USMNT soccer team thread
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creatorsgam
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Would LOVE this!
orangenauburn
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Hope Hamid gets some good looks
Forza Azzurri
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Agreed...timing simply has not worked to watch anything so haven't seen any games but the fact that Germany's B team can play with Chile's A team is scary...
One thing about Germany..they put their mind to something and they get it done...
They revamped their entire youth program coming out of Euro 2000 and the results speak for themselves...
Forza Azzurri
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BTW, there is a great documentary on Netflix called Les Bleus.
It is the story of French football, and how it mirrors French society, over the last 20 years...
It starts with the run up to the 1998 World Cup.
I am about 3/4 of the way through.
It is in French with English sub-titles...
Well worth watching if you have Netflix and like documentaries...
Germany B team is pounding Mexico 3-0.
The Germans are loaded. This team isn't even a true B squad its probably closer to be a C squad and they are humbling the Mexicans.
It looks like we will see a Chile-Germany rematch.
USA is playing Ghana on Saturday.
The Germans are loaded. This team isn't even a true B squad its probably closer to be a C squad and they are humbling the Mexicans.
It looks like we will see a Chile-Germany rematch.
USA is playing Ghana on Saturday.
KaiserUEO
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when was the 1st 1?
Last week Chile and Germany drew 1-1.
KaiserUEO
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They played in this Confederations Cup. This tournament right now is the dress rehearsal to the World Cup one year out from the country that is going to host the World Cup.
The 8 teams are the host country for the World Cup(Russia), reigning World Cup winner(Germany) and the Champions of CONCACAF( Mexico),CONMEBOL(Chile), UEFA(Portugal), Africa(Cameroon), Asia(Australia), Oceania(New Zealand)
The Final of the Confederations Cup is a rematch from the group stage Germany vs. Chile.
He is a English kid who was never cracking their lineup.
Not sure good he is but more depth is better. I can't believe Wondo is still getting starts with the national team.
DeGrozz
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Dwyer is a great addition to the team. For the last 4 or 5 years in the MLS he's been one of those players that SKC supporters have thought 'Yeah, he's a punk, but he's our punk". (Kinda like a Devendorf, but not that extreme.)
Always plays with a chip on his shoulder, and has scored some really great goals -- off the top of my head, he's probably been about 15 goals/year for the last 3 or 4 years. Plus, now that he's all-out for the US, his offspring will definitely be playing for the stars and stripes. They'll probably have some of the best DNA for it in the world! (He's married to USWNT star Sidney Leroux).
Really excited for him to add some depth to the US team, especially with some of our younger strikers floundering.
Always plays with a chip on his shoulder, and has scored some really great goals -- off the top of my head, he's probably been about 15 goals/year for the last 3 or 4 years. Plus, now that he's all-out for the US, his offspring will definitely be playing for the stars and stripes. They'll probably have some of the best DNA for it in the world! (He's married to USWNT star Sidney Leroux).
Really excited for him to add some depth to the US team, especially with some of our younger strikers floundering.
IthacaMatt
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Jogi Loew is a terrific coach tactically, very underrated. He is going to make a wonderful club coach when he eventually leaves the German national team.
IthacaMatt
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IthacaMatt
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I think today we saw that Dwyer is going to be the guy who takes over Clint Dempsey's role in the team. He's going to be the attacking guy that just grinds, and bothers defenders and tries stuff. He works very hard, he's hard nosed and he can find the net.
Looking at Jordan Morris and Bobby Wood, I see two young forwards who both make runs down the channel and have pretty good pace, but not world class pace. They both lack quality in the final ball. I don't think either one is a long-term star for the US, but they will hopefully continue to improve. That's not a given, though, There are a lot of young guys out there like Juan Aguedelo and Freddie Adu who arrive with a bang and then kind of fade away.
I thought that the technical level of our midfielders is really improving. We have much more skilled players right now throughout the lineup than I think I ever remember seeing on a US squad, overall. This is also the deepest talent pool I think I've ever seen for the US.
I like that Klinsmann got us looking at European-born sons of US soldiers and the like to get us some kids who have been trained in Europe, just for the tactical sophistication. I like that Arena has revisited the best of MLS and harbors no bias against the league, like Jurgen did.
Now what we need is to keep the outreach and scouting going in Europe, and we need to really make an effort to recruit Mexican kids who have dual eligibility and get that tricky ball control skill and speed on the wings into the mix.
The young centerback, Hedges, did not do as well as he did in previous appearances (against Trinidad?). He got caught a couple times in the second half misjudging headers as he grew tired. Ghana was a physical athletic test, even if it was B side against B side. This was a good win.
