Criticism of Bradley...

[Forza Azzurri]

There are extenuating factors that explain what most of you perceive as Bradley's less than scintillating performance in Brazil.

Bradley is your classic box-to-box midfielder but he is much closer to a mediano than he is to a trequartista.

However, the role that Klinsmann has asked him to play is much more of a trequartista role.

Asking a box to box midfielder to turn himself into a trequartista is tantamount to a position change that requires a completely different skill set.

Think asking Stevie Thompson to play the point.

On a more skillful team, Bradley would never have to play the role he is being asked to play.

At Chievo, a lesser Italian club, he played the role of mediano.

At Roma, his development as a player allowed him to play both the mediano and the box to box centrocampista.

Roma had Totti to play the role of trequartista - the role that Klinsmann is essentially asking Bradley to play in Brazil. His skill set is simply not suited to play that role.

A second reason is that the opposition has clearly recognized that Bradley is the most dangerous of the US midfielders and, while not man-marking him, they are paying a lot of attention to him and closing him down as soon as he receives the ball. That is something he is simply not used to.

Combine the extra attention with the fact that he is now receiving balls in a much more contested area of the pitch relative to where he is used to receiving them (the further forward you go the more pressure there is once you receive the ball and the less time you have to make the right decision), and he is having a tough time.

Finally, the loss of Altidore really hurts Bradley's play. Altidore's ability to holdup play to allow numbers to press forward gave Bradley lots of options when he did receive the ball.

In the absence of numbers getting forward, Bradley now either has to create on his own or provide the "killer pass" - these are attributes of a classic #10 but neither of which is a strength of Bradley's.

So, why is Bradley being asked to play a role for which he is ill-suited?

Because there is nobody else.

Beckerman is a mediano and nothing more. Jones is more skilled than Beckerman but his efficiency declines dramatically the higher up the pitch he is. And Bradley is more skilled than Jones is.

So, Bradley is really playing out of position this World Cup.

Therefore, criticize if you will but understand that there are other factors at work which are causing Bradley to have a less-than-stellar World Cup.

 

[rrlbees]

I understand all that but doesn't excuse some of the basic mistakes like bad 1 touches, missed passes completely and poor passes made himself. I've been more concerned with his poor ball skills.

 

[Forza Azzurri]

I've been more concerned with his poor ball skills.

I'm sorry but your response indicates that you don't.

His poor ball skills are a direct consequence of being under much more pressure much more quickly than he is used to. Pressure is also coming at him from different angles than he is used to.

Has he made some poor decisions, taken bad touches and executed bad passes. Absolutely. But so has everyone else including Messi, Ronaldo, Ozil etc...

If you watch this US team, there is one player (and I include Altidore in this statement) who is really good at receiving the ball under very heavy pressure (meaning man-marking from pressure from at least one defender with others closing in), taking the appropriate touch away from pressure and then making the correct decision with the ball - and that player is Dempsey.

He receives the ball almost effortlessly while the rest of the American team has a really tough time dealing with that type of pressure.

Bradley simply isn't used to it.

BTW, in the absence off Altidore, this is where Donovan could have been helpful.

He is not a classic #10 or a seconda punta either but he does have the ability to both take people on and deliver the proper ball to complement Dempsey's movement. He is a more dynamic player than Bradley is.

An illustration of exactly how hard it is to play a position on the field for which one's skill set is ill-suited is Pirlo.

Had it not been for Carlo Mazzone, it is likely that the world would have never heard of Andrea Pirlo.

Pirlo started out his career as a trequartista - and struggled.

He possessed some of the attributes of a classic #10 - great vision, the ability to deliver the killer pass but struggled with pace and was not a killer 1 v 1 player.

It was only when Mazzone moved him to Regista - a deep-lying playmaker - that Pirlo blossomed into the player that we all know him as.

 

[Toga]

I thought he played really well for 90 minutes (aside from an almost open goal) against Portugal. Total brain fart at the end though.

 

[cmr27]

So, Bradley is really playing out of position this World Cup.

Therefore, criticize if you will but understand that there are other factors at work which are causing Bradley to have a less-than-stellar World Cup.

Bradley still has to make plays but this is an expert analysis. Thank you.

