He has played extended minutes that position for both club and country for the past three games. His club, by the way, is AC Milan. Yes, that AC Milan. With the USMNT as a wing player, he was the top rated offensive player in passing % (88%) and had an assist to go along with it over the home-and-away series with Jamaica. Not bad. I think that Pochettino will move him around as matchups and player availability dictates, but he can certainly play wing. When Dest comes back into the team it will be all the more important to have Musah contribute defensively and in ball control on that side. Both Musah and Dest can cut in and hit the ball on goal with their left feet. Musah can play simple balls there and press if the ball is turned over while Dest can take risks. It is a potentially solid pairing. We will see how it turns out, but Musah absolutely is an option at right wing for the USMNT. It helps that he has a great understanding with both Pulisic (who has assisted him under Pochettino) and with Pochettino himself. Having Weah and Musah at wing gives the US some serious two-way athleticism. Both Pulisic and Weah are great at making off the ball runs and Musah can hit the cross very well. That could be a real strength of the team especially if we see Adams, Tessmann, and McKennie in midfield…we might actually hold up against some of the more athletic teams.
I think I heard an announcer say during the Milan match that El Poche is putting him on the wing to improve his offense. Maybe he overthinks defensive responsibilities in the middle and it hurts his offensive game? His crossing is improving and also his wide take ons. Decision making passes and shots are key for him though. If it ever slows down for him he could be a real beast at several positions.
Per SempreMilan … “The main news is in attack, where Alvaro Morata is expected to lead the line with Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic part of the trident behind him. Yunus Musah is currently down as the right winger, and he could play a key tactical role again.” From the link, worth reading in full … “As Corriere dello Sport (via MilanPress) report this morning, Musah will be one of the tactical keys again. Fonseca views him as an important utility man given he can raise and lower the American’s position depending on the needs of a match. In essence, Musah could push up to be part of the attacking trident that will support the striker Alvaro Morata, meaning he would play alongside his compatriot Christian Pulisic. However, he can also drop into a wing-back position or even tuck in to form a midfield three.”
He had a great opportunity to get his first Milan goal and he decided to be cute/ unselfish and step over the ball for his teamate (ball didn't get there).
That's harsh. It was more of a fake dummy than an actual dummy from what I saw. He wasn't really in position himself to strike the ball.
I am not sure I have ever seen a YA that gets into so many choice spots to get on the scoring sheet w/o actually getting on the sheet itself. It is mind-boggling. The pass is always just a bit off or the player misses the shot on the assist or he makes the wrong decision to pass instead of shoot or decides to shoot and hits a banger off the bar. It is almost comical. Great player in almost every aspect of the game except when it comes to the final ball or shot.
Not harsh at all. He easily could've taken a touch and shot or even hit it first time. And what do you mean by fake dummy vs actual dummy?
My last sentence was what I meant. He took a swipe like he intended to hit it, but I am not sure he could have if he wanted to. Musah had a nice match today. He was a physical presence all match long, making runs, challenges, tackles, etc. that put pressure on the opponent. Focusing on that one play is ridiculous.
Yeah on the replay it didn't look like Musah could have done much except have a desperate poke and hope something good comes of it. Musah is a strange puzzle. He is still a ways from actually being able to produce GA, or maybe he is very close, or he may never get it sorted. I think he can still have a good career without really ever solving it. He does a lot of good things and he isn't really being tasked with producing offense. Milan has plenty of offense, Musah is like a swiss army knife/ multi-tool that can do many different tasks to an acceptable level, which works out okay if you don't have the money to buy a lot of quality back up tools. Right now he is a nice tactical and or rotation player with worlds of upside at decent price on reasonable wages, poses real value to a team like Milan that can't just splash money on new shiny toys at every misstep.
I'll have to watch again - seemed intentional to me. I thought he could've taken a touch and got a shot off. My intent wasn't to disparage his game yesterday (it was good) - I just want him to get that first Milan goal and see another mile-wide smile.
Can Milan sell him back to an EPL club and make a small profit? I mean, he's English, surely there must be demands for his signature in England.
https://sempremilan.com/musah-hybrid-position-fonseca-tactical-key "Not many would have predicted it at the start of the season, but Paulo Fonseca seems to have discovered a new tactical key in Yunus Musah. This morning’s edition of Corriere dello Sport (via PianetaMilan) writes how Milan look ‘decidedly more balanced’ when Musah plays on the right, in the role of winger in a 4-2-3-1 system. Or at least on paper. This season, Milan have been looking for a fundamental component to avoid conceding too many goals. Fonseca never wanted to give up any of his creators and scorers – namely Tijjani Reijnders, Christian Pulisic , Rafael Leão and Álvaro Morata – so he had to try a new solution." See also ... https://sempremilan.com/tactical-analysis-of-ac-milan-3-0-empoli
Musah: 88.5% passing Pulisic: 78.5% passing Musah leads Pulisic in short, medium, and long passing percentage this season across all competitions.