Kellyn Acosta continued his very good play as a defensive midfielder. I could see him and Geoff Cameron probably being our best deep midfield pairing, and sit Bradley if he is subpar. Too many turnovers, although he is a tough competitor.
I think Villafana was pretty good, despite the penalty, and has surprised in these last couple games he has played. He might not be "the answer" at left back yet, but he's certainly better than Timmy Chandler is on the other side, or than Brek Shea, or 100 year old DeMarcus Beasley.
IthacaMatt
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This is exactly what I see him replacing that Deuce has given us all these years.
As for a few more thoughts on recent games (post Ghana) - I think Gyasi Zardes has taken a step back. He's got pace, but he makes too many mistakes with the ball. Reminds me of a poor man's Wilfred Zaha, who seems to be better and more talented than his results indicate. He might be running out of time to make the Russian team if he doesn't do something in the Gold Cup.
I would like to see Bill Hamid get a game in goal during the group stage. Kenny Saief, the guy from Israel, looked pretty composed on the ball, although you have to remember he was going up against tired players at that point. But he's got talent and poise, which we could always use more of. We get too impatient in our build-up play sometimes, and Saief has patience and a bit of guile to his game.
Paul Arriola and Kelyn Rowe both have looked promising so far. I wouldn't mind seeing Arriola as a right back, or a right wing back in a 3-5-2.
Dax McCarty was deserving of being on the team, but is he really much better than Sacha Kleijsten or Mix Diskerud or Kyle Beckerman or Benny Feilharber? We've got a lot of these kinds of guy who are workmanlike in midfield, but they are not elite level players.
DeGrozz
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I think we can speak definitively that Dax is definitely in better form than Sacha, Mix or Beckerman right now.
Dax has been in amazing form this season with the Fire and currently sits top of the table (though Nikolicic, Accam, Schweinsteiger have all be excellent on Chicago as well).
Sacha has fallen off terribly this season. Last year he was easily a top-ten (and most people would have him as top-5) player in the MLS. Since the Dax trade though, he hasn't looked himself. He's not connecting with BWP. He's out of position constantly, and his effort level seems to have dropped. It's quite shocking after being the brains in maybe the best unit in the MLS last year.
I wouldn't be surprised if Mix never sees the field for the USMNT again. His stint coming back to the US was awful. He clashed with coaches, he showed little work ethic, and eventually got benched for role players who had no business competing with him for starting positions. I think he's back in Norway now -- hopefully he can rebuild his career there, because he's got a great touch and offensive feel for the game that would be unique to the US team.
I feel bad for Beckerman right now though. He's been a workhorse for RSL and the USMNT for the last decade, but as strong as his will is, he's 35 and he's starting to slow down. It also doesn't help that his club team is coming apart at the seams, which is probably making him alittle worse than it should.
Benny is still great. Consistently good offensively. I feel bad he has spent the last two cycles on the outside looking in. It feels like he's more than earned his shot, but it just isn't coming...
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orangenauburn
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Agree. Wasn't thrilled with lineup
IthacaMatt
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Certainly a let down after the Ghana game, but Panama is not a bad team.
That said, Villafana was poor at left back, getting sucked into the middle over and over, leaving free running room out wide for Panama on the counter-attack.
I thought Besler had a poor game, as did Dax McCarty. Gonzalez was pretty solid and Guzan had 2 or 3 terrific saves. Kellyn Acosta came down to earth and was not closing players down as well as he has been doing as a holding midfielder; tired, maybe. Kelyn Rowe was very good, though, and showed some real confidence on the attacking end.
Dwyer with 2 goals in 2 games, but tired noticeably in the second half. Bedoya and Corona just didn't give him enough support. I like both of them on the wing or maybe at back. Zusi tries, but he's an attacking player, not a true defender. Aguedelo was not bad, but got a little too flashy after that first piece of skill worked. Morris didn't have enough time to impress.
A step back from last game, but they ought to cruise in the next 2. Top of the group will likely come down to goal difference between us and Panama.
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Solid thoughts... BUT... Zusi was solid in the 1 v 1 vs. Torres in the 17'. He shouldn't have been left alone back there, and used his body in textbook fashion to win the ball, offset his man's speed, and shut down a potential disastrous counter.
Won't go down in the stat sheet, but it was a great defensive moment and if he isn't there... it potentially salvaged the point.
IthacaMatt
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Yes, that was a terrific play, but overall our defense was pretty poor in the second half. We were really lucky to get away with the point.
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