 

[IthacaMatt]

There are extenuating factors that explain what most of you perceive as Bradley's less than scintillating performance in Brazil.

Bradley is your classic box-to-box midfielder but he is much closer to a mediano than he is to a trequartista.

However, the role that Klinsmann has asked him to play is much more of a trequartista role.

So, Bradley is really playing out of position this World Cup.

Therefore, criticize if you will but understand that there are other factors at work which are causing Bradley to have a less-than-stellar World Cup.

The factors that most bother me about his performance so far are (1) his inability to control the ball, and (2) his lack of energy in breaking up play in the midfield.

Watching the Germany game last night on DVR, I could not help but notice how little Bradley did to close out on shooters or to challenge players dribbling the ball in the midfield. He was very passive. Now, granted, he was probably tired as hell after the 2 games in the hot and muggy north of Brazil. But he was dreadful.

Sure, I can see that he is being asked to play a more forward creative role than he has before, but that doesn't explain the sporadic effort on defense. He didn't have enough "want to" for my tastes. Jermaine Jones has passed him as our most important midfielder, and I didn't think I would EVER be saying that.

 

[skurey]

I feel like he hasn't been bad but we certainly haven't seen his best. More like an average performance for his standards. We definitely need him to reach his peak for us to go far which I think we can.

 

[Forza Azzurri]

The factors that most bother me about his performance so far are (1) his inability to control the ball, and (2) his lack of energy in breaking up play in the midfield.

Watching the Germany game last night on DVR, I could not help but notice how little Bradley did to close out on shooters or to challenge players dribbling the ball in the midfield. He was very passive. Now, granted, he was probably tired as hell after the 2 games in the hot and muggy north of Brazil. But he was dreadful.

Sure, I can see that he is being asked to play a more forward creative role than he has before, but that doesn't explain the sporadic effort on defense. He didn't have enough "want to" for my tastes. Jermaine Jones has passed him as our most important midfielder, and I didn't think I would EVER be saying that.

Think of Bradley defensively as almost the equivalent of Dempsey in terms of his responsibilities. His job in his current role is not to be the one to break up the offensive play - that now falls to Beckerman (his primary responsibility) and Jones. He is supposed to stay higher up the field and not drop too deep.

Part of the reason that Jones is playing so well is that the insertion of Beckerman and the movement of Bradley higher up the field has turned Jones into a box to box player.

When Jones was paired with Bradley, there was too much confusion about their relative positioning. Since Bradley is more skilled, the assumption was that Jones would be Beckerman (in this line-up) and Bradley would be Jones.

Part of the reason Jones struggled is that he was not disciplined enough in his positioning to simply be Beckerman. He seems much more comfortable going from 18 to 18.

There is no doubt in my mind that, if the roles were reversed (ie. Bradley as the box to box and Jones as the trequartista), we'd be praising Bradley and lamenting Jones' performance.

They seem like subtle changes since they are all central midfield roles but there are enormous differences between a mediano, a classic centrocampista and a trequartista.

The reality is that Jones and Bradley really shouldn't be on the field together much like Gerrard and Lampard, despite their considerable individual talents, struggled on the field together because they both played the same position.

Bradley and Jones play the same position.

The only way they should really be on the field together is if one is playing the true mediano role (in place of Beckerman) and the other is playing the box to box mid with a true trequartista up top...

Temperment-wise, Bradley is actually much more suited than Jones is to play a classic mediano or even a regista but the US needs him getting forward...

 

[ImperialOrange]

Simply put, to me, he looks like a player that is pressing.

 

[Bortukal]

I'm starting to suspect that Forza is Fabio Capello.

Really great analysis here. Not saying I agree 100%, but it's insightful.

 

[Conrad13]

As a novice soccer fan, I really appreciate all the analysis. I have to disagree with Toga about the Portugal game. His bobbled passes stuck out to me throughout the game to the point where I was focused on him and cringed whenever the ball went his way. His turnover at the end of the game that resulted in the goal was just one of many. Thanks Forza, for pointing out that he's playing out of position, because he really does look uncomfortable out there.

