2021 USMNT Thread | Page 10 | Syracusefan.com

2021 USMNT Thread

I don't like that we would have gone straight penalties had it been tied after 90.

Berhalter lives another day.
 
jordville said:
I don't like that we would have gone straight penalties had it been tied after 90.

Berhalter lives another day.
Expand...
Our manager is a weakness for sure.
The upgrades from Steffon, Adams and Pulisic were noticeable.

Honduras bunker mentality was hard to watch. We dominated this match everywhere but the scoreboard.
 
Alsacs said:
Our manager is a weakness for sure.
The upgrades from Steffon, Adams and Pulisic were noticeable.

Honduras bunker mentality was hard to watch. We dominated this match everywhere but the scoreboard.
Expand...

I thought I was crazy for a second, but Adams didn't play! :)

Steffen is going to win us a game and lose us a game this cycle. He almost did both today with a wonderful save in the 2 v 0, but Sarge saved his bacon on a blunder.

Overall though, an inexperienced team is going to struggle with a bunker. Honduras shrank the field, Brooks, Yeuill, and McKennie couldn't couldn't advance the ball in space (until the 86th minute for Brooks) and only Reyna appeared to be able to operate consistently in tight quarters.

Mexico wins and we may see a very pretty 3-2 type game in the final.
 
Alsacs said:
Our manager is a weakness for sure.
The upgrades from Steffon, Adams and Pulisic were noticeable.

Honduras bunker mentality was hard to watch. We dominated this match everywhere but the scoreboard.
Expand...

I didn't think Honduras "bunkered" (played deep lines) so much as they fouled an awful lot, breaking up play. In a sense, I thought the game was relatively open.

The US would be much better with 3 centerbacks and a 3-5-2.

You can only play a back 4 and expect to beat elite teams when you have very fundamentally sound defenders. The US do not, so much. I know this as a Chelsea fan.

When we tried to play David Luiz in a back 4, there were always too many crucial errors. In a back 3, his range of passing and ability to bring the ball upfield were great assets.

Similarly, with Serginho Dest playing better defensively on the right tonight, he's still not that great and offers more going forward than going back.

Again, on Chelsea, that's just like Marcos Alonso or Ben Chillwell. They are less exposed defensively with 3 centerbacks behind them.

For me, John Brooks in the middle, with Aaron Long and either Walker Zimmerman, Matt Miazga or Tim Ream. That's an experienced group of 5 for 3 spots for a tournament. That young guy Erik Palmer-Brown has promise, too.

Wingbacks - Dest, Cannon, Robinson, Tim Weah or Aaronson, who has a ton of energy.

For the 3 midfielders, I would play Reyna as the 10, and then McKennie and Tyler Adams as my two other guys in midfield - one holding (Adams) and one box-to-box (McKennie). Musah could rotate in here for McKennie, Pulisic could swap with Reyna and play the 10, or you could try out somebody like Lleget for the 10, Kelly Acosta as the holding mid instead of Yeuill, who was not that great.

I would have a front 2 of Pulisic and more of a target man / somebody good in the air, so Pulisic could play off somebody like he did with Giroud at the end of the 2020 season so effectively. Somebody physical like Daryl Dike could be that guy, or maybe this new guy who got the game winner from France, Siebetcheu. I'm not sold on Sargeant.

Tim Weah played there for Lille at times this season; maybe he is a possibility there, too. If Weah played the 9, we would probably have even more interplay up front.

Steffen and Horvath at goal.

I like a 3-5-2. It doesn't leave us exposed in the back, or too thin in midfield. We have enough offensive minded midfielders that a late runner coming into the box might introduce more uncertainty for the opposition and create less predictable approaches to creating chances.

Pulisic was tired tonight. He and Reyna were trying to get it going together, and Pulisic's dribbles were too predictable. That one by Reyna early in the game was almost magic.
 
Last edited:
IthacaMatt said:
I didn't think Honduras "bunkered" (played deep lines) so much as they fouled an awful lot, breaking up play. In a sense, I thought the game was relatively open.

The US would be much better with 3 centerbacks and a 3-5-2.

