barrett needs to finish at least 2 of his chances.
Beating Argentina, winning the group and going out to Italy is nothing to be ashamed of. From this group, I like Ochoa, Westerberg. Spector was off his game in the first half but is NOT to blame for losing this game. I say the lack of someone to hold and win possession in defensive midfield was the biggest gap between us and Italy today. Italy seemed to have two or three players who filled this role, including the classy Defendi. Also, I have now joined the Freddy Adu is overrated camp. I was disappointed in his play. He made a few brilliant passes here and there, but overall he seemed physically overmatched and strangely lacking in creative ideas when it came to passing and finding a way forward. Maybe he'll grow into the role. After all, he's still just 16 and out there, he looked it: both physically and in terms of positioning and tactical sense of the game.
I think the problem was a) our forwards were poor and b) by game 4, it was easy to figure out our 4-2-2-2. As the game went on, it seemed more and more like Italy was playing a 4-5-2; the midfield was too jammed up for us to get any passing lanes. The lack of wingers, game after game, allowed Italy to figure us out.
Too many Fing turnovers in the midfield. Pathetic display by the US midfield, not much beter for the rest of the team.
The over confidence that once Afflicted the US Men in CONCACAF has hit the U-20's. Hopefully they learn from their mistakes & NEVER UNDERESTIMATE a team EVER AGAIN like the US Mens NT
It struck me as I watched the second half that it has been a long time since I have seen a team with so little attacking imagination. Everything was short, short, long...
Freddy is ONLY 16!! The ENTIRE team is to blame ESP the defense!! But Freddy has to simplify his game & ACE the PK's! . Even Ronaldinho uses fewer tricks than him.
Well, so as not to roast the forwards in this particular game disproportionately, I must say that the worst player on the field today was Spector. Somebody needs to tell this guy that as a centerback, you don't attempt to dribble out of trouble through the center of the field. he did it several times and was stripped nearly every time ......... one of which was a goal. I said this in the other thread, but Spector is not the centerback of the US future. I'll stick with Gibbs, Gooch, Marshall, etc., for now and going forward. Spector definitely needs to be out on the wings where those turnovers aren't punished as frequently. Absolutely horrendous today.
Chad Barrett better find a new position because he has absolutely no finishing skills. Also, I was under the impression that Eddie Gaven was gonna be on this team. Anybody know what happend?
Wow, I think your right. I heard that Sigi predicted a 4-0 win for the US and told all his players to take it easy so they could be rested for the next round.
I completely disagree. Spector was horrendous. He played Agoos-esque in the back. He was directly responsible for two goals and had Italy finished would have been responsible for four goals. I was justified in my hesitance over proclaiming him the next great American center back, unlike so many others here. What did he offer today? What? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I don't think it was a coincidence that we played 200+ plus minutes of scoreless soccer without him and then give up three goals in 90 minutes with him on the field. I blame Spector for this loss first, then the inability of the attackers to pass the freakin ball second.
Said earlier but bears repeating: True. The thing is, though we won our Group of Death, it must be noted that we scored a grand total of two goals. BOTH on deflected crosses. Nothing in the middle of the park in the run of play, no skillfully-taken free kicks, no corners, no well-timed runs. I was telling the chef in our cafeteria this morning (a huge soccer fan) that for every American kid we can produce in the IMG Academy, Brazil can bring four kids playing beach soccer who are as good or better.
Unfortunately, it comes down to a lack of finishing and taking advantage of the chances you get. It seemed like we wanted one more touch than we actually needed. ie barretts go around, the low ball was open on the second touch, but not the third. early on barrett ( not to pick on him) had a wide open net if he could have connected on the ball at all. Another time Ochoa underpowers a header ( should I be calling for peterson), with the goalie out of the play( trying to punch out) Tournament time means taking advantage of each opportunity, because they won't come around again very often. I also thought in this game that we gave up to much space in front of the defenders, and didn't get enough support back in the midfield leading to pelle having clean balls time and time again. As for the goals, two deflections, and a midfield give away which was compounded by Wynn going to the ground on pelle move, that's what happens too often in this sport. Nice effort by the team, I guess Bruce's job is still secure. ps I loved wynn in this tournament, but boy did he look small next to the Italian forwards......
Exactly, I started a thread before the WYC tournament stating that Sigi's choice of fowards was going to be the US downfall in the tournament. No speed, no creativity to break down or stretch opposing defense. Looks like it became a true prediction. I can't believe Sigi didn't see that comming. Now I see why Sigi was fired from the Galaxy, good defense but the offense stinks.
I generally agree. We lost that organization, confidence from the 1 1/2 games and became a more ordinary team. Our forward line got exposed as the tourney went on.