 

[rrlbees]

I'm sorry but your response indicates that you don't. His poor ball skills are a direct consequence of being under much more pressure much more quickly than he is used to. Pressure is also coming at him from different angles than he is used to. Has he made some poor decisions, taken bad touches and executed bad passes. Absolutely. But so has everyone else including Messi, Ronaldo, Ozil etc... If you watch this US team, there is one player (and I include Altidore in this statement) who is really good at receiving the ball under very heavy pressure (meaning man-marking from pressure from at least one defender with others closing in), taking the appropriate touch away from pressure and then making the correct decision with the ball - and that player is Dempsey. He receives the ball almost effortlessly while the rest of the American team has a really tough time dealing with that type of pressure. Bradley simply isn't used to it. BTW, in the absence off Altidore, this is where Donovan could have been helpful. He is not a classic #10 or a seconda punta either but he does have the ability to both take people on and deliver the proper ball to complement Dempsey's movement. He is a more dynamic player than Bradley is. An illustration of exactly how hard it is to play a position on the field for which one's skill set is ill-suited is Pirlo. Had it not been for Carlo Mazzone, it is likely that the world would have never heard of Andrea Pirlo. Pirlo started out his career as a trequartista - and struggled. He possessed some of the attributes of a classic #10 - great vision, the ability to deliver the killer pass but struggled with pace and was not a killer 1 v 1 player. It was only when Mazzone moved him to Regista - a deep-lying playmaker - that Pirlo blossomed into the player that we all know him as.

I'm not even talking about under pressure. Basic passes and received passes. He's either not focused or is lackadaisical.

 

[Alsacs]

Bradley is a good player, but he has sucked in keeping possession in this WC. He has run 23 miles in 3 matches which is the most in the WC for any player, and that is because he is expected to do more. However, he has been a sub-par performance this WC and his postgame press conference with Jeremy Schaap after the Portugal match was embarrassing.
http://www.espnfc.com/united-states...ormance-after-settling-for-draw-with-portugal

If Bradley SAID ANYTHING I could have defended him, but his answers were a joke for a professional athlete. Just say I played 90 minutes plus in the freaking Amazon and I made a mistake and the fans who are frustrated atleast understand instead of his garbage nothing responses.

 

[NineOneSeven]

He seems in slow motion in tight places and is a step behind


I compare it to a ball player who dribbles down the lane and tries to take two more dribbles in traffic than necessary

 

[ForCuseSake]

I've started to think Bradley has sustained some type of injury or illness.

Forza's expert analysis aside he looks night an day from how he played in the last two qualifiers and the three send off games.

Against Nigeria, the last send off game, he played the same position in the same starting lineup used against Ghana and was exponentially better than any of his WC performances.

Here's hoping he returns to form against Belgium.

 

[Shrmdougluvr]

I think three things:

1. He is not as sharp as we have seen him.

2. He generally is not a playmaking #10 and i don't believe that was initially Klinnsy's intention. I think he was going to be a #8 with the ability to roam forward more. As Forza said, losing Alidore has pushed him further up field to support Dempsey (the lack of true wingers doesnt help either). The use of the term "trequartista" is misleading. Even as the tip of the diamond midfield, he was always going to have to exhibit a work rate that far exceeded your standard number 10. He was never playing the Totti, Del Piero role. I think ideally for the U.S. he would be playing like Kroos or Modric. The US just doenst have enough attacking talent. Next cycle they should. I think he was moved up because he is the best in possession with the ball, and Jones was too undisciplined as dual 8's on a pulley.

3. His work rate, coupled with the conditions, has been overwhelming.

 

[Forza Azzurri]

I think three things:

1. He is not as sharp as we have seen him.

2. He generally is not a playmaking #10 and i don't believe that was initially Klinnsy's intention. I think he was going to be a #8 with the ability to roam forward more. As Forza said, losing Alidore has pushed him further up field to support Dempsey (the lack of true wingers doesnt help either). The use of the term "trequartista" is misleading. Even as the tip of the diamond midfield, he was always going to have to exhibit a work rate that far exceeded your standard number 10. He was never playing the Totti, Del Piero role. I think ideally for the U.S. he would be playing like Kroos or Modric. The US just doenst have enough attacking talent. Next cycle they should. I think he was moved up because he is the best in possession with the ball, and Jones was too undisciplined as dual 8's on a pulley.