You can only play a back 4 and expect to beat elite teams when you have very fundamentally sound defenders. The US do not, so much. I know this as a Chelsea fan.

When we tried to play David Luiz in a back 4, there were always too many crucial errors. In a back 3, his range of passing and ability to bring the ball upfield were great assets.

Similarly, with Serginho Dest playing better defensively on the right tonight, he's still not that great and offers more going forward than going back.

Again, on Chelsea, that's just like Marcos Alonso or Ben Chillwell. They are less exposed defensively with 3 centerbacks behind them.

For me, John Brooks in the middle, with Aaron Long and either Walker Zimmerman, Matt Miazga or Tim Ream. That's an experienced group of 5 for 3 spots for a tournament. That young guy Erik Palmer-Brown has promise, too.

Wingbacks - Dest, Cannon, Robinson, Tim Weah or Aaronson, who has a ton of energy.

For the 3 midfielders, I would play Reyna as the 10, and then McKennie and Tyler Adams as my two other guys in midfield - one holding (Adams) and one box-to-box (McKennie). Musah could rotate in here for McKennie, Pulisic could swap with Reyna and play the 10, or you could try out somebody like Lleget for the 10, Kelly Acosta as the holding mid instead of Yeuill, who was not that great.

I would have a front 2 of Pulisic and more of a target man / somebody good in the air, so Pulisic could play off somebody like he did with Giroud at the end of the 2020 season so effectively. Somebody physical like Daryl Dike could be that guy, or maybe this new guy who got the game winner from France, Siebetcheu. I'm not sold on Sargeant.

Tim Weah played there for Lille at times this season; maybe he is a possibility there, too. If Weah played the 9, we would probably have even more interplay up front.

Steffen and Horvath at goal.

I like a 3-5-2. It doesn't leave us exposed in the back, or too thin in midfield. We have enough offensive minded midfielders that a late runner coming into the box might introduce more uncertainty for the opposition and create less predictable approaches to creating chances.

Pulisic was tired tonight. He and Reyna were trying to get it going together, and Pulisic's dribbles were too predictable. That one by Reyna early in the game was almost magic.
Expand...
I like the back 3 option and the best young player when fit to slot into one of those wider CB positions is Chris Richards. Was absolutely fantastic during his loan spell and rumors are he could go for as much as $12-13 million if Bayern decide to sell. As a Bayern fan I’d be much happier with a loan to Hoffenheim for a second season to let him keep developing similar to what Bayern did with a young David Alaba.
 
I thought GGG had the tactics all wrong and made his first subs wayyy too late. That was a C performance IMO.
 
cusefan88 said:
I thought GGG had the tactics all wrong and made his first subs wayyy too late. That was a C performance IMO.
Expand...
I want to know what Berhalter has to do to get some actual heat.

This roster is becoming less MLS dependent hopefully becoming less dependent for national team coaches from MLS is next.
 
Alsacs said:
I want to know what Berhalter has to do to get some actual heat.

This roster is becoming less MLS dependent hopefully becoming less dependent for national team coaches from MLS is next.
Expand...

Now that SUM and MLS are decoupling it's possible Garber will start to have less influence. Tbh with this roster...Bob Bradley would be a good manager.
 
Tonight's historic starting lineup...

This isn't the best starting lineup of players available. Bye Berhalter!
 
Toga said:
That was a grade school level defensive blunder.
Expand...
Mark McKenzie should be banished from any national team play for at least a year! That was horrible and inexcusable. The US has to have players that aren’t so stupid!
 
McKenzie deserves some props for his defensive turn-around. Talk about a horror start, but he had two excellent defensive plays around the 56th-59th minute. Second one got a lot of coverage, but the first one, Mx had a pinpoint pass into the halfspace behind him, he closed the shot, was taken against his momentum, and still was disruptive enough to keep the attacker off balance to sky the shot. awesome span in 4 minutes for him.
 
So we have VAR and nothing for that challenge? Can’t wait for Herrera to score the winner now
 
this is pro wrestling now. Complete with fans pelting the pitch with garbage at the heels.
 
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