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Message: [QUOTE="Forza Azzurri, post: 4149780, member: 1452"] I give Berhalter really high marks for rebuilding the entire program after the debacle of 2018. And he seems to have created tight cohesion within the locker room. I think, as he has figured out his team, there is less experimentation in terms of formations and positions than there was earlier in qualifying and back into the summer although this last game was a problem). Having said all of the above, I agree completely with your concerns and the reasons for those concerns. He is not a next level coach, at this time, and I have my doubts as to whether he can become a next level coach. The key to coaching is putting your optimal eleven on the pitch, not necessarily your best eleven, and then making sure each player's role on the field contributes to that optimality. I think he is struggling in this area. Let me give you an example which, I believe, 100% support your point: The big problem in the first El Salvador game was spacing upfront. Reyna was deployed as a winger but kept cutting inside to the point that he and Pepi were on top of each other. Aaronson, who in this game was deployed as the third leg of the midfield trident, was also consistently invading that same space. 3 guys in the same area is no bueno. McKennie also kept rushing into that same space. What was fixed? Well, Weah was the right wing for this game, instead of Reyna, and he thrives in that role - both staying advanced and providing width. McKennie's spacing with Weah was much better and the trident of the two of them and Dest was very effective. No coincidence that most of the danger came down the right-hand side. What stayed broken? Well, Pulisic took on the role of Reyna in this game, continually cutting into the middle of the field (which was packed with el Salvadoreans, btw). This created poor spacing between him and Musah (and took away the vertical thrusts down the channel that make Musah so effective) and also took away the width on the left side of the field. What did Berhalter completely screw up? Ferreira's role in the game was more akin to a false 9 (To be clear, I did not realize this. I had to read it.) his dropping back into the midfield was by design (my assumption was that he was hunting the game) in order to help with possession. It is really hard to play the role of a false nine effectively and it is really hard to play with a false nine. Looking at teams that have had success with a false nine is looking at a who's who of great teams. Looking at a roster of successful false nines includes Messi, Benzema, Totti...We give you Ferreira??? While the idea was tactically sound, we just don't have the personnel, nor the soccer IQ, to execute it. Much like the Honduras game with the formation change and putting Adams at RB, this was, IMHO, pure over-think. Greg, you are not Guardiola and you do not have Lionel Messi, Xavi and Iniesta on your roster. This is also Concacaf, not Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. KISS and execute. [/QUOTE]

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