3. His work rate, coupled with the conditions, has been overwhelming.

Great points.

And I think #1 is a consequence of both 2 & 3.

 

[CuseCPT]

You've sold me on him having a good excuse, but the end result and what is needed is still the same. He needs to play more confidently and make better choices if we are to keep advancing

 

[CuseFaninVT]

There are extenuating factors that explain what most of you perceive as Bradley's less than scintillating performance in Brazil.

Bradley is your classic box-to-box midfielder but he is much closer to a mediano than he is to a trequartista.

However, the role that Klinsmann has asked him to play is much more of a trequartista role.

Asking a box to box midfielder to turn himself into a trequartista is tantamount to a position change that requires a completely different skill set.

Think asking Stevie Thompson to play the point.

On a more skillful team, Bradley would never have to play the role he is being asked to play.

At Chievo, a lesser Italian club, he played the role of mediano.

At Roma, his development as a player allowed him to play both the mediano and the box to box centrocampista.

Roma had Totti to play the role of trequartista - the role that Klinsmann is essentially asking Bradley to play in Brazil. His skill set is simply not suited to play that role.

A second reason is that the opposition has clearly recognized that Bradley is the most dangerous of the US midfielders and, while not man-marking him, they are paying a lot of attention to him and closing him down as soon as he receives the ball. That is something he is simply not used to.

Combine the extra attention with the fact that he is now receiving balls in a much more contested area of the pitch relative to where he is used to receiving them (the further forward you go the more pressure there is once you receive the ball and the less time you have to make the right decision), and he is having a tough time.

Finally, the loss of Altidore really hurts Bradley's play. Altidore's ability to holdup play to allow numbers to press forward gave Bradley lots of options when he did receive the ball.

In the absence of numbers getting forward, Bradley now either has to create on his own or provide the "killer pass" - these are attributes of a classic #10 but neither of which is a strength of Bradley's.

So, why is Bradley being asked to play a role for which he is ill-suited?

Because there is nobody else.

Beckerman is a mediano and nothing more. Jones is more skilled than Beckerman but his efficiency declines dramatically the higher up the pitch he is. And Bradley is more skilled than Jones is.

So, Bradley is really playing out of position this World Cup.

Therefore, criticize if you will but understand that there are other factors at work which are causing Bradley to have a less-than-stellar World Cup.

Did anyone hear Olbermann's rant on soccer in the US? This is exactly what he's talking about. Keep using language like this and the rest of America will change the channel immediately.

All that being said, I thought Bradley played a point guard with a terrible assist/TO ratio. Which I think is what you are saying using non-English terminology as well. I also thought he kept pushing the ball in the wrong direction too often. Either way, he bothered me with all of his mis-hits and poorly placed balls.

 

[Forza Azzurri]

Did anyone hear Olbermann's rant on soccer in the US? This is exactly what he's talking about. Keep using language like this and the rest of America will change the channel immediately.

All that being said, I thought Bradley played a point guard with a terrible assist/TO ratio. Which I think is what you are saying using non-English terminology as well. I also thought he kept pushing the ball in the wrong direction too often. Either way, he bothered me with all of his mis-hits and poorly placed balls.

Those are words that are universally used.

Not knowing the meanings of the worlds I used, regardless of the langauge, is equivalent to not knowing the difference between a point guard and a two guard, a 3 and a 4 or a safety and a corner.

If I wanted to really dummy it down, so even soccer novices could understand what I was talking about, I would have.

Olbermann? Now there is somebody whose opinion I take seriously. Oh Lord

 

[CuseFaninVT]

Those are words that are universally used.

Not knowing the meanings of the worlds I used, regardless of the langauge, is equivalent to not knowing the difference between a point guard and a two guard, a 3 and a 4 or a safety and a corner.

If I wanted to really dummy it down, so even soccer novices could understand what I was talking about, I would have.

Olbermann? Now there is somebody whose opinion I take seriously. Oh Lord

That's why my kid plays lacrosse.

 

[Forza Azzurri]

That's why my kid plays lacrosse.

Hopefully you know more about that sport than you do about soccer...

 

[CuseFaninVT]

Hopefully you know more about that sport than you do about soccer...

luckily I do.